Sunday, May 5, 2013

I don't want to like tomatoes

I don't like fresh tomatoes.  I never have.  I like tomato sauce, tomato soup, crushed tomatoes, ketchup and pretty much every other form of mashed up tomato, but I despise fresh tomatoes. 

Recently, I went to a luncheon and on my plate, I was surprised to see what I thought was a slice of yellow bell pepper.  I love bell peppers.  Imagine my disappointment when I flipped it over to see that it was a yellow tomato.  I offered it to my friend who was at the luncheon with me and he showed genuine surprise at my dislike of tomatoes.  Especially a yellow one.  Then he told me I have to want to like them.  I don't want to like them.

Oddly enough, I've been thinking about this conversation and the idea of wanting things.

I want to be healthy...but I want it while eating poutine and cheeseburgers.
I want to be a runner...but I want to sit on my couch and watch movies or read a book.
I want to know God's will for my life...but I don't want to have to seek for it.
I want grow in my Christian walk...but I'd rather sleep for those extra minutes.

All my wants have something attached to them.  I have decided I can't really want them that much if they are always followed by excuses.

How do I get past that?  It has to be a conscious choice - just like wanting to like tomatoes - to be different, to do different. 

So, instead of a cheeseburger, I'm learning to like salad.  Instead of a movie, I've signed up for a 10k in June.  Instead of sleeping in (this is the hardest), I'm setting my alarm a little bit earlier to have some quiet time and seek God's direction in the morning before I start my day.  They don't seem like big steps, but I'm learning that my choices affect the way I feel about life everyday.  I have to want to do them.

I don't want to like tomatoes.