Ice cream vs. Yogurt

an act of satisfying; fulfillment; gratification. The state of being satisfied; contentment.

satisfaction

It’s Tuesday again, and you know what that means… today is Truth Be Told Tuesday. Thanks for checking in.

This past weekend a good friend of mine posed the question on Facebook asking for a show of hands: ice cream or yogurt?

After reading her post my reply was once again a classic diatribe that has unconsciously become my regretful calling card when articulating a thought on almost any topic. Whether the issue be OSU football-they’re not very good and the Big 10 is even worse, unwatchable- or the need for school uniforms in public schools, when giving my opinion, it often proves difficult for me to get of my own way. As one reader put it, “your literary efforts are “drivel” at best.”

I’m beginning to wonder if there wasn’t any merit in his statement.

It begs the question, why do I feel the need to write op-ed pieces on everything from the poor state affairs concerning high school coaching (basketball) and the debate surrounding ice cream vs. yogurt?

When did this become a debate?

Once again, while reading my response to my friends post, I’m left scratching my bald-head asking why? (Below is my response)

“DQ, without question. Graeters, like Jeni’s, is immorally too expensive, and frozen yogurt, is well, frozen yogurt. If you want yogurt then go get yogurt, if you want ice cream, go to DQ. I can’t believe I just posted this. UDF is priced high for ice cream as well… maybe I should write about this for Truth Be Told Tuesday…”

After I stepped away from my comment I realized two things: first, I had to write about this lighthearted debate, and secondly, everyone has different tastes, but we all have the same need, the need for satisfaction.

“Ice-cream is exquisite.” -Voltaire

As comments poured in like votes in Chicago- early and often- lamenting each persons “dairy product” nirvana I realized that the world operates in much the same fashion.

The world and all that it has to offer with its many different supposed paths to contentment and satisfaction constantly bombard the life we live. There are a plethora of philosophies, worldviews and beliefs we can pursue to add meaning and purpose to our lives. Culture, family and the environment we live in all have the ability to determine our thinking and influence our behavior.

But when it is all said and done- and there is often more said than done- we all make one of two decisions; we will either accept God or we will reject Him.

There is no gray area or third option.

To accept God is to accept entering into His presence through the narrow gate of obeying His word and will. We reject Him when we decide to walk through the gate that is broad, entering into a realm of self-seeking pleasure and wordily pursuits that will be short on long term satisfaction and contentment.

As I’ve mentioned before, any opinion I might share finds it source and inspiration in the gospel, but in no way is my opinion the gospel. My beliefs are fueled by spiritual reflection, an introspective perspective, and personal experiences that have a firm foundation built upon the concrete slabs of failure, not the limestone of success.

Matthew 7:13-14 states; “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

Like I said, no gray area, no third option.

Finally, one of the best ice cream flavors I have ever tasted is Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream’s “sea salt caramel” It was while eating dessert at Latitude 41 in downtown Columbus, celebrating my second wedding anniversary with my wife in 2008, that I experienced heaven in its simplest form.

The moment I tasted this creamy delicacy I felt like the food critic in the 2007 animated Disney/Pixar smash hit, Ratatouille (rat-a-too-ee). Visions of sunny days at the beach, my mother caressing my soft face as a youngster, and running in the Saturday evening summer grass chasing lighting bugs as a child danced in my head like popcorn popping in a popcorn machine.

OK, maybe the lighting bug reference is a little over the top. Plus, can you actually say, “Saturday evening summer grass?”

Children eating ice cream. (Paris – 1962)

Anyway, if “crack” is anything like sea salt caramel ice cream I now understand why people sacrifice everything to experience that high over and over again.

I could go on about my first experience with “sea salt caramel” but the take away here is that my body was never designed to relive that experience daily.

My body needs more nourishment than just ice cream, and no matter the level of gratification and delight, the pleasure is short term. To stay healthy my diet must have food with substance and sustenance, one with nutritional value. In the end, I will need more than just ice cream to be satisfied, no matter how much I might love it.

In much the same way our soul needs more than the pleasures this world has to offer. Much of what is offered to us in a worldly sense is temporary and lacks the ability to generate any real, long lasting satisfaction. No different then a relationship needing more than sex to survive, the soul longs for more than what is obtained without God. Every individual has a void in his or her life that only Jesus Christ can fill, religion, philosophy or long-held traditions can’t provide long lasting peace and satisfaction, only a personal relationship with Jesus Christ has the ability to truly move the needle in our lives.

I like peach yogurt, and I love sea salt caramel ice cream, but I need more. I need something that will last for eternity.

I need Jesus Christ.

That is my Truth Be Told Tuesday for February 25, 2014. (tbtt . #45)

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