The Bowl of Oatmeal

Paige sat at the table and looked at her bowl of oatmeal. “Aunt Lisa, do I have to eat it?” she asked. “I don’t like oatmeal.”

Aunt Lisa smiled. “That’s too bad, because that is what we are eating this morning,” she said, and turned back to the stove.

Paige had only been at Aunt Lisa’s house for a few days, but she knew better than to argue. Once Aunt Lisa had her mind made up, there was no changing it. Complaining didn’t work. Paige already had tried that about the dishes. She only got more to wash. But lumpy, gooey oatmeal? Well, that was just one thing Paige wasn’t going to budge on either. She never ate it, and she wasn’t going to today.

She drank her glass of milk and said politely, “I’m not really hungry. Can I be excused?”

Aunt Lisa looked at the bowl of oatmeal and then held out her hand. “That’s fine. I’ll save it for when you are hungry.”

Paige shrugged. Aunt Lisa could save it, but she sure wasn’t going to eat it!

It was mid-morning when Paige’s stomach began to growl. She was playing on the swing set, when little Ryan came outside with an apple.

“I want an apple, too!” Paige said, poking her head through the back door.

“Are you hungry now?” Aunt Lisa asked. “Your oatmeal is in the fridge.”

“But I was wanting an apple,” Paige said in a small voice.

“You can have one after you’re done with the oatmeal,” Aunt Lisa said pleasantly. She didn’t seem to notice the frown on Paige’s face.

“I’m not that hungry,” Paige muttered, going back outside. “I can wait for lunch.”

And she did. But when she sat down at the table, there was the horrid oatmeal bowl! As Paige looked around at the others, her heart sank. Everyone else had tuna sandwiches on their plates. Her stomach flip-flopped with hunger. Even the carrot sticks looked wonderful. But not the lumpy, gooey oatmeal.

She pushed the bowl away and didn’t say a word. When everyone joined hands to sing a blessing for the food, Paige only frowned. She wasn’t thankful for oatmeal, and she didn’t like Aunt Lisa holding her hand either.

Aunt Lisa was mean. She didn’t even care about how hungry Paige was. She just fed baby Connor his squash and talked about planting the garden that afternoon. The sounds of munching and talking made Paige feel sick.

“I can’t eat that oatmeal!” she wailed at last. “It is yucky and horrid and I will throw up if I eat it.”

“That’s fine,” said Aunt Lisa calmly. “I’ll put it back in the fridge.”

“Can I have a tuna sandwich?” Paige asked hopefully.

When Aunt Lisa shook her head, Paige ran to her room. She hated Aunt Lisa and wished a lot of bad things would happen to her.

After crying until she was tired, Paige sat up and looked out the window. Aunt Lisa was out in the garden with the little children. Maybe she could sneak into the kitchen and find something to eat now.

There were a couple apple slices in a bowl. It didn’t matter that they were brown. Paige gobbled them up. She was just opening the fridge when the door opened. Paige jumped.

“Are you looking for your oatmeal?” Aunt Lisa asked. “I’ll heat it up for you if you are hungry now.”

Paige shook her head.

“Would you like to plant a bean teepee with Ryan?” Aunt Lisa asked next.

Paige headed outside without answering. Maybe she’d eat grass and get sick, and then Aunt Lisa would be sorry! But grass didn’t taste very good. Paige even tried a few of the bean seeds, but they were as hard as rocks.

“You can eat the lettuce when it grows,” Ryan suggested, trying to be helpful. “I’m planting lots of lettuce to feed my rabbit, but I can share it.”

Paige gave him a little smile. “That’s nice, but I’m hungry now,” she said. “I’ll starve before your lettuce grows.”

Ryan looked at her seriously. “It is bad to starve,” he said. “Then you will die.”

Paige thought about that. “Maybe I would like to die,” she said.

“Will you die and live with Jesus?” asked Ryan. “That’s what Grandma did. Mommy said so.”

Paige frowned. She didn’t think she’d live with Jesus if she was being stubborn and sneaky. She knew that Jesus always did what was right. Then she remembered that if she died, she would have to meet Jesus. And He knew all about her bad attitude. Maybe she’d better not die, after all.

Paige felt tired all afternoon. She was sitting on the couch, looking at a book, when Aunt Lisa came to sit beside her.

“Paige,” Aunt Lisa said quietly. “I want to tell you something.” Paige didn’t move. “Ryan really had fun building the bean teepee with you. Thank you for playing with him.”

Paige shrugged. She didn’t feel like talking, but Aunt Lisa wouldn’t go away.

“Are you feeling alright?” she asked.

“My head hurts,” Paige mumbled.

“You probably need something to eat, honey.” Aunt Lisa brushed her hand over Paige’s hair. It felt good. “I’ll eat the oatmeal with you, and then you can have some fruit or juice.”

Paige thought about that. Did Aunt Lisa really want to help her get out of her trouble? Even when Paige had been so stubborn and grouchy? Maybe she did care, after all.

“Okay,” Paige whispered. “Could you heat it up, please?”

There were two bowls of oatmeal at the table when Paige sat down to eat. Aunt Lisa poured some milk over it, and it actually didn’t look that bad. She watched Aunt Lisa take a bite, and then put her spoon in her mouth. It was sticky and warm, and a bit sweet. She didn’t gag like she thought she would. Besides, she was terribly hungry.

Aunt Lisa smiled at her. “I’m sorry it was so hard for you to eat your oatmeal,” she said. “Maybe you were thinking I was being mean to make you eat it, but that’s the rule in our home. God has rules, too, and if we don’t obey them we will have consequences, too. Do you want to hear about a king that learned the hard way?” Paige took another bite and nodded.

“Once there was a king of Judah who thought he didn’t have to do things God’s way,” Aunt Lisa began. “He didn’t want to worship or obey God, so he built his own altars and groves to worship things that he liked. King Manasseh even put an idol right in the temple of God. But he didn’t stop there. He killed innocent people and encouraged everyone else to do wrong. When God warned Manasseh that terrible consequences would come, the king wouldn’t listen. ‘I don’t have to,’ he thought. ‘No one can make me.’ And so God sent the Assyrian army to capture king Manesseh. Of course, the king didn’t think he needed God, so he didn’t ask for God’s help, either.”

“Did he get captured?” Paige asked. Her bowl was almost empty now.

“Yes, the Bible says that the Assyrians put a hook in his nose and handcuffed him, and took him off to Babylon.”

“Oy!” Paige said in surprise. “Did he die there?”

“No,” said Aunt Lisa softly. “And that is the best part. It was when Manasseh was suffering as a prisoner that he realized what he should have realized at the beginning. He found out that he wasn’t so important or great, after all. He needed God. And so he began to pray. Not just any little prayer, but a really sorry and humble prayer. Manesseh realized that he had been very bad and pleaded for God to show him mercy. ‘I want to worship You now. I will get rid of all my idols and obey You, God. Will you please let me return to Judah and be king again?’ he begged God.”

Aunt Lisa stopped and smiled. “Do you think God answered his request?”

Paige shook her head. “Probably not, because he had to have his consequences.”

“I agree, that is how we tend to think,” Aunt Lisa continued. “But God’s ways are different than ours. He wants us to obey and serve Him so much, that He is willing to change the consequences and show mercy. That is, if we truly humble our hearts.”

Paige looked at her empty bowl. “May I have something else to eat now?” she asked politely.

“Of course!” Aunt Lisa said, jumping up. “Would you like some juice, or orange slices?”

“I love oranges,” Paige said with a smile. For the first time that day she actually felt happy. The oatmeal was gone, and her insides were not quite so hollow feeling.

“Thank you, Aunt Lisa,” Paige said, as she bit into a juicy orange slice. “These are good! But you didn’t finish the story. Did God let that king go home again?”

“Yes, he did.” Aunt Lisa said with a smile. “But I think the most wonderful part was that Manesseh realized that the Lord was God, and served Him after that. You see, God is really in charge, and His way is best for us. We just need to humble our hearts to obey Him.”

And for once, Paige thought that Aunt Lisa was right. It was happiest to obey.