I have always enjoyed going out to eat at cafes and restaurants. Among the small irritations of the last year and a half, has been the lack of safe “eating out” options. Before I discovered my gluten allergy problems, when I went to a new restaurant I liked to order a dish I had never had before. My allergy changed all that. So many things have gluten in them (wheat, barley, rye, oats) that the choices were often limited. When I found an entre that worked, it often became my easy choice. Now days there are more choices than there were earlier so you do not have to feel at all sorry for me, but I do miss the adventure of choosing something totally new off the café menu. Recently a brand of potato chip that is gluten free introduced a new flavor, Truffle and Sea Salt. Naturally I had to try it. It was ok, but it will not replace the barbeque chips that I like. We need a bit of each experience in life. A new adventure, even a small one like a new flavor for a familiar food can really be fun. At other times the certainty of the familiar is what really feels good. I like that mix in worship as well. A new song with meaningful lyrics can spark my sense of God’s presence, but at times it is the familiar hymn or gospel song that helps me recognize the presence of God. Either way can keep me open on the God-ward side. Give me that old time religion and also let me sing a new song in praise to God. The best of the new will over time become the comforting old song I love. It is the best of both worlds.