I didn’t mean to make a scene in the restaurant. But what the server brought me didn’t even look remotely like the salad I thought I’d ordered. I couldn’t see past a thick layer of shredded cheese.

Taco salad, I thought. She brought me a Taco salad. But when I lifted my head to protest, the waitress had already headed back to the kitchen.

I caught up with her nearly at its door and extended my plate, like Dickens’ Oliver, “Uh…sorry, but I ordered the Asian Salad.”

“We don’t have Asian Salad.”

“But…. but, I just ordered it.”

“Ma’am, we don’t serve Asian Salad. We have Thai Salad.”

Semantics. “Right. I ordered that. But this looks like Taco Salad! It has cheese.”

“We always add cheese. That is our Thai salad.” She looked put out and flustered. I just looked foolish, so I apologized and returned to my seat.

Not once in decades of eating occasional Thai salads, have I eaten one with cheese. I’d pounced on the name only, trusting I’d get a true Thai — eastern, crunchy, tangy, and cheese-less.

Generally, I avoid both cheese and fits. In penance for the fit, I ate the cheese — and regretted it later.

Choosing food to fill one’s belly has similarities to choosing essential spiritual nourishment. The menu is vast. But grabbing the familiar or appealing-sounding — church, pastor, book, or religion — without doing your homework, frequently brings unhealthy consequences and regrets.

If you’re spiritually hungry, and confused, consult the Bible. It’s the essential guide to healthy spirituality. Most important, talk to the author. God is available 24/7.