The decision was bold. The ingredients were fresh. The professional chef was skilled. The taste, a spoonful of food, was disgusting.

The four judges, who are also mentors on the cooking-themed reality competition The Taste, did not know who had prepared their bite-sized portion. They didn’t know how much thought had gone into it. And they couldn’t figure out all that was in the tasting spoon. They did know, however, that the food left a bad taste in their mouths, and a bad impression in their minds.

Kyle Schutte grossed out the four judges with his “chicken-fried watermelon with pickled watermelon rind” in last year’s competition. When he was revealed to the judges for their comments, they were shocked that an expert chef gave them something they couldn’t eat. He did not make it on the show.

This year Schutte got a second chance. On the January 2, 2014, season premier, he tried again with an inedible “reconstructed caprese salad with basil-infused mozzarella.” Second chance blown, he was again sent home.

The lesson: We have a message to share with the world. It is one simple, delicious, message that tells of God’s gift to us. Jesus died and rose so that we may live with Him forever. There are, of course, other things that should be learned progressively. But helping others understand the gift waiting for us is that first important “taste.”

How often do we get wrapped up in other ingredients? in touting our skills? in preparing complex yet unappealing bites?

If I were someone unacquainted with Christ, I cannot imagine I’d want a sample of what some church members are subsisting on. (No good purpose served in illuminating the menu here.)

Don’t blow your first “blind tasting.” It is unlikely that you’ll get a second chance. But if you do, learn your lesson.