What Makes a Cheeseburger a Cheeseburger? (by Thom)

We had one of those 'head-scratcher' moments this past weekend.
Here in Dakar there is a chain of fast-food restaurants. Actually, each of the restaurants offer three choices: a burger joint (think McDonalds), a chicken place (like KFC), and a pizza place (a Pizza Hut knock-off). One awesome thing about these places is that they deliver for only $1! I had ordered from the chicken place a few time recently because with my dietary issues I can't have anything from the pizza place or burger joint. This past Sunday I was feeling tired of chicken so I decided to try something. I called them up and placed the order for Amanda and the twins. Then, I asked if they could send me a mushroom cheeseburger but with no buns. The man on the phone replied, "I'm sorry, sir, but that's not possible." I explained to him that I had an issue with bread and couldn't even eat anything that had touched bread, so couldn't pick it off myself. Again, "I'm sorry, sir. That's not possible." I tried 4 or 5 times to convince the man that he should sell me a bun-less burger but to no avail. Eventually I broke down and ordered chicken.
When the delivery came it was the man who answers the phone bringing our food. He explained to me the reason he couldn't sell me a bun-less burger: "We sell cheeseburgers. If we take the bread off the sandwich it's no longer a burger so we can't sell that." I honestly didn't know how to respond to that.
In the local cultures here there is a rigid adherence to the program. Flexible thinking is not something that people do, much less understand and because it's so tightly ingrained into the culture most people don't even realize they can't 'think outside the box'. During dinner Amanda and I were talking about issues Americans have that are similar (that is, times when we are so used to something that we don't stop to think about another way). Amanda's first though was the American commitment to materialism. In the US we are so indoctrinated with the idea of the American Dream that we don't really stop and think about the implications of it. It's assumed we will want the latest electronics, to own our own house, to have a cell phone, to subscribe to cable TV, or to drive a new car. I'm not specifically criticizing any of those options but rather the blind-following of those ideals.
During our meal we came up with other 'issues' in cultures that get passed down generationally with little questioning of them. Sometimes these chains get broken but sadly they often don't: racism, greed, the breakdown of the family, and the list could go on.
I haven't figured out how I'm going to get a bun-less mushroom cheeseburger yet, but I do know how to pray when I get frustrated with this cultural issue.

Nehemiah 1:5-6 (NASB) "O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands, ⁶ let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you.