In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”Acts 20:35 NIV
Several months ago, my sister and I started volunteering on Fridays at a restaurant called The Ransom Café. It is a unique restaurant that rotates several locations in the Mobile area. They added my sister’s church to their Thursday/Friday lunch schedule and this is when we became aware of the outreach and decided to become involved. The Ransom Café offers a variety of soups, sandwiches, pizza, salad, and desserts. It differs from most restaurants because there is no set charge; you pay what you can, enabling the homeless, elderly, and those down on their luck a place to get a warm meal for no or little cost. The idea is that those who can afford to pay will kick in a little extra to help those not quite so fortunate.
My sister and I generally take orders, pass out drinks, soups, desserts, clean tables, and visit with the customers. I realized last week that The Ransom Café has become something much more than a restaurant; it is a community all to itself. These are few of the stories from last week:
Mary * is a frail elderly lady that comes each Friday and generally eats a small bowl of soup and an ice water. We serve sweetened and unsweetened ice tea, but Mary was cold and wanted some hot tea. My sister was missing for a few minutes and the line was building. I looked up to see where she had disappeared; she was carrying a cup of piping hot tea that she had heated in the back which is something we normally don’t offer. This was a small gesture, but one that reminded Mary of her importance.
Jane comes in often and when I apologized about forgetting her name last week she reminded me that I could just call her “marathon woman”because of her love for running. She slowed my fast-pace talk down to remind me that she is deaf and my lips moved way too quickly to follow. She is currently out of work and is diligently looking for a job, but this short lunch break gives her a few minutes to share the love of her favorite sport and enjoy a nice meal.
Kevin brightens everyone’s day. He has so many physical problems that his mother told one of the volunteers, that it is too many to name. He has a hard time walking and a difficult time speaking, but he is always laughing and smiling. His mother works at the church and every week he gets his food to go so he can eat it upstairs with her. After Kevin’s food is ready, one of the volunteers grabs it and they race to see who can reach the top stair first. It is a small weekly game that both he and the volunteer look forward to.
John comes in almost every Friday. He doesn’t seem so happy and is a bit confrontational. He has been known for sending food back as if it didn’t match his order and he was at a five-star restaurant. This week my sister and I were taking a break and eating with our parents. John was getting an order to go when, all of a sudden, all of the volunteers came out of the kitchen clapping and singing “Happy Birthday” to him. I’ve never seen such a smile, his face lit up and it was obvious that he was genuinely touched.
My sister and I started working there to bless others, but the blessing has been ours. It is truly the highlight of my week. All of my problems seem to erase when I start taking orders and God always perks me up, even if I am struggling underneath. This must be what our Lord meant when he said, “It’s more blessed to give than to receive.” Maybe John was on target all along … The Ransom Café truly is a five-star restaurant.
Dear God, Thank you for the opportunity to experience the blessings you tell us about in your word.
Michele
*All of the personal names have been changed.
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