The Applause

This past Sunday, as every Sunday, we had our Sunday Luncheon.  This is a time when 150 people from the community come to our church to enjoy a free hot meal together (between the two main feeding agencies in Norman a hungry person can eat every meal of the week except for Sunday lunch; that is why we do it.) This past Sunday was a little odd. After realizing that one of the components to the meal had not finished cooking, yet 150 people had already lined up to be served, we knew we had an issue.

Our solution, the only thing we could do at that point, was to send everyone through the line receiving a plate of mashed potatoes, green beans and corn, and a roll. We apologetically announced that we would bring out the not-quite-done component when it was finished and serve it around to the tables.

What follows is the typical thing to happen when you worship and recognize a god who is as creative and opportunistic as Yahweh.

Realizing that we had an extra twenty minutes to kill, I quickly thought through different "activities" that would provide some fun and intermingling amongst the crowd.  After failed attempts to have a group scavenger hunt (yes, I considered it) and a sing-a-long led by one of our homeless regulars, I thought that I might have to settle for plan C which was everyone getting fidgety and just waiting around.

And then as I was walking back to the kitchen to check on the food, "Steve", pulled me aside and said, "If you can pull the piano away from the wall, I'll play it to pass the time."  My eyes lit up with excitement at his offering.

(A side note about Steve.  Steve has been homeless and around FBC for a while now.  The reason he is homeless/poor is medical related, like many people.)

I helped Steve's frail, AIDS ridden body to the stage, and he sat down at the piano.  What followed was a blanket of peace and calm over the lunch crowd.  His fingers persuaded that piano to produce beautiful music.

In the end the food finished cooking, people's bellies were filled, and when Steve had to stop playing after 15 minutes because of exhaustion the entire room erupted in applause.

It really was beautiful.