March 16, 2010

Number 11

VIEWPOINT

Dr. Fred Craddock is one of the masters of storytelling as a means of expressing Bible principles. He relates the account of his “breakfast experience.”

He was stuck in Winnipeg, Canada and in the midst of an early October snow storm which paralyzed the city.  Everything was shut down and his host could not even make it to Fred’s hotel to pick him up for breakfast.

So, for breakfast, Fred found himself at a crowded bus depot cafe about two blocks from his hotel.  As he entered, somebody scooted over and let him get in a booth.  A big man with a greasy apron came over to the table and asked him what he wanted.  Not knowing what the cafe served, Fred asked to see a menu.

“What d’ya want with a menu?” the man asked. “We have soup.”

“Then I’ll have soup,” he said. Just what he wanted — soup for breakfast.

The man brought the soup and Craddock says it was an unusual looking soup.  It was grey, the color of a mouse.  He did not know what was in it, but he took this spoon and tasted it.  Awful! “I can’t eat this,” he said.  So he sat in that crowded cafe warming his hands around the bowl, railing against the world, stuck in Winnipeg.

Then, the door opened and someone yelled, “Close the door,” and she did.  A woman came in. She was middle-aged, had on a coat, but no covering for her head.  Someone scooted over and let her in a booth.  The big man  with the greasy  apron came over and the whole cafe heard this conversation:

“What d’ya want?”

“Bring me a glass of water,” she said.

The man brought the water, took out his tablet and repeated the question. “What d’ya want?”

“Just the water.”

“Lady, you gotta order something.”

“Just the water.”

The man’s voice started rising: “Lady, I’ve got paying customers here waiting for a place, now order!”

“Just the water.”

“You order something or you get out!”

“Can I stay and get warm?”

“Order or get out.”

So, she got up.  The people at the table where she was seated got up, people around got up, the folks that let Fred sit at the table got up, Fred got up, and they all started moving towards the door.

“OK,” the big man with the greasy apron said, “She can stay.”  And everybody sat down. He even brought her a bowl of that soup.

Fred asked the man sitting next to him, “Who is she?”

”I never saw her before,” he said, “but if she ain’t welcome, ain’t nobody welcome.”

Then Craddock said, all you could hear was the sound of people eating that soup. “Well, if they can eat it, I can eat it,” he said.  He picked up his spoon and started eating the soup.

“It was good soup.  I ate all of that soup.  It was strange soup.  I don’t remember ever having it.  As I left I remembered eating something that tasted like that before.  That soup that day tasted like bread and wine.  I wished that had happened in a church,” he said.  “But sometimes it does. Maybe here, maybe this church, maybe. . . .”

In fact, maybe it will be our church!  I look forward to seeing you Sunday with a Bible, a smile, and a positive word!           RA