Surprised by... Delight
In a previous post on Sabbath I mentioned a special Sabbath weekend event my colleagues and I planned some years ago. The aim was to bless and delight those who had generously given to Mars Hill Graduate School (MHGS).This event was not intended to be a fundraiser. Our focus was solely on what God’s desire might be for our guests rather than what we needed from them. We surveyed the 38 attendees ahead of time to discover some of their delights. Among the questions asked, we wanted to know what food brings each of them delight? We wondered if there might be a way to actually surprise each of our guests with their delights for our final Saturday evening meal together.
Enter (the amazing) Pamela, a gourmet chef who has won awards for her pastry creations. She was immediately enthusiastic about the idea and volunteered (like a boss) to contribute her delicious artistic gifts to the cause. We excitedly worked together to plan a delicious top secret table of delights.
Had I known ahead of time the amount of work this would be for all of us… well, I’m glad I didn’t. It was incredibly stressful. It meant driving all over town to collect many of the meals from specific restaurants. Pamela’s long-suffering crew was tasked with making the rest.
In the end, it was worth it. What occurred at dinner on that Saturday evening in Chapel Hill, NC was mysteriously beautiful.
The guests had to wait – for a long time. They were divided into six small groups, each served by one of our MHGS Alums. I remember when the first meal was finally ready. Andy was serving at that table. I summoned him to the kitchen to bring out the meal. He placed it in front of the guest it was prepared for.
“Oh my God!” She exclaimed, “Really? This is my favorite meal. I can’t believe we’re all having this for dinner tonight!”
Cathy was serving the next table and she brought out a custom ‘delight’ meal.
“No way… no way,” the man said, “You made my favorite meal ever.” Folks were beginning to catch on.
I watched in awe as, one by one, the meals were served. All thirty-eight meals of delight. The room sort of moved from silent bewilderment to hesitant acceptance to raucous laughter and delight. These special people, who could afford to eat in the finest restaurants on a whim, were delighting in eating one of their favorite meals.
I overhead:“Do you know what your meal is going to be?”
“It would definitely be a New York Strip, medium rare, with garlic mashed potatoes!”
“Yup! There it is!!!!”
[Laughter…just laughter]
And tears…just tears. Oh my… It was pure beauty. Finally came their desserts. Each one served to their blessed and beloved recipient. Honestly to try and put words to this would be, at best, inattentive to the glory we experienced together.
What Sabbath Delight moments can you create for those who support your cause? Whether you (like me) choose a rabbit-hole-of-extravagance or devise something profoundly simple, I believe your recipients will remember and cherish the blessing and delight for years to come. Does this feel unrealistic? I hear you…yet, is it really?
Do you have stories of Sabbath Delight events you’ve prepared for your givers? I would love to hear them. Keep ‘em coming!
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Blessings,
