A Papa John’s delivery driver received an unexpected surprise Sunday when he showed up in the middle of a sermon at Nelson Christian Church with a pizza order.
Pastor Mark Jones of Nelson Christian Church leads a prayer for pizza delivery driver Stephen Greenwell after surprising him with a more than $700 tip.
About 30 minutes prior, Pastor Mark Jones caused a few chuckles and perplexed looks from the congregation during the 10:40 a.m. service when he whipped out his cell phone on stage to make a call.
While the pizza was a snack for the leadership meeting after church, the purpose of the mid-service delivery was to help Jones illustrate his final sermon on generosity.
When employee Stephen Greenwell walked through the door with the order, Jones brought the man up on stage, shook his hand and gave him a small pink box that contained the money collected throughout the morning — $717.
Greenwell said he’s been delivering pizzas for about six months and is the father of two young girls. He’s received large tips before, but nothing compared to Sunday’s surprise. After being handed the tip, Jones led a prayer for Greenwell, blessing his family, before allowing the young man to return to work.
During his sermon, Jones spoke about how generosity must be motivated by love, not selfishness, and that when others give cheerfully, they honor God and, in many cases, create a ripple effect of kindness and compassion.
One example shown by video to the churchgoers Sunday was of a young boy named Myles Eckert who in 2014 found a $20 bill in the parking lot of a restaurant and chose to give it to a soldier eating at the establishment. Eckert’s act of kindness, which made the news, later inspired more than $2 million in donations to charity.
But generosity is not just about handing over a $20 bill to a stranger or putting money in the offering plate, Jones said. Generosity could be lending a car to someone whose car is in the shop; visiting someone in the hospital; making a meal for someone going through a hard time; donating blankets to a homeless shelter.