As we can all recall, Chick-Fil-A was the center of controversy as they were accused of “forcing their religious views” on others when president Dan Cathy made his political leanings known regarding gay marriage.  You’ll never guess what the once demonized business is now forcing on others now – FOOD.  Yep, that’s right, food.

According to Fox News, a local Chick-Fil-A came to the rescue as a rare snowstorm in the South left citizens stranded on icy interstates and highways, including Highway 280 in Birmingham, Alabama.  Thanks to the kindness and generosity of the restaurant employees and owner, Mark Meadows, a good number of stranded motorists were able to find food and shelter from the storm.

Meadows closed the restaurant and sent his staff home when the snow started to accumulate, but a few hours later, many returned to the restaurant, unable to get home due to the weather and road conditions.  Audrey Pitt, store manager recounts her experience, “Our store is about a mile and a half from the interstate and it took me two hours to get there.  It was a parking lot as far as I could see.”  Due to the conditions, Audrey decided to leave her car on the side of the interstate and joined the bundled up drivers trudging through the snow on foot.  Describing the scene, she said, “At one point there were more people walking than driving.”

Birmingham, Alabama Chick-Fil-A owner Mark Meadows

The staff of the Chick-fil-A, a company founded on Christian principles, decided to lend a helping hand to the drivers – some of which had been stuck in their cars for almost seven hours without food or water.

The stranded employees that had returned to the restaurant cooked several hundred sandwiches and stood out on both sides of Highway 280 and handed out the sandwiches to anyone they could get to, slipping and sliding as they braved the falling snow and ice.  The best part – the meal was a gift and Chick-Fil-A refused to take a single penny for the sandwiches.

Stranded drivers were surprised by the free sandwiches and grateful for the hot meal.  Why didn’t Chick-Fil-A choose to make some extra money during the storm? They had a captive crowd of customers, unable to go to another restaurant, so why did they choose to give the food away?  Audrey explained, “This company is based on taking care of people and loving people before you’re worried about money or profit.  We were just trying to follow the model that we’ve all worked under for so long and the model that we’ve come to love. There was really nothing else we could have done but try to help people any way we could.”

Chick-Fil-A’s generosity didn’t stop there.  After delivering the food and even helping drivers maneuver along the icy road by pushing a car up an incline, the owner and staff took it one step further and opened up their dining room to anyone who wanted to sleep on a bench or a booth.  This morning, the weary staff members fired up their ovens once again and began preparing chicken biscuits. The only thing that Chick-Fil-A has closed is its cash register, giving the stranded motorists another free meal.

Chick-Fil-A played out the biblical values they were once fiercely criticized for following.

Matthew 25:35 “For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in…”

Will this example of Christian values receive the same publicity as the others Chick-Fil-A once verbalized?  Unfortunately, it’s doubtful, but for whatever it is worth, Mad World News applauds Chick-Fil-A for their ongoing demonstration of Christian values. We hope our readers will give Chick-Fil-A the positive media coverage they deserve by sharing this story on social media.

Christy Pepple, in Faith News. Mad World News January 31, 2014
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