A family that prayed together before a meal at a restaurant in Oklahoma got a wonderful surprise when a stranger paid their meal because of their deed.
The stranger at the Jimmy's Egg in Yukon paid the family's bill and left but left a note that said, "Because you prayed, we paid. Continue to raise your sons in Christ. God Bless."
"She was about in tears, the customer who got her food bought," Sherry Thompson, assistant manager at Jimmy's Egg, said of the woman who was touched by the gesture, according to KFOR.
The women took a photo of the check and posted it on her Facebook page, which has now become viral.
Thompson said in their restaurant, many customers pray before eating.
"We see a lot of people paying it forward, buying for other people. Especially coming holiday time, we see a lot of that, we do. Because we have really good customers," she said.
She said the customer's good deed has a lasting impression.
"The majority of people are nice, but there are always some people who are not. And so it always makes it, you feel better as a server to know that there are nice, kind people out there," she said.
There are other paying-it-forward deeds.
Last month in Michigan, a football team whose meal was paid by a stranger decided to pay it forward by handing money to a waitress to cover a table's bill the next morning.
When six Lake Orion High School football players were eating at Iris Café in Orion Township, a man paid their bill that totalled $80.
"The guy told us to say 'God bless them' so we made sure we told them and they were like 'no, God bless him,'" restaurant owner Jill Gageby told ABC News.
"I was just so appreciative that someone would pay for a group of young kids when they had no idea who we were," Lake Orion football player Ryan Kolp said. "Deciding to pay it forward was just in response to the generosity expressed by one person and the sense of wanting to express our appreciation and happiness to another person."
Football player Taylor McCarty said, "The funny thing is, we did not do it to be recognised, just to return the favour. It was so awesome to hear that our small act of kindness resulted in another 30 people paying it forward."
More people have contributed to the restaurant's jar used by staff to pay customers' bills.
"Everyone was shocked when we would tell them their bill was paid and they would keep leaving more money," said Gageby. "It feels great to be part of a community that's so willing to pay it forward."
