Surrendering Her Restaurant to God Didn't Sound Like a Good 'Business Coach' Idea — Until She Tripled Her Revenue

In hard times, she decided to put her money where her faith was: She handed her cash register over to the Lord.

“Sometimes you just have to give control back to God,” North Carolina restaurant owner Dana Parris told the Gaston Gazette.

Parris' diner, Just Cookin, had been struggling over the two years since it opened, so she tried a radical strategy to rescue her business: She said she put it in God's hands by letting customers decide how much they want to pay for their meals.

Just Cookin in Dallas, N.C., has adopted a "pay what it's worth to you" policy. (Image via Google Maps)

"[The Lord] just came to me and said I don’t need to do it, I need to let him do it,” Parris said. “The way I could show I was giving God control was to give him control of the cash register.”

Parris said the move has done nothing but good things for her restaurant.

Dana Parris lets her restaurant customers decide how much to pay for their meals. (Image source: WGHP-TV)

A few people in need have been able to eat and pay very little, while many more people have opened up their hearts — and their wallets — and paid a lot more than the going rate.

“You stepped out on faith," patron Roger Self recalled telling Parris. "I’m going to step out on faith, too."

Self said he then paid her twice the normal price for his grilled chicken sandwich.

“I thought that [letting customers choose prices] probably wouldn't be the recommendation of a business coach,” Self added, “but if the Lord is the coach, then how could she go wrong?”

All told, Parris said Just Cookin's revenues have tripled since she adopted the "pay what it's worth to you" policy — and the benefits of handing control over to God have been spiritual and well as financial.

"There's just a happiness and peace around here," Parris told WGHP-TV.

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