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One summer I got a ridiculous number of flat tires in my 300,000 mile jeep.

One of those happened in a heavy rainstorm. The ground was soft, and I don't know why exactly, but I couldn't get the jack to lift the jeep high enough to lift the tire.

I was on a country highway near my home, with no cell service and maybe one car every ten minutes. I tried a few spots, even just halfway in the lane--I was afraid, though, because the rain limited visibility for other drivers.

A man pulled up behind me in a Subaru. He wasn't local; he had come from Tennessee to paint a local scenic spot. He not only lent me his jack, but he got out in the pouring rain and helped until it was done. We both had raincoats, at least.

He said that just the day before, he had a flat of his own, and someone stopped and helped him solve some problem he couldn't get around, too.

I doubt that's the nicest thing a stranger ever did for me, but I sure appreciated it. Stopping and helping may be a small kindness, but it can feel like a miracle to the recipient.



Growing up as a child whenever the family drove somewhere, if my dad saw someone with car trouble he would stop.

It helped that he was a real engineer and an excellent mechanic, but I think there was also a Christian duty in there as well for him.


Parker's Automotive is a pretty cool youtube channel, guy goes around in his truck and mostly does work for free. Seems like every day he's finding someone stopped in a lane.

I think he's been able to parlay it into an awesome youtube career, and the amount of people who stop on the street to sing his praises is unreal. Sometimes 15+ in one video, it's nuts. He's a hero to the people. Love to see it.


I try to stop when I can, and occasionally pick up a hitchhiker, but I don't risk it when I have kids in the car.




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