Griffin Speaks

THE GOOD SAMARITAN

One of my favorite parables is the one about the Good Samaritan. The lawyer asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor? Jesus replied and said, “A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went off leaving him half dead.” “And by chance a certain priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.” “And likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. “But a certain Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him, and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. “And on the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return, I will repay you.’ Jesus then asked, “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” And he said, “the one who showed mercy toward him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.” 

On Friday, August 6, 2004 we loaded up the Lincoln Navigator and headed off to Atlanta, Georgia for a day trip. Alexis wanted to buy a special dress for my parent’s fiftieth wedding anniversary celebration in October. Just before leaving Montgomery I noticed a red light on the dash indicating that the battery was not charging properly. I am not very mechanical and simply ignored the warning. 

We had a great day in Atlanta. We loaded up and headed for home. We got as far as Valley, Alabama and the vehicle just shut down. I was able to coast to a gas station/convenience store off Interstate 85. There we were two adults and three kids stranded in the parking lot of a gas station/convenience store. I raised the hood and prayed for help. A young white couple came over and offered assistance. Kenneth Freeman and his wife from Phoenix City, Alabama became our good Samaritans. They jumped us off and followed us to a nearby Advance Auto store. We purchased a new battery. Kenneth informed me that my alternator was probably no good. He told us that we could make it home on the new battery if we did not turn on the headlights and air conditioner.  We followed his instructions and made it home safely. We were very appreciative of these good Samaritans. If you see a red warning light on your dash you probably should take it seriously. I will from now on!

 Greg Griffin is a free lance writer. You can read his previous articles by visiting his web page at www.greggriffin.com