We all give food to the poor, make fruit baskets for the shut-ins and give toys to the children here and overseas. But is this an annual event or are we good stewards year-round?

A few years ago, my car had a blowout on a bridge with a flat spare tire. My mother, two sons and I, all of Spanish Fort, found ourselves stranded on the side of the Pascagoula Bridge early one morning. As hundreds of cars passed us in the morning rush hour, one man pulled over and asked how he could help. We asked him if he could take our spare tire and fill it with air. Without hesitation, he took the tire and warned us that it would be a while. He was like the Good Samaritan in Jesus’ story cited in the Bible. Jesus said, “Go and do the same” and this man was doing just that. He didn’t have to help. He would have to drive west on the bridge, find help, go east on the other bridge and get back on the west-bound bridge to get back to us. There were no shortcuts.

While he was gone, a state trooper also stopped to check on us. We told him help was on the way. He said he would check on us again to make sure we were not still there. The Good Samaritan returned in just under an hour. He stated that the spare had a leak that couldn’t be fixed and that he returned with another tire. We offered to pay him for his time and the tire. He refused anything. He just wanted to help because he had family too and if they were ever in need he hoped someone would stop for them. While he put the tire on our car we talked. Strangely enough he wasn’t from Mississippi, either. He was a Baldwin County resident too — and a true, good neighbor helping on the streets of Mississippi.

We can all better ourselves. Let us all try harder to be good stewards in the coming year. Donate blood, call a shut-in, write a soldier, pay it forward, help a stranger and expect nothing in return except God’s blessing. In today’s news we often hear how terrible the world has become. But I’d like to say that no matter how bad the world seems, people — good people — can give us all hope for a better tomorrow.

So thanks to all the good Samaritans out there — like the Daphne man — giving your time, talent and heart. You set a good example for everyone. God Bless You!