When I’m asked for my input, I’m always surprised more is expected of me.

We’ve all heard the statement, “This isn’t what I signed up for.” Usually we make that statement because there is more to be done than we had initially thought.

… Like when a friend asks you to help him move out of his small apartment, in your mind you estimate a quick job, thinking it will be simple. So you agree to help.

But when you get to his apartment, you’re surprised. Nothing has been packed and your friend doesn’t have enough boxes. This means that the truck will not be loaded in a neat uniform, stacking format. Odd shaped individual items will create a haphazard, uneven load … and the move will take twice as long as you thought. 

This type of scenario happens to us repeatedly. And we are surprised every time.

As much as we don’t want it to happen, we can’t seem to learn from the previous experiences.

There have been times when I’ve gotten a phone call asking if I would complete a short survey. They promise it will only take five minutes … but it never does. 

Then they ask you to use only the words they give you to describe your answer. So your answer isn’t really how you feel. You want to answer “fine” but they will only accept “substandard” or “outstanding”. “Fine” doesn’t fit with either of those two options.

What bugs me is I fall for these asks over and over. I’m surprised every time and have to slap myself on the back of the head because I’ve gotten sucked in once again.

Apps are famous for asking us to rate them. They offer 5 stars to pick from. But when you do, they take you to another page with a series of questions they want you to answer.

This week I got an email about a product I purchased from Amazon. I saw the five stars and, like some kid who’s repeated grade 9 math four times, I hit the star of my choosing. Instead of accepting my rating, I was whisked away to a site that not only wanted a star rating but also a title for a review.  

“Great”, I typed. But that was not enough. They wanted a picture of the item … probably a picture of me holding the item with a big smile on my face. 

They also wanted a review of up to 200 characters. Without providing all this information I was not able to submit my rating. 

I spent another two or three minutes trying to get around having to provide all their requirements and finally quit the rating review all together. 

What a waste of time. No one was satisfied. They didn’t get a rating and I spent way too long attempting to give one.

The worst thing is that in six months I’m probably going to get a request to rate another purchase or an app that I used … and I will have forgotten the whole experience, expecting to click on 4 stars out of 5 and be done. 

Here’s the thing: There is more to our life than we realize. When you put your faith in Christ, He accepts you as you are, but He will ask you to grow deeper with Him and it will require more of you. The difference is the more you get to know Christ, the more you trust Him. You will give more of yourself to Him because you want to. Giving to God comes from a desire to enjoy Him more.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What has surprised you lately? Leave your comments and questions below.

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