Getting Ahead: Making assumptions

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We have all made an assumption on what we think or what we are led to believe. Recently I was picking up some things at Walmart and for payment of the items I was purchasing; I slid my credit card through the credit card machine. The signature page came up and as I was about to sign it, the attendant told me my credit card had been rejected.

We tried two more times and it continued to be rejected so I paid with cash and called our office manager to ask her to look into this problem.

When I got back into the office, she informed me that the credit card company said we were paid to date so we assumed that everything was alright. I sat down at my computer and started pulling off emails. I found one from a book company informing me that the same credit card had been rejected when they tried to process it. Our office manager immediately got back on the phone and the credit card company found that even though the bill was current, the card had been blocked due to a suspicious charge from another country.

They had assumed that the only issue was the bill being current. Now there had been an assumption by both parties.

This problem came up a couple of days before we were going to be at a week-long convention.

A deposit for all of our motel rooms had been put on that card and when we arrived they were going to swipe the card for the balance of the charges.

It that book company had not sent the email, we would have been standing there arguing with the desk clerk that the credit card company had assured us that the card was good. That would have been a tense situation for them and us.

Do you suppose there are times we make assumptions concerning other people? Are we absolutely sure we have all of the information that is needed before we form our opinion of them? Could those assumptions keep us from building a valuable relationship? It is possible that we assume things of the people we already have a relationship with and it creates tension between us?

These and other life questions will be addressed Sunday morning as “The Gathering Place Family” meets in the Washington High School Gymnasium at 10 a.m. for our Pre-Service Connection where we enjoy coffee, juice and donuts. Our Worship Service and Children’s Church then begins at 10:30. Come at 7 p.m. and be part of our Wednesday night Bible Study and Children’s Ministry on the third floor above Trends at 120 West Court St. in Washington C.H.

http://www.recordherald.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2016/08/pfeifer-mug-B-W-2.pdf

By John G. Pfeifer

Religion Columnist

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