Don’t I Have the Right?

Last week I had my car serviced at a dealership in the metro area that uses surveys to measure customer service. Normally I don’t mind writing a review when I get good service; however, this is the second time the service personnel have pressured me to give them a good review. In both cases the customer service representative, under the guise of a joke, said, “Getting a score of 10 is really important. If it’s not a 10, don’t bother filling out the survey.” I understand the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard is a picture of those entering heaven. However, I find elements of the parable applicable to people who want to tell others how they think they should be appreciated and treated. In the parable some workers grumbled to the landowner, “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last” (Matt 20:13-15 NIV).