Apple
To quote a long-time friend of mine, "I was Apple when Apple wasn't cool." My very first computer was an Apple IIe, and I learned some very basic programming on it. Even wrote a mystery game. No graphics. No mouse. No hard drive. Big ol' floppy drive (remember those?). I had the computer until I was in seminary, and then I got my first Mac. Macintosh LC (LC stood for "low cost"). A beige box. Those were the dark days for Apple, the days when it was thought the surest way to success was to imitate what was already out there. No one seemed to realize that if it was already being done, what sense did it make to replicate it? Why not try something different?
Then, the big shake-up came. Steve Jobs entered the picture. Re-entered, actually. Jobs had co-founded Apple many years before, had been shoved out of the company, and now he was returning—temporarily, they said, though it wasn't long before it became obvious he was there for the long haul. And without his return, few believe Apple would still be around today. New words entered our language. iMac. iPod. iPhone. iPad.
I remember the first iPod I saw. What in the world would I use that for? I mean, come on, I've already got all my music on these little silver discs. What use would I have for a music player? (Now just try finding me without it today!) I didn't buy the first iPhone, but I wanted to. It was amazing, all the things it could do. And I didn't buy the first iPad, but I wanted to. (What would I use it for? By the time iPad 2 came out, I'd figured out the answer to that question!) All my life, I have been a faithful Apple supporter, though the dark days and into these days, where it's cool to like Apple again. I'm even writing this blog on a MacBook Pro. All part of the legacy of Steve Jobs.
I even learned of Jobs' death today through a popup notice on my iPhone. His legacy, held in my hand. Jobs' creations, Jobs' drive, Jobs' perfectionism and micromanagement has left behind a creative legacy virtually unparalleled in modern history, a legacy that many other companies are still trying to catch up to, a legacy others are often compared to.
And as I've thought about that and seen the various tributes to Jobs online, it made me think of the irony of where I was when I learned of his death. I was in a meeting that was talking about the vision for the future of our church. I was in the midst of dreaming about the sort of legacy we want to leave behind. More than tangible things, gadgets and whatnot, we dream of a day when more and more people know and worship Jesus. And so we have to answer the question—what do we do to be able to see that legacy come true?
What will your legacy be? And how will you get there?
Then, the big shake-up came. Steve Jobs entered the picture. Re-entered, actually. Jobs had co-founded Apple many years before, had been shoved out of the company, and now he was returning—temporarily, they said, though it wasn't long before it became obvious he was there for the long haul. And without his return, few believe Apple would still be around today. New words entered our language. iMac. iPod. iPhone. iPad.
I remember the first iPod I saw. What in the world would I use that for? I mean, come on, I've already got all my music on these little silver discs. What use would I have for a music player? (Now just try finding me without it today!) I didn't buy the first iPhone, but I wanted to. It was amazing, all the things it could do. And I didn't buy the first iPad, but I wanted to. (What would I use it for? By the time iPad 2 came out, I'd figured out the answer to that question!) All my life, I have been a faithful Apple supporter, though the dark days and into these days, where it's cool to like Apple again. I'm even writing this blog on a MacBook Pro. All part of the legacy of Steve Jobs.
I even learned of Jobs' death today through a popup notice on my iPhone. His legacy, held in my hand. Jobs' creations, Jobs' drive, Jobs' perfectionism and micromanagement has left behind a creative legacy virtually unparalleled in modern history, a legacy that many other companies are still trying to catch up to, a legacy others are often compared to.
And as I've thought about that and seen the various tributes to Jobs online, it made me think of the irony of where I was when I learned of his death. I was in a meeting that was talking about the vision for the future of our church. I was in the midst of dreaming about the sort of legacy we want to leave behind. More than tangible things, gadgets and whatnot, we dream of a day when more and more people know and worship Jesus. And so we have to answer the question—what do we do to be able to see that legacy come true?
What will your legacy be? And how will you get there?
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