“But as for you, promote the kind of living that reflects the right teaching.”

This past week Apple delivered a stunning quarter of results.  Stunning because they reported $31B in profit in the quarter- amazing!.  But also stunning because they lost almost 20% in market value because Wall Street didn’t see unbridled growth and new products to deliver them even further up the market food chain. There is a law of big numbers and maybe Apple has hit that ceiling, but it’s just as much about our society’s way of keeping score and measuring results as it is whether or not they can actually get any bigger.  If we are always to measure by quarter over quarter, or year over year, then all companies will at some point peak and ultimately fail in the eyes of the investment community driving investors top put their money elsewhere. The irony is that Apple has enough cash on their balance sheet and they are so profitable that they don’t need Wall Street any longer and if not for the employee compensation that has an equity component, why would they need new investors, or current ones at all?  I am waiting for the first company that will finally come out and make this call to Wall Street and then see what they do.  The point is that after a while if it’s always the repeat performances that matter that we will all someday be unable to deliver.  Are we ready for that day?  And when it comes, will we be able to be like Apple and still hold out head high and see that the results delivered are still stellar!

Let’s be very thankful that God doesn’t grade us on repeat performances.  God is so loving and merciful that He knows that we can’t always get better period over period.  He only asks that we never stop trying and that we give all of ourselves to Him to strive to bring glory to Him in all that we do and then share His good news with others! Paul wrote to Titus and directed him to promote the kind of living that reflects the right teaching.  If we are to live as God desires us to do, we won’t be chasing the next big win or constantly seeking to repeat and overlap our achievements. We will instead turn to Him and seek His will and pace for our lives and then do all we can to live in, out and through the direction He provides.

Reference:  Titus 2: 1 (New Living Translation)