The Rich and Poor Have This In Common

“The rich and poor have this in common; The Lord is the maker of them all."
Proverbs 22:2

Whether you believe that the clouds opened up and God sent MAC, or believe that MAC is a future conspiracy of the anti-christ…you must admit the success of one who changed the landscape of technology of our time. This past week, as you may know, Steven Jobs, founder of Apple, passed away. After hearing his passing, a sense of sadness came over me. I’ve never known Steve. Never met him. Yet for me and my generation, this was the Thomas Edison of our time. His impact was epic! I remember working on a computer in college with the DOS program. Remember that? The black screen and green lettering! Man we thought we were in heaven! Then I remember working on the first Macintosh! I was blown away! Publishing became easier and you knew that a new era had just begun! A computer was no more for the government or large corporation, ordinary people could have access to technology. The internet comes along in the early nineties and the rest is history. How far we have come in just twenty-five years! Steven Jobs was one who brought us to where we are at today. Desktop computers, laptops, mp3 players, downloading, computer pads, phones, animation movies and I’m sure the list can go on! Yet his passing brings us to a place that each of us will face…death. No matter rich or poor, we come to the same conclusion….we are not invincible. The Lord has given us life not for selfish gain, but to create something that no one else can see, except the One who has given us intelligence and the gift of creativity.

In a sermon, “The Dash”, I shared the importance of the dates on a tombstone, but it’s the dash that tells the story! The dash represents our time given to us. Whether one believes in God or not, that dash is a reflection of our life and what we did with the gifts God gave us. It reflects a marriage. Family. Our goodwill towards men. Our profession. Our beliefs. That dash, screams to the world…THIS IS WHAT I WAS! Solomon writes,

“What profit remains for the worker from his toil? I have seen the painful labor and exertion and miserable business which God has given to the sons of men with which to exercise and busy themselves. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He also has planted eternity in men's hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy], yet so that men cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I know that there is nothing better for them than to be glad and to get and do good as long as they live; And also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor--it is the gift of God. I know that whatever God does, it endures forever; nothing can be added to it nor anything taken from it. And God does it so that men will [reverently] fear Him [revere and worship Him, knowing that He is].” Ecclesiastes 3:9-14 (AMP)

In 2005 Steve Jobs shared a Commencement address at Stanford University that I truly believe speaks to the hearts of all entrepreneurs and gives us a look into the mind of one of the greatest inventors of our time.

Video: Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address



Now go and fill in the “dash” of your life, so that one day others will look back and give praise to God for your example!

His call. His gift to us. Your purpose. Irrevocable.