Apple

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Think Like You Used To Think

I believe many people don’t think like they used to think. 

Think like you used to think

That might seem like a ridiculous thing to write. Of course, many people – probably all people – don’t think the way they used to think. We change our minds about things all the time. 

I’m not talking about a change of mind, thinking one way and then changing to think about the same thing differently. We can all hear new facts, or a different opinion, and change what we think. 

What I’m talking about is changing our thinking process, how we process information that comes into our minds. 

That seems to have changed for many people.

As a child, you may have woken up in the middle of the night and believed you were seeing a dragon by your desk. 

It looked real; you were frightened. You were just about ready to scream for help. But instead turned on your nightlight and discovered the dragon was actually a sock that had been flung over the back of a chair. 

The light and shadows from the moon, that pierced through the tiny opening in your curtains, caused your mind to interpret the shadow of that sock as a monster by your desk. 

When you shed a different light on the area, you could see that your original thinking was faulty, so you changed your mind. 

… And your heart rate. 

These days many people will not try to see the dark dragon in any other light than what is presented to them. Their minds will not change; they only see what is presented before them, without questioning the light that is creating the image. 

A recent example of this is comes from a company that I have been a patron of for many years. In fact, I have been a proponent of their products to others. 

The company is Apple. 

Recently they made a statement that they would prevent an app from their store from being downloaded to or accessed by devices they make. 

That’s a pretty bold move. 

The threat of doing this comes with a condition: they will shut down the Parler app from the Apple app store unless Parler sensors their subscribers. 

… Not all the subscribers, just those subscribers who don’t think like Apple or promote their ideology. 

When I heard this, the first image that came to my mind was the image of a commercial they had made years ago when their company was starting up.

The theme of the commercial was “Think Different”. The images of the commercial were based on the book “1984” by George Orwell. 

The commercial was making the point to break from thinking like the masses, like all the others and think for yourself. Apple was setting itself apart from all the other computer companies and saying to think about computers in a new way. 

Now it seems they have changed how they think. Now they want you to think just like them, like the masses. 

Apple doesn’t think differently any more.

Here’s the thing: Should we think like the masses? The pressure is on to think that way. But to think like we used to think, make sure your mind gets to see another perspective. Let the Bible be that perspective. Read it, understand the message, apply it, and keep yourself from just going along with the thinking of the masses. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you need to rethink, or see another side of right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

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It Was A Second Thought That Got Results

My second thought produced success. You know, that’s when you had decided against something, then changed your mind, and it turned out to be the best decision you made.

Recently I bit the bullet and bought a new MacBook Pro. I was about due since my last one was eight years old.

Once my new computer was in my possession, the big task was to transfer all my files, applications and information from my old mac to my new one.

Luckily, Apple has an easy way to do that. Basically you hook up the two computers together and clone the old one on to the new one.

In the end, everything is there – passwords, logins … there’s virtually no other set up to do.

Sounds nice and easy … except my old mac is so old that hooking up the computers is a little more difficult. To make things worse, the new computer has a connection that is not common yet: USB-C.

So I went on a search for the connection I needed. I went right to the store I purchased my new laptop from. I searched the aisles and then had an employee search the aisles. The connection was nowhere to be found.

I tried a second store that was close by and, though the employee was very helpful, he was unable to locate the adaptor that I needed to connect my two computers together.

So I tried a third store. This time I was fairly confident I would find what I was looking for.

This store is not an official Apple Store but it’s the closest thing to it. It even looks like an Apple Store in its set up. And like the official retailer, this place only sells Apple, and Apple-related products.

Unfortunately, they didn’t have the adaptor either. Not only that, but the employee didn’t even know what I wanted to do.

The one place I thought would understand my need offered no help or even knowledge.

I questioned the clerk, “You’ve never heard of Apple’s migration processes?”

He replied, “I’m a law enforcement student.” … interesting information about his future plans but his answer had nothing to do with the question I asked him!

I left the store discouraged and ready to give up my quest for the day.

There was one other store within walking distance, but I figured since they specialized in PC’s they weren’t going to have the adaptor I was looking for.

Besides, if a Mac store didn’t have it, what were the chances?

I started walking in the direction of my car.

But then I had a second thought: “I’m so close to this place, why not just go in and see?”

I walked the three blocks up the street, went in, and within about 30 seconds, spoke to an employee. I told him what I was looking for and he walked me directly to a shelf, reached up to the very top and then handed me my adaptor.

Amazing! … On second thought, I was super happy.

Here’s the thing: When is it the right time to give up on seeking something from God? You may have been asking Him for direction, or a solution, or even a miracle, but so far you’ve received nothing. Is it time when you’re feeling hopeless? … On second thought, your answer might be just around the corner.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you almost given up on? Leave your comment below.

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Apple Computer Prices Are Off The Charts

I’ve been a really loyal Apple computer fan over the years, but the other day I got a little discouraged with the company.

apple-macbook-2016-16

My computer is about seven years old, is still running well but showing signs that it’s time to replace it. In fact, the plan was to replace it this coming spring.

A few years ago I made an investment in my laptop to keep it going for another couple of years. Back then it was running slowly, so I maxed out the ram and put a gigabyte hard drive in it.

That certainly gave it new life and saved me a lot of money not having to replace it then.

But now I can’t update the operating system to the latest version – the computer is too old.

Best Buy has a trade-in offer if you buy a new computer, but my computer is too old for the trade-in rebate!

The computer is running fine and I won’t have a problem waiting until the spring to replace it, but when I do it’s going to cost me a lot more money.

Apple products have never been cheap. They are extremely well made, durable and reliable … but they are expensive.

I’m okay with that. But the new MacBook Pros they’ve just come out with also come with beefed up price tags.

Granted it’s been seven years since I bought my last laptop but, even still, the latest model is about $400 more than last year’s model.

To add to that, they are no longer upgradeable. That means when it gets a little older and shows signs of slowing down, I won’t be able to add ram or put in a newer, bigger, faster hard drive.

There’s a good chance I won’t be able to get seven years out of my next computer.

… I thought the whole idea of manufacturing was to mass-produce items so they cost less.

Companies are always looking for ways to entice more people to buy and keep buying so they add features that cost more … and there are always lots of people who want the latest and best model.

Consumers really jump through hoops for companies because they don’t want to own something that might be a little older or out-of-date.

Out-of-date matters when it comes to things like milk and maybe medication. But if a product still works, it’s not out-of-date.

If you look at all the cars on the road there are more newer cars than older cars. We seem to need to keep up with what is being produced.

Maybe it would be better if consumers got the companies to jump through their hoops … but that would mean we would have to be satisfied with what we have.

I don’t see that happening in the near future. And because of that, we’re all paying more to have the new bells and whistles on the products that are produced.

Here’s the thing: Consumerism is a threat to your spiritual life. We are so used to the latest, the newest, the updated, that when fads and counterfeits to God and the Bible come out, we can be tempted to go for them. We should always stick to the Bible as our rule. It’s old, but it’s reliable; it’s extremely well made (it’s “God breathed” 2 Timothy 3:16 ).

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What perfectly good product have you been tempted to upgrade? Leave your comments below.