By Caleb Keith –
Two days ago, Apple hosted one of its regular press conferences. The highlight of these exclusive events is the unleashing of the latest and greatest products Apple has to offer. iPhones, Macs, Apple watches, and iPads once again become extraordinary. Each edition of these devices exceeds the last in power and beauty. However, Monday’s conference, in my opinion, fell flat. The general tone of the meeting was relatively dull, and the revealed products, while still incredible, spoke more of laziness than innovation. What I left with was the revelation that Apple is just like me: lazy.
Monday’s big ticket item was a “new” iPhone. The phone is labeled the SE (short for special edition) and its primary feature is a smaller 4-inch screen and affordable price. Many small handed Apple fans are excited to see Apple offer the compact device. The iPhone SE is the epitome of lazy design and engineering. Apple recycled the design of the iPhone 5 and 5s and simply shoved the current iPhone 6s’ guts into old hardware. Apple took a four-year-old shell, one-year-old hardware, smashed them together and called it “special.” The other two items on the agenda were a new wave of straps for the Apple watch (I already ordered one) and a smaller version of the iPad Pro. Both of these are undoubtedly great products, but minor updates that simply serve to freshen up Apple’s flow of incoming cash. Nothing released at Monday’s conference was truly new or exciting.
While the recent Apple conference didn’t excite or surprise me, it did give me an outside picture of how laziness looks and feels. To be honest, watching the conference felt like looking in a mirror. It reminded me how lazy I let myself become and what that can look like from the outside. If you keep up with the blog, you’ll have undoubtedly noticed that more and more of my articles have been cleverly recycled university assignments. My laziness doesn’t end with The Jagged Word, much like Apple; it extends into everything I do. At home, my laziness means less reading and more Netflix; at school, it manifests as last minute homework assignments; at work, it means late responses to emails or other necessary communication. I wish I didn’t struggle with laziness, but I do.
My constant struggle with being lazy is one of the many reasons I am thankful that salvation is not in my own hands. If salvation were up to me, I would get comfortable in my works and in less than a day revert to doing the minimum. My motivation to be righteous before God would surely come second to my own desires. Where I fail, Christ excels. Where I turn to laziness, Christ picks up the cross and brings me with him. Thanks be to God!
