{"id":37880,"date":"2026-04-22T13:01:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T13:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/37880\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T13:01:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T13:01:07","slug":"tim-cooks-advice-for-apples-next-ceo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/37880\/","title":{"rendered":"Tim Cook\u2019s advice for Apple\u2019s next CEO"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/a> <\/p>\n

The big tech news of the week has been Tim Cook\u2019s decision<\/a> to step down as Apple\u2019s CEO and his advice to his successor. Under his watch, the company grew from roughly $350 billion in market cap to $4 trillion.<\/p>\n

According to the Wall Street Journal, when Cook took over for Steve Jobs, the legendary genius looked him<\/a> in the eyes and gave him a piece of advice that guided all his decisions. \u201cDon\u2019t ask what I would do,\u201d Jobs told Cook. \u201cJust do the right thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

What advice would he give John Ternus, his successor at Apple? \u201cI would probably say the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust do the right thing\u201d is excellent advice. The question, of course, is, how do we know the \u201cright thing\u201d?<\/p>\n

As the \u201cAmerica Reads the Bible\u201d emphasis continues<\/a> in Washington, DC, this week, we\u2019re thinking together about relating God\u2019s word to our secularized culture. We\u2019ve explored the power<\/a> of Scripture to change hearts and lives when we submit<\/a> to its truth in the power of the Spirit.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s another dimension to this discussion we need to consider today.<\/p>\n

Swalwell, Gonzalez, and personal morality <\/p>\n

Eric Swalwell went<\/a> to a Christian college on a soccer scholarship and often talked publicly about his faith. Then came his resignation<\/a> from Congress following allegations of sexual harassment, assault, and rape by four women.<\/p>\n

Tony Gonzalez is a US Navy veteran and lifelong Catholic. He told<\/a> the National Catholic Register, \u201cOn election night, when we got word that we were successful and won, the very first thing I did was praise God and give thanks and all the glory to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then came his resignation<\/a> from Congress after revealing he had an affair with an aide who later died by suicide. (For more on both former congressmen, see Mark Legg\u2019s excellent article<\/a> on our website.)<\/p>\n

Their public moral failures highlight the challenge of putting our beliefs into practice and point to a principle evangelicals overlook to our peril.<\/p>\n

A parable of fire ants and thorny vines <\/p>\n

I\u2019m fighting two losing battles in my yard this spring.<\/p>\n

One problem is perennial: Fire ants love our home. I sprinkle on their mounds what I\u2019m told to use in our part of the world, and it does in fact \u201ckill\u201d the mound. But before long, there\u2019s another one a few feet away. And over time, ants even reclaim the mound I thought I killed.<\/p>\n

This is because they build tunnels underground that connect their nests and mounds, employing<\/a> pheromones to organize construction without a central planner and adapting<\/a> their tunnel depth to moisture and heat. During heavy rains such as we have had this spring, they create rafts by linking their bodies together, floating on the surface of the water, and starting new colonies where they land.<\/p>\n

In other words, they\u2019re smarter than I am.<\/p>\n

My other problem is new: Greenbrier vines have invaded<\/a> our yard as well. These slender, thorny vines grow up through shrubbery and other plants. Their tuberous roots can be over six inches wide underground. I am not strong enough to pull the roots out, so I\u2019m forced to cut the vines I can see and remove them. But in only a few days, they grow back.<\/p>\n

In other words, they\u2019re tougher than I am.<\/p>\n

But I\u2019m at least smart enough to try to learn from those smarter than I am. In this case, I learned from fire ants the importance of community. Accordingly, I reached out to a lawn service whose professionals have the tools and expertise to extract the vines I cannot remove. Over time, they\u2019ll solve my second problem.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll be fighting the first one until my lawn is someone else\u2019s problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cIron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another\u201d <\/p>\n

I say that to say this: God\u2019s word is most transformative in our lives when we choose to obey it in accountable community with others.<\/p>\n

Lifeway Research has released<\/a> new data showing that weekly churchgoers are much more likely to embrace biblical truth than those who attend less often. For example:<\/p>\n

68 percent of frequent churchgoers strongly agreed that \u201csex outside of traditional marriage is a sin,\u201d compared with 42 percent of infrequent churchgoers. 61 percent of frequent churchgoers strongly agreed that \u201cabortion is a sin,\u201d while only 38 percent of infrequent churchgoers said the same. 71 percent of frequent churchgoers strongly disagreed that \u201cpeople should be able to choose their gender regardless of their biological sex,\u201d but only 51 percent of infrequent churchgoers said the same. 67 percent of frequent churchgoers strongly disagreed that \u201cthe Bible\u2019s condemnation of homosexual behavior doesn\u2019t apply today,\u201d but only 41 percent of infrequent churchgoers said the same. <\/p>\n

This only makes sense. The more countercultural biblical morality becomes, the more we need countercultural community to encourage us in fidelity to biblical truth. We are therefore commanded to \u201cconfess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed\u201d (James 5:16). We are to \u201cencourage one another and build one another up\u201d (1 Thessalonians 5:11), knowing that \u201ciron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another\u201d (Proverbs 27:17).<\/p>\n

One of the many ways Satan uses our relativistic, existential culture against us is by encouraging us to believe that all truth is subjective and personal. This lie leads us to think that we don\u2019t need anyone\u2019s \u201ctruth\u201d but our own and that, in fact, no one else has the right to correct us.<\/p>\n

Evangelicals can be especially susceptive to such spiritual isolation. We focus (rightly) on the urgency of individual salvation, seeking to lead all people to trust in Christ, but we\u2019re not always sure what to do with those who respond. Few of our churches have catechetical processes for growing people in faith. Many do not even have classes for new members, and many who do focus on practical matters of church membership more than on personal sanctification.<\/p>\n

No wonder loneliness, depression, and anxiety are at epidemic levels today.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat life is really all about\u201d <\/p>\n

Every significant step I have taken in spiritual growth over these many years has come through accountable community: people who pray for me and for whom I pray, spiritual sisters and brothers with whom I share God\u2019s word and seek to serve God\u2019s call.<\/p>\n

I have experienced the truth of Tim Keller\u2019s observation:<\/p>\n

\u201cIf this world was made by a triune God, a being of community, then relationships of love are what life is really all about.\u201d<\/p>\n

What \u201crelationships of love\u201d will you strengthen today?<\/p>\n

Quote for the day: <\/p>\n

\u201cNo man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent.\u201d \u2014John Donne<\/p>\n

This Week on Faith & Clarity: <\/p>\n

In this week\u2019s Faith & Clarity<\/a>, Dr. Mark Turman explores the growing challenges of reaching the next generation\u2014from rising loneliness to the impact of AI\u2014and what it will take for the church to respond with clarity and purpose. It\u2019s a hopeful, practical conversation about staying faithful, building trust, and rediscovering the church\u2019s role in a changing world.<\/p>\n

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