So two famous people died yesterday: first Farrah Fawcett (to whom I paid much attention in my youth), and then Michael Jackson (to whom I paid no attention ever except when he made the news for some freakish activity like holding an infant over a balcony railing).
Each of these people had an effect on our media-saturated world. Even those who are not fans of Jackson’s music cannot deny the indelible imprint he made on contemporary popular music. And Farrah? Well, thanks to her, I misspelled the synonym for my kitchen taps for years. I don’t think I ever owned “the poster”, but I do remember coveting it once or twice.
It’s not everybody’s role or place to be famous – or infamous. Most of us live in relative obscurity for much or all of our lives. But that doesn’t mean that what we say and do goes completely unnoticed. You and I might never make the six o’clock news for reasons good or bad, but our every move is seen by the One who made us, who redeems us by his Son Jesus Christ, and who longs to be in relationship with us through his Holy Spirit.
Does that sound a little “big brotherish” to you? The difference is the heart of love. “What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it” (Matthew 10.29, NLT). God watches over us and sees our every move out of sheer love for us whom he created in his own image. That calls for a response from us.
The Lord Jesus goes on to say that people are worth more to God than sparrows. We don’t have to have the Paparazzi chasing after us for us to be famous. We are famous in the eyes of our Creator! We are famous in the eyes of the only One whose fame and whose attention truly matter!
The three Hollywood deaths that occurred this week (don’t forget Ed McMahon earlier) will be talked about for days to come. When you or I die, our death might be talked about for hours to come here on earth. But when we live in a growing relationship with Jesus Christ, our death will be a homecoming in heaven.
I don’t know about you, but rather than being written up in every newspaper in the world on my death, I look forward to being “high fived” by my Lord.
I’m praying that your relationship with God puts you in a similar mind set!
