Here’s what Peter Keating, reporting about ESPN’s fourth annual World of Fame 100 issue, wrote about fame or popularity.

“You’ll find that our index teaches some basic lessons about the nature of fame. For instance, fame isn’t a virtue. It’s hard to say who the first self-created superstar was — Babe Ruth? Machiavelli? The serpent in the Garden of Eden? Sadly, would-be celebrities have been figuring out for a long time that notoriety can be its own reward. Athletes become famous for their excellence, sure, but also for their arrests and charitable causes and contract disputes and love lives. A list such as the World Fame 100 isn’t about the athletes who are best at their jobs; it’s about who draws the most eyeballs.”

So many of the World Fame 100 never learn to handle their popularity properly. You only have to look at what happened to former NBA star Dennis Rodman’s life to see how fame or having the most eyeballs isn’t a virtue. Oswald Sanders calls this “the perils of leadership.” In his book Spiritual Leadership, he lists the perils of pride, egotism, jealousy, popularity, infallibility, and indispensability.

Mark 3 – Investing in Eternal Things

Jesus’ popularity has been growing through the first few chapters of Mark. People from Galilee and beyond flock to see Him heal people and preach with authority (Mark 3:7–9, 20, 32; 4:1). Had Jesus been a “celebrity” and not a servant, He would have catered to the crowds and tried to please them. Instead, Jesus chose to withdraw from the larger group, which was mostly insincere and shallow. He invested His time in the disciples, who were twelve ordinary men, and founded a “new nation.”

The Kingdom Coach and Athlete don’t let fame or popularity control their lives. They wisely withdraw from conflict or crowds when it’s counterproductive to the mission.

Journaling helps you understand and respond to the Bible. As you journal, use the acronym HEAR to Highlight, Explain, Apply, and Respond to what you have read in the reading plan.

Bible Memory Verse –“There is nothing outside the man which can defile him if it goes into him, but the things which proceed of the man are what defile the man.” Mark 7:15

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