She mounts the platform for yet another award. The picture at the conclusion of the music award ceremonies will show her struggling to hold the arm-load of trophies she has received this night. But as she approaches the podium for the last time to a standing ovation, there is a seriousness of purpose dimly visible behind her gracious, winning smile. "I know you are probably expecting me to give God the credit for all these awards tonight, but I'm not sure He wants any part of this." She lets the shock settle in for a moment before continuing. "In fact, it occurs to me as I stand here, that God may not have had anything to do with these awards at all. It wasn't God who came up with a great production, it was my producer. It wasn't God who made me famous, it was my marketing company. It isn't God who is even remotely interested in my popularity, it's my manager. Business is business, ladies and gentlemen, and I'm fortunate to have some of the best around me, but when it comes to God, He's far more concerned with how I live my life than He is acting as my promoter or the reason for my success. For all I know, He might be fighting against my success right now. So thank you, all of you, for acknowledging the hard work of the people around me, and now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get back home to my life as it really is, and right now - to tell you the truth - that life needs a bit of attention. You see, I've sacrificed my family for these awards, and I need to get home and made sure I still have one." No this didn't actually happen-outside my imagination, that is-but it is a way to dramatize a point. When we think of success and fame, the tendency has been to think that these things come as the result of some kind of blessing from God. I wonder. Why would we think of giving God credit for personal fame? What would lead us to believe that He is interested in such a thing? Isn't it more that we have bought into fame, and we think that since it is so important to us, it must be important to God? For all we know, God might be the most disinterested party of all when it comes to celebrity status. What if it's quite the opposite? What if fame is a curse? Or worse: What if it's idolatry? Are we rewarding the idol and thanking God for helping us create it? At worse, fame is idolatry; at best, it is a huge responsibility. Nowhere do I see it as a blessing - certainly nothing anyone would want to be glibly thanking God for in front of cameras. Fame is no blessing. That much has been made clear through the failure of those who have treated it as such. Fame carries a responsibility to tell the truth because the spotlight will not tell it for you. Fame works against the truth. It deals in myth, and those who have had any real impact on society from a celebrity role are those who have been strong enough to shatter the myth - politicians who have actually served their community, movie stars who have taken up causes away from the camera, or rock stars who have been quick to parody their own image. Now that Christian artists are cast in similar celebrity molds as the world, where they are set apart as more highly desirable than others, can we expect them to somehow be exempt from the lie of fame just because they are Christians involved in "ministry?" The light of the spotlight will always be a bent one, regardless of who it's shining on. This is true not only of those who shine the light and stand in it, but of those who watch as well. The general public wants an image to worship. It's us who have bought into this fame thing; I doubt God is involved. When He sent His own Son into the world, He shunned fame. At one point the god of this world offered Him the highest pinnacle of worldly praise, and He rejected it. And when it came time to seize the day in front of all creation, God has His Son humiliated on a cross. It is truly dangerous to think that one has been awarded some kind of special compensation from God due to a certain success in the world. It is equally dangerous to think that because of success, a different set of rules applies. Fame carries a responsibility - a mine field to be carefully and prayerfully navigated. It is far from being a blessing.
(John Fischer)
