June 22, 2026

Business by the Book

Matthew 4:24  And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.

Jesus became famous because He did things that no one else could do. Down through the ages individuals of all walks of life have been thrust into the spotlight of fame because they did something no one else could or would do. Many search for fame, but fame is not something to be searched for; fame is something that finds those worthy of that fame. Just as water always seeks its own level, fame seeks its own.

In the mid-eighties I was in Kansas City on business. It was a rare night in that I was alone in a strange town. I had a nice meal at an upscale restaurant in the Plaza area and walked back to my hotel. It was in the fall of the year, the weather was perfect, the trees were just starting to turn, and it was just a nice relaxing evening. It seemed that every block had a statue of some sort in a park. I began reading the plaques on the statues and noticed that every single statue was erected for an individual. There were no statues for committees. Each and every person memorialized by a statue did something in their lifetime that caused them to become famous. Some were soldiers, some explorers, some business people, and some were ordinary citizens that performed some extraordinary acts of importance.

Statues are not built for committees but for individuals that do something that brings them fame. If anyone reading this desires fame, do something no one else has dared to do and fame will find you. Most people however do not seek nor desire fame; they want to be average. The reason for this is simply conditioning. From the time we are young there is societal pressure on each of us to fit within a certain range. This makes everyone comfortable in that they have nothing to fear by the normalcy of everyone being the same. The only place in the world that is an easy path to walk is being average.

Too much success breeds jealousy, too little success breeds pity. Little criticism comes to the perfectly average, but the average person will seldom find fame. Fame, like statues, comes to people who dare to do the unusual. Jesus did, His apostles did, the people making up the first generation churches did, and today His children should. Daniel 11:32 tells us that …the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. Ask God to help you do something that no one else can do. It may just be that fame will find you, even if it is only within your small circle of influence. Outside of that circle, what does it matter anyway?

Dr. William Howe