Are You Famous for Your Faith?

When we named our organization Famous at Home, we did so knowing it had a dual meaning—that we wanted to be famous not only in our earthly home but also in our heavenly home. At the end of our lives, we wanted nothing more than to know we had lived a life worthy of trust—that God trusted us to show up for him, and our family trusted us to show up for them. Everything else is just icing on the cake.

That’s because the fame we chase here is perilous. In fact, a friend of ours, a husband and dad who is well known in his field, told us one of his biggest prayers for his kids is that they never experience fame. You don’t have to look far to see how fame’s unrelenting pressures and idols can destroy a marriage, a family, a congregation, or a business. But that’s the selfish, earthly version of fame. There is also a selfless version of fame—one the Bible includes with its own list of people who lived out this kind of fame.

The writer of the book of Hebrews introduces us to these people, made famous by their faith, saying, “Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation” (Hebrews 11:2). These were everyday people who struggled with sin just as you and I struggle. But one trait set them apart from their contemporaries—their faith in God. In other words, they knew who they were and to whom they belonged.

They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Hebrews 11:13, 16

These everyday people became heroes of the faith because they were determined to live not for fame on earth but for fame in their heavenly homeland. The promise of Hebrews 11 is that this kind of fame is more than attainable for all of us because God “rewards those who sincerely seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Being famous in our earthly home comes from pursuing fame or significance in our heavenly home. That kind of faith not only helps us to know who we are as individuals—our identity—it also helps us to know who our family is.