Sadie Robertson

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"The thing is, it's like God is my rock. I'm not saying that you have to live that way. I want to share my message because if it can help somebody it's worth it. That's just who I am. That's just what I believe" (Howard). In this quote, Sadie Robertson demonstrates her good morals and heart to serve God and the people around her despite being famous. Sadie Robertson is a teenage reality TV star who gives the glory for her many accomplishments to God. Robertson was born and raised in Louisiana, but has traveled around the world on missions trips and other activities. Even at her young age, Robertson has a boatload of accomplishments. She starred on Duck Dynasty, acted in Christian themed movies, written books, gone on a motivational tour around the country, and raised money for charity. In September 2015, Robertson partnered with BYOU to make and sell shirts, hats, bags, etc for charity ("Sadie Robertson of A&E's Duck Dynasty & ABC's Dancing With the Stars Supports Girls Empowerment Movement and Donates to Charity."). In 2016, Robertson went her Live Original Tour with some of her family and friends to share her faith, stories, and advice with teens across the country (Duck Commander). There are thousands of celebrities who act with the sole intention of becoming more famous or keeping the fame that they already have. Sadly, people often consider them heroes when there are thousands of others who use their gifts to improve the lives of others, not just themselves. To be a true hero, one must use his or her God given talents to glorify Him and act in a selfless manner. Putting all of one's effort into things like money, fame, and appearance does not make him or her a hero (Harper). Duck Dynasty's Sadie Robertson is a hero because she is a good Christian example among an often secular entertainment industry, a confident person even when others disagree with her beliefs, and a compassionate person when it comes to helping others.

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Sadie Robertson uses her influence as a celebrity to be a good Christian example to those who who do not know the Lord and to those who want to grow in their faith. While listing some of Robertson's many accomplishments, writer Diane Howard tells readers about Robertson's time being a guest on Dancing with the Stars: "Sadie is known as a young Christian leader and role model. [...] Sadie has placed second in season 19 of Dancing with the Stars (DWTS), and was very open about her Christian faith on air" (Howard). Like other celebrities, she has influence on the teenagers who watch this show or her family's reality show. She sets an example for these teens through the way she acts and speaks. Instead of acting conceited about her chance to be on Dancing with the Stars, she gives the glory to God. She uses the opportunity that He has given her to share her faith with other teens that might not know about Christianity. Robertson has co-written an autobiography about her life experiences and tips that she wants to share. One chapter is about pursuing dreams, and in it she writes about her dream to share her Christian faith with others: "Finally, when I was fourteen years old, I started filming Duck Dynasty with my family, and those episodes first aired when I was fifteen. Because of that television show, I now have opportunities to talk about God every single day-to about a million people" (Robertson and Clark 16). Sadie Robertson has wanted to share her beliefs since she was a little girl. God gave her a huge opportunity to share her faith through TV and social media. Now she can be a good Christian example on a larger scale for other teens and people who want to learn more about the Christian faith. Because she had the desire to serve God and be a good example to others, He gave her some huge opportunities to do so.

It takes confidence to stand up for something that not everyone agrees with, and Sadie Robertson has certainly shown her confidence by standing up for her faith and speaking to others about ways that she has improved her own confidence. As author Gabrielle Flank writes about Robertson's mission to spread confidence, she writes about a difficulty that came about because Robertson put her ideas out for others to see: "Being in the public eye and a role model to so many Sadie speaks about how she receives negative comments on Instagram and combats her haters saying 'Is the hate really worth me not being positive for the ones who care, I have to be confident on my message and who I am'" (Flank). Although no one is forced to believe the same things as Robertson, some people who do not agree with her will react by making hateful comments. Instead of crumbling under the pressure of these opinions, she moves past them and continues to share her faith. She acts confidently and perseveres because she knows that she can positively impact the lives of others. Billy Hallowell, in his article about Sadie Robertson's YouTube video that went viral, writes that Robertson, like most other people, had a hard time dealing with jealousy. Robertson decided to do something about it: "She went on to explain that she decided last year to start speaking publicly about confidence - a choice that she made after considering that opening up about the issue would actually help her own struggles with jealousy" (Hallowell). For the most part, people do not want others to know their flaws. Sadie had the confidence to post a video about something that she struggles with: jealousy. This not only benefited her because it helped her to be more confident in herself, but her confidence benefits the viewers who want advice about their own struggles with jealousy and self-confidence. Robertson exudes confidence in her own life by sticking to her beliefs and helps impact others by encouraging them to be self-confident too.

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Robertson shows compassion by using the resources and talents that God has given her to help people who are in need. Some of the proceeds went to a charity that impacted children in Uganda: "The Live Original Tour will be raising money to build a dormitory that will provide 60 girls a place to stay and she emphasizes the importance by saying 'literally everyone can just give a dollar and they will be able to help'" (Flank). After going to Uganda and seeing how poor some of the children there were, Robertson wanted to help (Flank). She, her family, and her friends could have kept the money that they made from the tour all for themselves. However, they decided to use some of it to help improve the lives of others. The book that she wrote with Beth Clark also shows her compassion. Robertson writes that she would pray about spreading her faith every night: "I just wanted a chance to tell someone about Him, so every night, that's what I asked God for. I did not realize until years later that this prayer was also a dream" (Robertson and Clark 16). Sadie Robertson has a heart to be a witness to others. In other words, she wants to tell others that Jesus died on the cross in place of their sins because if they decide to believe, they will have eternal life. This shows that Robertson is compassionate because she cares about the lives of others. Sadie Robertson's compassion has positively impacted people from not only this country, but across the world.

Acting as a Christian example to others, keeping her confidence level high, and using what she is given to help others: these are the criteria that make Sadie Robertson a hero for people around the world. Robertson became famous at a young age. Rather than do everything that she can to keep her fame and make money for herself, she uses the opportunity to share her Christian faith. Even when others disagree with what she does, she has confidence and does not give up doing what is right just because she is worried about what other people might think about her. She does not stop with keeping her own confidence level high, but tries to share this confidence with others through her books and on her Live Original Tour. She shows her compassionate side when supporting charities and helping give hope to those that do not know Jesus by sharing her faith with them. Sadie Robertson is inspiring because she uses her fame to reach out to others, not to make money for herself. She shares her Christian beliefs and gives advice to fans, while some celebrities are bad examples to fans. It is easy to let power or fame go to the head, but Robertson gives the glory from her fame to God. Often times, people persecute Christians because of what they believe. Something else that inspires me about Sadie Robertson is that she stands up for what is right no matter what other people might do because of it. Rather than be afraid of what others will do, she finds courage in the fact that God will be with her every step of the way. Sometimes I am afraid of what others might think of me if I talk about my faith. Like Robertson, I know that it is worth whatever happens if I can just help one person. Like Sadie Robertson, when we strive to give the glory to God in everything that we do, He will take us places that we never dreamed of.

Works Cited

Duck Commander. "Sadie Robertson." Duck Commander, Duck Commander, 2017,

duckcommander.com/meet-the-family/sadie-robertson. Accessed 1 May 2017.

Flank, Gabrielle. "Exclusive Interview with Sadie Robertson, Live Original Tour." The

Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 14 Sept. 2016,

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l. Accessed 5 May 2017.

Hallowell, Billy. "'Duck Dynasty' Star Sadie Robertson's Powerful Message About God Goes

Viral - and Notice What She's Not Wearing." TheBlaze, TheBlaze, 1 Apr. 2015,

www.theblaze.com/news/2015/04/01/duck-dynasty-star-sadie-robertson-details-personal-

Struggles-and-delivers-a-bible-based-message-about-god-and-jealousy-in-now-viral-vide

o/. Accessed 3 May 2017.

Harper, Charles. "How Should We Choose Our Heroes?" MY HERO Lesson Plan: How Should

We Choose Our Heroes?, The MY HERO Project, 2012,

myhero.com/teachersroom/lessonview.asp?id=9. Accessed 10 May 2017.

Howard, Diane. "Sadie Robertson Interview | A Heart For God, Faith, & Family." Sonoma

Christian Home, Sonoma Christian Home, 6 Apr. 2016,

sonomachristianhome.com/2016/04/sadie-robertson-interview-a-heart-for-god-faith-famil

y/. Accessed 29 Apr. 2017.

Robertson, Sadie, and Beth Clark. Live Original: How the Duck Commander Teen Keeps It Real

and Stays True to Her Values. First Howard Books Paperback Edition., Howard Books,

2015.

"Sadie Robertson of A&E's Duck Dynasty & ABC's Dancing With the Stars Supports Girls

Empowerment Movement and Donates to Charity." PR Newswire, 8 Sept. 2015.

Biography in Context,

link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A428037550/BIC1?u=powa9245&xid=f8205947. Accessed

30 Apr. 2017.