Overcoming Insecurities and Embracing Your Role in Digital Discipleship Ep.5

Are your insecurities holding you back from sharing God's message online? Let's shatter those chains together! Join me, LeeAnn Fox, as we boldly confront the enemy's attacks on our confidence, stripping away the lies that tell us we're not enough, too old, unfashionable, or poor writers. We'll debunk these thoughts with the radiant truth of God's word, reflecting on Proverbs 28:26 and understanding the significance of trusting His wisdom over our own. 

As your guide in this transformative journey, we'll discuss the importance of taking that leap of faith to fulfill the divine plan God has for you. You'll learn to recognize and utilize the unique set of skills gifted to you by the Almighty, using them to further His Kingdom. We'll explore how negative self-talk can hinder your potential and how accepting yourself as God's masterpiece can help you rise above it. Let's confidently step into our digital discipleship roles – be it blogging, podcasting, or selling digital printables. So, buckle up and get ready for a faith-filled ride to empowerment!

If you are interested in taking your digital discipleship to the next level through blogging, YouTube, social media, and/or online Bible study groups, be sure to join my private FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/kingdombloggers
You can also follow me on YouTube where you will find a variety of helpful tutorials for navigating each of these important platforms: https://www.youtube.com/@KingdomBloggers

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Welcome to the Kingdom Influencers podcast, where our mission is to get more Jesus online. This podcast will equip and empower ministry leaders as well as regular everyday Christians to take the message of Jesus Christ throughout the digital realm. I'm your host, Leanne Fox, digital Ministry Coach and the creator of the Kingdom Bloggers Ministry, and I am so excited and honored to be a part of this journey with you. Let's get started, some Kingdom friends. Thank you for joining us for the fifth episode of the Kingdom Influencers podcast. Today's episode is called I'm Not Pretty Enough how the Enemy Attacks Our Appearance, our Confidence, as we Seek to Build the Kingdom Online. Okay, so let's get started. So, as you kind of maybe you've felt this calling to step into digital discipleship and you know we've talked in previous episodes like there's many different ways. You can be a blogger, you can do YouTube. Of course, social media comes in all shapes and sizes Podcasting, like what you're listening to now, selling digital printables on places like Essay. I mean, there's so many different ways to share the message of Jesus on the internet, but one of those specifically, is anything involving video. If you're watching me instead of listening right now, some of you are listening and watching to me on YouTube you're seeing me right and a lot of people I have found a lot of Christian men and women seem to be really hesitant to take that next step into the video part of things. A big reason for that is they think I'm not pretty enough, or a couple of other things, and we're going to kind of unpack what all those other things are. But I want to get started, like I always do, with a very important verse. This verse I don't really think is necessarily meant for this topic, but it really speaks to me in what we're dealing with as far as confidence in what God has called us to do. So it's Proverbs 28, 26, and I'm going to take it from the Amplified Bible he who trusts confidently in his own heart is a dull, thick-headed fool, but he who walks in skillful and godly wisdom will be rescued. I love the Amplified version because it adds those little things in brackets dull and thick-headed, right. Like. Who would think the Bible would say stuff like that? But it's so true and it's translated in a way that really makes us think. So to me, what this verse means as it applies to what we're talking about today he who trusts confidently in his own heart is a fool, right.

Speaker 1: 2:24

So as we whether it's video or maybe it's your writing abilities whatever it is, as you like, feel this calling. You are immediately often shut down by the thoughts in your own head, which we know. The negative thoughts in our head always come from the enemy. They are not from God, but sometimes they are so loud and maybe our confidence in God is not as strong as we want it to be, and so we start believing those lies. We're confident in the lie that's being told to us. So what are those lies?

Speaker 1: 2:52

I'm not pretty enough, I'm too old, I'm not of the best weight Like, I'm too big, I'm too little, I don't dress well, I'm not fashionable. I really don't have a nice background area in my house to record video. Or maybe you're not even doing video. Maybe it comes to the writing part. I am not a good writer.

Speaker 1: 3:11

Maybe, just maybe, you didn't do very well in school. Maybe you're a high school dropout. Maybe you know you have a very like. You finished school or got out of school at a like without completing it. So little side note here. I am actually a high school dropout.

Speaker 1: 3:27

I took a lot of wrong turns in my youth. I ended up getting pregnant when I was 17,. But I had actually dropped out of school before that, mainly because my parents left me unattended. It was like this whole drama. That's like a whole other episode. But I basically finished. I didn't even finish the ninth grade. It was about my ninth grade year that I was like I'm out of here, I'm going to go do my own thing Now. Fortunately, later on I did go get my GED and I joined the military and I did some college during the military and whatever.

Speaker 1: 3:55

But throughout my life, until I really kind of took on my confidence like I really believed it and I wear it. My confidence comes from God, not in my education level, not in all those wrong turns that I took, but those little voices do creep into my head sometimes. Now you guys know me those that have followed me on video through YouTube and other places for a while I can give you some pretty theatrical dramatizations of what that looks like in my head when I'm having these conversations. But if you're listening here on the podcast you can't really visualize that, so I'm not going to show it. But basically, when I start hearing those negative things, I'm just like uh-uh, not today, satan. I know who I am and I know what God has called me to do.

Speaker 1: 4:32

Now I do want to say that it took me a while to get there. So if you're listening today and you're struggling with these things that we're talking about, I don't expect that you're just going to be like, oh well, leanne said to stop. So I'm good, let's do this. It's a process, I understand that, but I want you to own the fact that it is possible. Start believing in what God says about you. Dive into scripture, memorize those verses. That way, those are the things taken up shop in your head, taken up space, and that drowns out the voice of the enemy and the second part of that verse. But he who walks in skillful and godly wisdom will be rescued. In other words, believe the Bible, believe God. Don't believe your own interpretation, your own wisdom, because your wisdom is being drowned out by the enemy. Okay, all right, here's some other ones. So I said this already I'm not pretty enough.

Speaker 1: 5:18

A lot of older women. So, if you didn't know, I just turned 50 this year. I am like I mean honestly I don't feel 50, but I have some women in my mastermind group that are older than me. I have one. I think she's in her seventies. I actually have quite a few women in their seventies who follow me and are learning the blogging thing and they, immediately in the beginning, were like well, I think I'm too old for this. I don't know where I fit and I'm like who told you that? God put it in your heart that maybe this is something you should be doing. He's dropping those little hints that led you to take an interest in blogging. So obviously you're not too old. That too old is from the enemy and it's not from God, because if God called you here, then he has a reason for you being here and it's not to believe what the enemy is saying. Okay, I'm not smart enough. So that was for me because, again, being a high school dropout or maybe you did finish school, but you know, you're a little older and this technology stuff really freaks you out.

Speaker 1: 6:10

I'm very fortunate in that I was in the military when all this crazy technology started taking off and so because of that I was taught it kind of as it came along, and so I'm not really intimidated by it, Not to say I know it all, like I still have a lot of learning to do, but I figure it out, but I've met so many women and men who are just like, yeah, I don't even know where the on button is. I mean, they say it jokingly but not really right. You know who I'm talking to. It's probably you, if you're listening. Today, technology can be overwhelming and scary, and you may think you know, I didn't go to college. I don't know this stuff. Well, I mentioned that I went to college, but it had nothing to do with this, like technology, digital stuff. I've literally learned everything that I do, everything that I teach my own students. I've learned it from simply being on the internet and following other people who sort of show me how to do it. Okay, and the last one that I want to talk about is really where I think the enemy is. I mean our beauty standards and all that. That's a big one, especially for women. But this last one I think is really powerful to both men and women, and that is the idea of who the heck do.

Speaker 1: 7:13

I think I am Like the doubt that God could use me. Like who am I to be sharing this? I'm not an ordained minister. I haven't been to seminary, I'm barely knowing the Bible. How can I share and make an impact in the online space when I'm just like a child as far as my knowledge of all this stuff, if you actually read your Bible and for those of you who've been lifelong Christians, there are many stories in the Bible where God doesn't use like I think really that's the majority of the stories here. God doesn't use those who are already equit, right, like honestly, I can't even think of a story where God was like oh, here's the most qualified person, they have the best resume, let me use this person. No, that's not how it works y'all. God finds the most unqualified person and he qualifies them Right. And so you know you probably heard this God doesn't call the equipped. He equips those he calls. And so when you start doubting your level of godliness or your level of biblical knowledge and using that as a measure of whether you can make an impact in this online space, again, well I'm just gonna say that's just nonsense. Go read your Bible, right? I say that lovingly, but that is one of the best ways the enemy gets us to not move forward.

Speaker 1: 8:29

I struggled with that in the beginning. I'll probably do a whole another episode about how I came in like how Kingdom Bloggers began. It actually started in a life group through my church. But I very much struggled with that. I had led a life of sin like you would not even believe and I was very new into my walk. And now it's taken several years since the day I hit the go button to get to this point. But I took the steps. I wasn't like, no God, sorry. I mean, it's really cool. I'm super honored, but yeah, I think I'm gonna pass because you don't want me Like I am not the person that's going to do the great things that you have.

Speaker 1: 9:06

Well, now that I'm a much more mature Christian, I'm like basically I was telling God no, which we all do, but I realized that God was wanting simply for me to leap, take that leap of faith to trust that he had a plan and to trust that he was going to guide me through every step of the process, because obviously I knew nothing. I knew nothing about technology. I knew really I barely knew the Bible at that point. But God wasn't calling me to teach the Bible, he was calling me to teach what I'm talking about today. You know, like the technical stuff, like how does all this stuff work so that I could equip those who do know the Bible stuff, right, and so God qualified me by equipping me with all these things and it's been such an amazing journey so far. So if anything I'm saying today resonates with you, you know I would love to hear your feedback. Like, go over to my Facebook group or drop a comment on our Facebook page or send me a DM, whatever.

Speaker 1: 10:00

But God calls those that he has big plans for and we know that we're not supposed to know the ending. I mean, we know the ending ending, like we know where we're going, but all that in-stuff in between we have no. Like five years ago, if you had told me that in five years you would have three websites, a YouTube channel, an Etsy store, a podcast and this course platform that helps thousands of students across the planet, I would have been like shut your face right. Like I totally would have said that because in my mind at that point I could not even fathom that any of that was a possibility for a little on me, because I did not have the confidence in myself and it's been through these last years that God has that.

Speaker 1: 10:40

I've allowed God like I first have to allow him, like he's over there, like waiting on you, right, but you have to be willing to step out of your comfort zone and trust that God has something big planned for you, and trust that he's going to send you the resources, he's going to direct you to the right people to enable you to make these things happen. He doesn't. He wants you to get out of your own head and not use the approach of well, I don't know how to do this, so sorry, god. He wants you to be like well, I don't know, but I can't wait to find out what you're going to show me Like that, what he's wanting from us, because each one of us, he's given a very specific gift and talent which, by the way, we're going to talk about that next week but he's given each of us a very unique skill set, and you might think that skill set is very insignificant, but, whatever it is, he gave it to you because he needs you to use it to help build the kingdom, to use it for his glory and unfortunately, so many people never realized that. But for those who do, like it's amazing y'all Like it's amazing what he can do through us in this digital space when we step back and let him take the wheel right, I just want to say, like scripture reminds us, he gave us each gifts and we are his masterpiece.

Speaker 1: 11:49

And I think that that second one is really important, because if you're thinking like I'm too old or I'm not pretty enough, especially that one, well, if you're saying I'm not pretty enough, then really you're saying God, you made me ugly and I think if you frame it in that perspective, like you would never say that to God. Right. But when you say negative things about yourself in any aspect I'm not this, I'm not that you are basically telling God that he did a bad job in creating you and we are created in his image. So always think about that when you start giving yourself the negative talk. Remind yourself that God don't make nothing bad. Y'all right? Yes, I didn't think that was proper English, but you get the point. He doesn't make anything bad. We are his masterpiece and he has created us for really amazing and wonderful things.

Speaker 1: 12:36

So if you've ever felt a calling, and it's because God has that purpose for you. But you have to believe in his wisdom, his wisdom for what lies ahead and not your own, that area that you are most afraid of. Say it's the video. Like, I don't wanna be on the video screen right. That is the place that he has big, big plans for you, but he's waiting on you. He has big plans not I mean yes for you.

Speaker 1: 13:00

If you think about it this way too, I like to turn things on Christians because it makes sense. Really, I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just trying to put it in perspective, because these are some things that people have said to me that got me like, oh, okay, if you say no, or you the pause button because I'm not ready, okay. So God has this big plan right and each one of us plays a part in that plan, but the planning has for you impacts, somebody else's plan right, and an example of what I mean by that so my church that I joined, what I'm doing now would not have happened had I not joined that church, because through that church I joined this life group and it was the people in the life group that encouraged me to do this. And then, five, six years later, the impact that kingdom bloggers, my ministry, not me. I don't ever want the glory to myself, it's my ministry and what God is doing through me.

Speaker 1: 13:46

And so I always like to say if my church didn't exist, my ministry wouldn't exist, and if my ministry didn't exist, then the hundreds and thousands of other Christian influencers that are impacting other people's lives would not be in existence either. And so take that to yourself, like if you don't do the thing God's asking you to do in stepping into faith here, out of your comfort zone, if you don't do that, then the big things he has planned through you for someone else, you're getting in the way of that. Don't be a person that gets in the way. Be the person who lays the foundation to get there, okay. And so I mean I always say, like, when you don't do what God's asking you to do, you're holding up a blessing for somebody else, and we don't want to be blessing holders, y'all, okay. So that's it.

Speaker 1: 14:29

I mean I hope this really like encourage someone today, because I've had so many, and it's mostly women. I'll be honest, reach out to me and they're just like you know, I really want to do this, but there's always a big but, okay, and not in a good way. All right, forget the but. I want to do this, change that, but to a. So I want to do this. So how do I go? How do I get going? What do I need to do? Where do I get started? Remove the but and put a? So, because the but just get in the way and starts giving you more of that negative talk again. That's like the enemy. The but is the enemy, y'all okay, and so, whatever area it is that you're struggling with, that is the area that you need to really like talk to God about in prayer, you know. Let him know that the enemy is really attacking you in these places. But also, you need to surround yourself with some other godly people. I say this almost in every episode If you are not surrounding yourself with a very tight knit group of other godly people, both in your in the influencer world, like blogging peoples, or, and in your personal life, like you know, a women's group, a men's group, other godly people pouring into you to counter those negative attacks, to build you up and encourage you Because, I'll be honest, my life group back in 2018, they are the reason that I credit all of this happening.

Speaker 1: 15:44

Because if they hadn't encouraged me and I had some big spiritual attacks, and we'll talk about spiritual attacks in another episode but he was coming at me hard and I was like, yeah, this isn't for me, I'm not ready for this, but they kept encouraging me. Because they did, I press forward and basically told the enemy to fly a kite right, and so if you don't have that, it's going to be very difficult for you to make progress. So, yeah, I mean, that's it, y'all. If God calls you into this, however that looks, whatever little gift and talent, creative thing that you have going on, god has a place for you to use it out here. And if you don't know where to get started or how to get started or where you even fit, reach out to me.

Speaker 1: 16:21

We can talk about it, like figure out where you fit in this digital world, because you truly do want to heed God's calling, you want to make good on it and you want to impact the kingdom in a positive way and use those gifts that he's given you for his glory. All right, everyone. Thank you so much for joining. We'll be back next week with another episode and, as always, remember, if you're not using the internet to influence others towards Jesus, the enemy will surely use it to influence them away from him. God bless and have a great week. Bye-bye.