Have you heard of this new JOB called influencer? It’s a real thing! It’s people who put themselves “out there” on the internet world, be it….Instagram, blogger or Youtube and get paid to show you how amazing their lives are while not doing much other than showing off very expensive clothing or fancypants travel. Some even do tippity-tap dance moves as a way to draw in followers and appear as if they are just normal every day people living their normal every day lives – like you & me. But they are far from normal and what they are doing is very calculated and exact. While they lure you in with their fun personalities or incredible makeup & clothes…what they are actually doing is hooking you into buying whatever they are representing and in return making big bank on your caving in to whatever product they are pushing out to their viewers/followers.
These influencer’s are being paid incredible amounts of money. Many of them left real careers that they spent years in college training for to make incomes that most of us could only dream of making. In turn, people are influenced by them.
But what kind of influence are they really spreading?
Well, I’ll tell you. The kind that focuses on success, fame and money. Oh they’ll post amazing content filled with beautiful pictures of sweet & happy family lives and they’ll even flash their huge success to the viewers by snapping shots of the kind of cars they drive and in front of exquisite doors to amazing homes. You, the reader see a glimpse of their success that way and can figure out rather easily just how “hard” they’ve worked to attain the status or thousands of followers they have. Some influencers even throw Jesus posts in, ya know…for the readers who they want to show that they really are blessed by God for what they do.
It’s really misleading, honestly.
The truth is that being an influencer isn’t a terrible thing. But at what point is that peddling perfection to a world looking for acceptance and happiness truthful? You don’t have to be a genius to recognize their lives are not perfect. Every person has stuff — struggles, fears and even failures. Many of these influencers main objective is to appear more incredible, more beautiful and even more important than they really are. This may seem a harsh observation and I get it that the world is looking for someone to follow.
I only wish instead of looking for more followers to make more money…that these women would become influencers for Christ. By genuinely pointing people to God instead of products. Imagine the power in that kind of influence.
Don’t misunderstand my intentions here. I’m not telling you to unfollow any beloved online stars. Surely, there is something about them attracting you to their business/platform. However, I would ask you to examine your interaction with them.
Three questions:
1. Does following an influencer make you feel inspired or depressed?
2. Does following an influencer build you up, make you more confident as a wife, mother/friend, child of God?
3. Does following an influencer bring you closer to God?
I only ask because I have young adult children and I listen to them closely when they talk about who they follow. What I see is defeat or sadness at the lifestyles these influencers push on young people. It’s a strange back & forth image for young women, especially. How can any regular person live up to such standards of success? It’s a bit distracting to me.
It cannot help but open us up to comparison. (Uhh, hello joy thief)
For the readers or followers of the many popular influencers out there — the message of perfect hair, extra gorgeous children and eye-catching mcmansions is a big fat lie. All of that takes work. It’s not an instantaneous jackpot! Which reminds me how easy it is to become very disenchanted with your own lifestyle and capabilities. Which then leads to the sad reality that your life is just not as good as those you see online.
I don’t call that influential. I would call that misleading and fake.
I learned a long time ago to stay in my own lane. Focus on what God has entrusted to me. To be thankful for every single moment of my life. What God has blessed me with is monumental in the grand scheme of things in this life. My number one job is to point others straight to Him and the salvation he offers freely to each of us.
My influence on this earth has nothing to do with expensive clothing or hot steamy sales going on at Nordstrom. My value, my goodness has nothing to do with gorgeous makeup or outrageous vacations to places most people will never go. It all comes from Christ and what I do with that matters to Him.
What I do with all that God has given me also matters to anyone watching. The world is looking and I want to influence every person I meet to know the God of my heart.
How about you?
