Encouraged By the Word

Episode 12: Free to be Me

• Legacy of Faith Church • Season 1 • Episode 12

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🎙️ Episode Title: Free to Be Me
Freedom, Identity, and the God Who Created Us

What does true freedom really mean?

In this episode of Encouraged By the Word, Becca and April discuss a deeper kind of freedom — not just freedom from something, but freedom to become who God created you to be.

As America celebrates 250 years of independence, this conversation reflects on identity, purpose, comparison, and God’s intentional placement in our lives. Through the story of Esther and other biblical truths, they explore how God uses ordinary people in specific seasons and moments for His purpose.

In this episode:
• Why God intentionally placed you in this generation
• Esther’s “for such a time as this” moment
• The danger of comparison
• Different gifts and different callings
• Freedom from fear, shame, insecurity, and people-pleasing
• Becoming who God created you to be

Key Scriptures:
📖 Acts 17:26
📖 Esther 4:14
📖 1 Corinthians 12

You are not here by accident. You are here on purpose. And you are free — not to be someone else, but to be who God created you to be.

🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout
📺 Watch the full episode on YouTube

If this episode encouraged you, be sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who needs encouragement today.

SPEAKER_01

We're back in April. That's friends on a method to encourage women through every walk of life. We know that life speaks loud, but God's word speaks louder.

SPEAKER_02

So if you're looking for a place to know more about it, a place for you. Join us. Let's get it. Encouraged by the word. Hello everyone. Welcome back to Encouraged by the Word. We're your host. I'm April and I'm Becca. And we are so excited to be here with you all today. This is an exciting day, an exciting month. This is our 11th episode. Oh my God. And it is gonna be a great one.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah, it is because this month is special because as you know, it's July, which means 4th of July.

SPEAKER_02

Right.

SPEAKER_01

And this year we happen to be selling, celebrating 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. So that's a huge milestone. Yeah. I mean, 250 years that we've celebrated our freedom. Yeah. And um, we're so thankful for those blessings. But you know, when we hear the word freedom, most of us think about like fireworks, flags, barbecues, hot dogs, yeah. The lake. Yes, that's what we think about when we when we hear that, right? Um, but as April and I started talking about what we wanted to discuss today, you know, we know we wanted to go along the lines with freedom. Um, there's another kind of freedom that's that's really important that we want to talk about today, probably more important, and that's the freedom to be who God called you to be. Yeah, who God created you to be. God created each and every one of us for a purpose, and we're just gonna really dive deep into that today.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, this is so good. We get to celebrate, we get to talk about freedom in Christ and that wonderful, amazing gift that we have as believers, right? Yeah, that's right. Um, and to be honest, if we really think about it, I think there's a lot of people, a lot of believers and non-believers that are just being controlled by things um in social media, they're feeling trapped emotionally, they're depressed and all of that, and that constant feeling that they have to be something that they're not. That's true, or just not knowing their direction in life, right? And so today we want to talk about what it really means to be free, free to be me, you know. You hear a lot of people say, I'm just doing me, just do you, girl, you know. But as believers, we have a responsibility and a great gift that we get to be free in Christ and free to be who he wants us to be and who he designed us to be.

SPEAKER_01

That is so true. And you know, one verse that keeps coming to mind for me while we were preparing, um, Acts 17, 26. Honestly, I had never seen this one like this before, but it says that he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. So think about that for a second. Yeah, think about that verse. He determined the exact moment in history that you and I should be born.

SPEAKER_00

Right.

SPEAKER_01

That is like I can't even wrap my mind around that. We weren't supposed to be in Abraham's generation, we weren't supposed to be in Esther's generation, um, George Washington's generation. We were made to be here in 2026, right now, not a hundred years from now. Right. This one, right now.

SPEAKER_02

I don't know if you've ever, I'm sorry, I don't know if you've ever thought about like your children, like, oh my gosh, I'm so afraid, like, times are so different, but they were designed to be here right here. If they mean they're gonna be a whole lot stronger than we are.

SPEAKER_01

That's right. And you know, I think sometimes we think, I wish I lived in a different time, but God looked right here at this generation and he said, This is exactly where I need you, April. That's this is exactly where I need you, Becca. And this is exactly where he needed you.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, and I love that, Becca. That's really good because it's a reminder to us that we are not here by an accident. That's right. It didn't matter how you got here, what happened, what the circumstances were, none of it's accidental. That's right. All appointed by God for this very moment. He knew what he wanted the world to look like, and he knew who he wanted in this world at that time. Um, he knew the technology that was gonna be here. He knew the challenges that we were gonna face, he knew the confusion of the culture and the world today. True. And so he's like, I need to put Becca here, I need to put Becca there, I need to put April here, I need their children to be born at that specific time for his perfect plan. And with all of that, he still chose us for this exact moment to be here, right? I think that's that's amazing. And instead of wishing that, you know, we weren't here during these difficult times and when culture is like this, maybe we should start asking ourselves, what is my purpose? Yeah, why does God want me here? You know, and if we flip it and we start thinking along those lines, I think it'll take the focus off of things are just so terrible. I don't want to be here, but I get to be here. All right, God, what now? What next?

SPEAKER_01

I like that. I get to be here. Yeah, you know, it makes me think of one of I know I always say they're always my favorite stories, but the story in the Bible of Esther, and if you're listening today, maybe you've never heard this story before. So here's the shortened version for you. Um, Esther, she was a young Jewish woman. She'd lost both of her parents. She was being raised by her cousin Mordecai. And through a series of events, I mean, incredible. This is just wow. She was chosen to become the queen of Persia.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Um, she didn't chase it, she didn't try to make that happen. Right. Um, God was the one who did this. He knew the end result, and he was quietly positioning her exactly where she needed to be.

SPEAKER_02

Could you imagine if Esther was like, I know God, I don't want to do that.

SPEAKER_01

I know, we wouldn't be reading the story right now. Right. So there was a man named Haman. He was con he convinced the king to issue a decree that would destroy all of the Jewish people. We've heard this before, huh? And suddenly Esther realized, you know what? God put me in this position where I can speak to the king. Right. But there was a problem. In those days, if she approached the king without being invited, she could be put to death. Can you imagine the fear? I mean, yeah, you don't think about that when you read these stories, but think about how that would have felt. Yeah. And she had a choice in this moment, just like we all do. Yeah. Do I stay silent and protect myself?

SPEAKER_00

Right.

SPEAKER_01

Or do I risk everything for God's people? Right.

SPEAKER_02

Do I stay comfortable being just who I am? Or do I go to God and say, all right, God, you positioned me for this moment, you know? Yes. Okay, so let's just continue with the story. So Mordecai eventually fills in his spirit, he needs to encourage her. And so he sends her uh a really, really good scripture. He says to her, and who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this. Right? We love it. That's so good. I love that verse because it reminds me that God is always working behind the scene. I'm sure Esther had no idea that she would get to, all with fear in her heart, approach the king without being asked, you know? And he wasn't surprised that Esther became queen. He knew it. He needed her to do that. So he had been positioning her all along. Every part of her story had prepared her for that very moment, right? Yeah. So we could look at our story and say, oh God, it's so horrible, it's so bad. But do we think he's using it all for good for his purpose?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, I think it's true for all of us, like you said. Um, I mean, we're probably not gonna stand before a king.

unknown

Right.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, maybe we will. God might use us for that. We're probably not gonna save a nation. Maybe we will, I don't know. But God has placed all of us somewhere on purpose. Maybe you're the only Christian in your workplace and you're supposed to be the light there and you're supposed to talk to them about Jesus. Or did you think about this? What if you're raising children that will impact the nation?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

What if your kid is is gonna be a missionary to Africa and save millions of people? Right. I mean, we don't know.

SPEAKER_02

Or walking around in fear that, oh no, our kids are just in horrible times. Oh God, what are you gonna do with them?

SPEAKER_01

Yes, God is God is using us to speak to them. What if you're the neighbor that helps the hurting? You know, maybe your story gives you the ability to encourage someone else who's walking through the same thing. We can all say that. I know that we do that at work a lot, you know. You encourage people. God doesn't waste placement. We're here for a purpose, we're here for a reason, and he can use everything to bring him glory.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, that's really good, Becca. And as we were talking about um freedom and America's 250th anniversary, something else that really stood out to me. It wasn't that our nation um it wasn't built by one person, by one amazing person with all of these great qualities. It took multiple people with many different gifts, right? That's true. We've got George Washington, who was a leader, we've got good old Thomas Jefferson, who was a gifted writer. We've got Benjamin Franklin, right? He was an inventor, a diplomat, and a thinker. And God gave every one of those people the gift to work together to bring about his purpose for our nation, right? Each one of them brought something different to the table. And that's how we are as a body of believers, as people in the world. God gives us all different gifts, but they all need to work together to achieve the very thing that he needs to be accomplished, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, what if Benjamin Franklin spent his whole life wishing he was George Washington? Yeah. Or if Thomas Jefferson said, Well, I'm not leading an army, so I guess my contribute contribution doesn't really matter. Right. I mean, the nation needed every single one of them. Yeah, the world needs every single one of us. The kingdom of God needs every single one of us. This is how God designed his kingdom. He designed it for all of us to work together. He doesn't call everyone to preach. You know, my husband and I are pastors. April's not a pastor. God calls her in different areas. He doesn't call all of us to sing. I can't sing. April can sing.

SPEAKER_00

Very little.

unknown

Very little.

SPEAKER_01

He doesn't call everyone to lead from a stage. I mean, some people encourage behind the scenes. Yeah. Some people teach. Some people clean the toilets. Right. Some people build. Some people are good with writing out thank you cards. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02

All of it works together for the amazing cause that he has, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

How many people have you known? Like if you grew up in church like me, oh, those saints that, you know, they never got up on the stage, but they you remember them because they were so strong in the Lord, you know, those strong prayers that you remember. You know, we have people in our church that are good at organizing, that's such a blessing. Or creating things, making sets for the drama programs. The kingdom needs every single gift. You are so important.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. And I think the problem with today's culture, Becca, I don't know about you, but comparison, comparing ourselves and our lives and our situations to other people. We get so focused on what I'm not or what we don't have that it just takes all the joy, you know, out of everything, you know. Me walking around saying, Oh my gosh, I wish I was as I wish I was as confident as Becca is when she gets up on Sunday morning to preach to the congregation. What does that do? Or I wish my life looked like theirs. They have such an amazing love life. I wish my children were as well behaved as those kids. Yeah. You know? Yeah. Just constantly comparing. And now that we have social media, it's so easy to live in. We're going to control all day and to hope and wish for our lives to be like that. We're consist constantly looking at those moments and wishing that our moments that God designed for us that they look like theirs. That is so true. We can't live like that. No, we can't. We can't.

SPEAKER_01

And you know, Paul addresses this in 1 Corinthians 12 when he's talking about the body of Christ and how we're all needed in our different ways. He says the eye isn't supposed to be the hand, the hand isn't supposed to become the foot. And like you're talking about with the comparison, we could look at social media and say, Oh, I wish I could, I wish I could be an influencer like them, or I wish I could work out like them. That's not what God has called us to do. Maybe that's their their calling is to minister to people that way. Different doesn't mean less. It just means we're different. It just means we have a different area that we're called to operate in. That's really good.

SPEAKER_02

And I think this is where our culture and scripture begin to go in two very different directions, right? The world tells us one thing, and then we have the word that tells us what we should be. The world tells us you can be whoever you want. You can live the life whatever in whatever ways you think is best for you. Be you. Yeah, yeah. Live your truth, create your own identity. It doesn't matter, just whatever makes you comfortable. And it sounds really freeing at first, like I'm just free to be me according to the world's way. But if that identity is something that you have to event, if that's something that leads to a horrible path, that's not gonna be God's best for our life, right? That's not the version of ourselves that we need to be or that we should desire to be. The end result's gonna be a heavy burden. It's gonna be heavy weight. We're gonna have to carry throughout life because it's not what God designed us to be. It's not who God designed us to be, right?

SPEAKER_01

That's so true. But the Bible gives us a better option. The Bible always gives us a better way. Yeah, God never asks us to invent ourselves, like she was talking about. We don't have to try to figure out who we're supposed to be. Right, He invites us to discover who He created us to be. Yeah, that's a big difference when you really think about it. Because the world just says, look inside yourself, decide who you are, be happy, you know, whatever makes you happy.

SPEAKER_00

Right, right.

SPEAKER_01

And there's even like Barbie dolls now that's like, be who you want to be. And that's what they're teaching the young girls. But God says, look to your creator, He already knows who you're supposed to be. You know, when a potter makes a vessel, like when they make a pot or something, the clay doesn't get to decide what it's gonna be. When an artist paints a beautiful masterpiece, the painting doesn't get to rewrite it and say, you know what, they painted me this way, but I'm gonna be this way. That's no, the creator had the vision. Yeah, and the same is true for us. God is our creator, and when he created us, he's big enough to be able to create each of us for a specific purpose. We just have to ask.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, we gotta tap into his vision for our life, you know, and that doesn't mean that God made us all the same. Actually, it's the opposite, right? He intentionally made us different, he knows that not one person can do everything. That's right. So that's why we all have different personalities. I mean, how boring would the world be if we were just alike in every single way? You know, we all have different passions, we have different experiences, we have different things that we're so good at. The goal isn't to become someone else, the goal is to become who God created us to be.

SPEAKER_01

That is so good.

SPEAKER_02

Just completely surrendering to his will, completely surrendering to who we are in God and to the God who made us, you know? Yeah. And when we tap into that, it has to be a beautiful plan. The end result has to be good. And the most perfect thing is that his will gets to be accomplished through us.

SPEAKER_01

That is so good. And you know, the freedom that we can get through Jesus, the world could never provide. Because the world says freedom means doing what you want, like we talked about. But Jesus says freedom means being set free from all of the bondage that keeps you from being who God created you to be. So think about it. Freedom from fear, freedom from shame, freedom from comparison, freedom from insecurity, um, free from needing everyone else's approval. I have struggled with that, you know. Free from all of these things that they're like, imagine they're like chains around us that if we can just get rid of those chains, we can finally walk confidently in the purpose that He has for us. Because the fear's not holding us back anymore. Right. The comparison's not holding us back anymore. We can just walk in that, and that is freedom.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, and real freedom isn't saying, you know, I can be anything I want to be. Real freedom is saying that, you know what? I can become everything that God has created me to be. That's so good. Because once we become that person, everything else gets lifted. The weight of who am I? What do I need to do? All of that just goes away, you know. And honestly, I think that's a much better place to be. Oh man. Life alone is hard, you know. But when we tap into his purpose for us, it gets a whole lot easier. We can depend on him, we can rely on him. Because at the end of the day, only God knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows the plan. And if we tap into his ways, it's gonna make it a lot easier to walk through this life, live in the abundant blessings. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01

So this month, as we celebrate 250 years of freedom, we want to celebrate something even greater. And we hope that that's what you got out of it today. And that's the freedom that we have in Christ. The freedom to stop comparing, the freedom to stop pretending. How many times do we put something on social media that really isn't really how we live? You know, we can have freedom from that. We can have the freedom to stop trying to become someone we're not. We can walk in who we're called to be. And we can have the freedom to become exactly who God created us to be. You cannot even imagine the burden that gets lifted off of you when you walk in that freedom. Right. You don't spend time wondering and if you made the best decision or not.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah. And maybe today your takeaway is simply this: God chose your time. God chose your place. That's right. God chose you to be here for that very moment. God chose you to do the amazing things that you get to do every single day. God gave you the gifts that you have, He knows your story. And just like Esther, maybe you are here for such a time as this, right?

SPEAKER_01

You know that really brings a different perspective when you think, okay, God, I can do this. I can suit up and put on my armor and I can be here for this time because this is where you placed me. So we just want to thank you so much for spending time with us today. Happy Fourth of July and happy freedom in Christ. And we just want to pray with you. So, Lord, we thank you so much for your freedom. Or there's nothing like your freedom. When we walk in your freedom and those chains are broken, Lord, and that burden is lifted off of our shoulders, there's nothing like it. There is joy, there is peace, there is just a freedom that we've never experienced before. And when we try to walk in that freedom on our own, it's heavy. So, Lord, we just cast that burden off onto you today, and we tell you that we are ready to walk in the freedom that you provided, Lord. We're ready to walk in your purpose and your calling. And Lord, we're just our hearts are open to receive from you whatever you have for us. We thank you, Lord, that it takes all the parts to operate this kingdom and that we're ready and willing to walk in our part and do what you've called us to do. I thank you for all of these ladies that are tuning in today, and men if they're tuning in. And Lord, we just thank you that you helped us to encourage them and to show them that they can ask and you will tell them what they're supposed to be doing. We praise you in Jesus' name. Amen.

SPEAKER_02

Amen. Well, 4th of July is in just a few days. So as you all are celebrating, whether it's on the lake, whether if you're on the beach, or you know, if you're eating all of these great foods and just um celebrating our country's freedom, we hope that you also take a minute to enjoy the freedom that you get to have in Christ. And if you're not walking in that, that's okay. There's multiple ways that you can get to start. Spending time with him and his word. He's so faithful. His word is not a lie. He's going to meet you right where you are. It doesn't matter about your past. Don't be confused by the enemy's lies that you've done the most horrible things in life that you're not good enough to be in his presence. Well, that's allow you are. Amen. So just trust in that freedom that you have. Uh, enjoy it, share the truths with someone else, and be free who you need to be in Christ, right? Stay focused on that. Uh, meet us here in another month.

SPEAKER_00

We'll be here uh waiting to share God's work with you. And that'll be our one-year like anniversary of our podcast. Podcast Versary. Podcast. I love that. We're gonna need cupcakes, we're gonna need to use all the things. Yes.

SPEAKER_02

So uh continue to be enjoying freedom in Christ. And we're just so thankful for each of our viewers. Thank you for liking, sharing this content with a friend or with strangers, or like and share on your Facebook or social media platform. Yeah. But we're so thankful for you guys, and we hope that you all are continually encouraged by the word.

SPEAKER_01

God bless. Bye.