Duck Dynasty's Sadie Robertson 'Shined the Light of Jesus' in 'Dancing With The Stars'

Nov 26, 2014 12:44 PM EST

Dancing with the Stars Sadie Robertson
Sadie Robertson and Mark Ballas were joined onstage by Willie Robertson while dancing to Pharell William's 'Hunter'. (ABC/Adam Taylor)

"Duck Dynasty" star Sadie Robertson may not be season 19's "Dancing With The Stars" champion, but she won America's heart with her Christian beliefs and dedication to her standards of modesty.

On last night's DWTS finale, Sadie came in just behind winner Alfonso Riberio after dancing a cute samba/quickstep to Nitty Gritty by Kimberly Cole with partner Mark Ballas.

"This has been an amazing experience and I just want to say I'm so thankful to God who has brought me so far in this competition," she said after the results were announced.

Ribeiro expressed his surprise at winning over the "Duck Dynasty" starlet.

"I thought it was really a huge possibility that Mark and Sadie were going to win," he told USA Today. 

"I leaned into Witney right before they said the names (of the winners) and I said, 'Be prepared to hear Mark and Sadie,'" he said. "It was anybody's game and they were amazing. And she grew as a dancer from the first week until now and America loves people when they have a great journey. She had one."

Throughout the DWTS season, the 17 year old model's unmistakable "light" caught the attention of the show's judges.

"There is a light that you have that just shines so much," Julianne Hough said after Robertson's performance last week. "People take that light. ... It's just so infectious."

"Sadie has a light about her that is undeniable. I don't know if it's her faith or just how young she is but there is something that is just so real and so authentic that you can't help but root for her," Hough later explained.

That night, Robertson posted the comment on her Instagram account and called it "the most rewarding comment of the season," and added "all glory to God for everything."

She explained: "We know what that light is: 'You will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the message that gives life' (Philippians 2:15-16)."

Judge Carrie Ann Inaba also commented on Robertson's "light" following her freestyle dance during part one of the finale Monday night.

"You're just a bright light," she said, "and you're a brighter light now because you dance so much better."

"There's a vulnerability, there is an innocence about her and people love it, including me," judge Len Goodman added.

Willie Robertson, Sadie's dad, was brought to tears by his daughter's performance: "I was thrilled that she pushed through," he told USA Today. "She gained a lot of confidence (and had) a great experience that nobody can ever take from her. We're glad that she is the bright light she is."

In choosing outfits for her DWTS performances, Robertson made sure to choose outfits that were "daddy-approved" and adhered to her Biblical standard of modesty.

"I don't think it's going to come across as sexy," Sadie said of her costumes, according to USA Today. "I'm going to go more for the cute look. I'm going to make it as classy as we can."

Before her dance last week, a video package was shown of a young Sadie Robertson delivering a sermon in which she prays and praises Jesus.

Robertson later posted an extended cut of the video on Twitter:

"If I was famous ... I would still love the Lord," young Robertson tells the camera. "I would not just remember about myself. I would love the Lord.

And the "Duck Dynasty" starlet's sentiments haven't changed today, making it clear that her faith is more important to her than fame and approval.

"I think people use fame as an excuse to lose their faith," she told FOX411 in a recent interview. "Faith is obviously my number one priority and I think you need to put God at the top of everything you do...It just takes one person to take a stance and begin doing something different [to get] out God's message."