Supermodel Hailey Bieber says her sole purpose is to represent Jesus
Supermodel, TV personality and newlywed Hailey Bieber, formerly known as Haley Baldwin, revealed that her true purpose in life is not to promote beauty or fashion but to reflect Jesus in the world.
Her testimony was recently featured on Hillsong’s new TV show "Now With Natalie," a six-part series in which wardrobe stylist Natalie Manuel Lee sits down with Christian celebrities who share about their faith, what they wrestle with and their purpose in life.
Episode one featured supermodel Hailey Bieber, filmmaker Elliot Rausch and Cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Caroline Leaf. Bieber was the main focus of the episode which centered around identity and comparison.
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“I was coming up in this next generation and there's a group of people that are this next generation of kids in the industry,” Baldwin said in the episode.
The 22-year-old revealed that she always wanted to make sure she carried the Baldwin legacy in a positive way and it’s why she avoided trouble. Her father, Stephen Baldwin, is a devout Christian who has now dedicated his acting career to making faith-based content. Bieber, meanwhile, is one of the most recognized faces in mainstream modeling.
“I obviously believe in modesty but a big part of my job is body and face and vanity and that is the whole premise of what I do so it’s actually really difficult to try to be like, ‘OK, this is what I do for my job but on Sunday I’m in church and that’s like a real thing for me, that’s a real lifestyle for me and Jesus is a real thing for me,’ without it looking like I’m compromising everything,” Bieber admitted to Lee.
She confessed that she struggled a lot with comparison throughout her career but acknowledged that comparison is “literally a waste of time.”
“It’s a photograph, it’s hair and makeup, it’s a team of people, it’s lighting, it’s all fabricated," she said.
Describing the modeling industry, Bieber said, "It's a lot of rejection, it's a lot of disappointment, it's a lot of that type of not feeling good enough thing. I think it's more just trying to navigate through this whole life. It's definitely not easy."
But every time she faces disappointment, she always tries to have the perspective that “it obviously wasn’t God’s plan.”
“I think that every person has had that feeling that they are not enough for something or for someone and I question that myself about being enough for people, for someone, for this industry,” she said, before adding, “You are [enough] because God took His time to create me and put me in this place. That’s your answer right there.”
She described her purpose in life this way: “I think my bigger purpose is to be a light. I’m here to represent Jesus through me for other people, for His will to be done.
“I think the second that we feel like we're too high and mighty, we are reminded that it’s not about us. Nothing is about me, or you, or really anybody; it’s about us being a vessel for Jesus to be seen.”
Lee, who's a member of Hillsong church and sister of popular fashion and sneaker designer Jerry Lorenzo, promoted the series at the top of the year on her Instagram account in a video that explained the premise behind the program.
“The purpose of this show is to nullify, dismantle, and pull back the veil to the counterfeits of identity and purpose being sold and consumed through popular culture,” Lee wrote.
As seen in the series trailer, Lee will also sit down with Tyson Chandler, Kelly Rowland, Jerry Lorenzo and Elaine Welteroth, among others.
“Our worth and value is not in things or our job title," said Lee. "It’s in who we are at our core. We are redeemed. We are accepted. We are complete in Christ. We are chosen. We are more than ENOUGH. We are FREE in Him. That’s OUR IDENTITY.
"As a generation, we tend to focus on ‘these things’ and ‘accolades’ that we miss why we are here. We glorify the POSITION more than the PURPOSE of the position."
Lee and Bieber have been friends for some time and in November she took to social media to share of Bieber’s Christian faith.
“She is BOLD, COURAGEOUS and CONFIDENT because she knows who she is in Christ. She stands tall in the midst of a sea of people...Not because of her height.. but because of the CHRIST within her,” Lee said of Justin Bieber’s new bride.
For more information on “Now With Nataliem” visit the Hillsong Channel.
