Former Model Shares Moment She ‘Wanted To Come Back To God’
By Movieguide® Contributor
In an interview with Kirk Cameron, former model Melissa Faisst shared the moment she was “changed” by God’s love.
Speaking about her concept of God growing up, Faisst explained, “My idea of God was, ‘Okay, He’s important and I need to please Him, but if I get in trouble, He’s scary,’ so I really had this relationship not with God as a father, but God as this scary taskmaster that you’re just supposed to serve and stay in line; otherwise, you’re just in trouble.”
“Deep down, I had this feeling that if I wasn’t perfect, I would not be loved,” she said. “I would not be accepted, I would not be valuable or worthy of love…It really wasn’t until I found Jesus that I found the true escape from that crazy rat race of always trying to be better for everybody else.”
Faisst became a model and struggled with the choices she made in the industry, as well as unhealthy relationships and eating disorders.
The turning point came when she was about to sign a contract with Playboy.
“I remember thinking, ‘How did I even get here?’” Faisst recalled. “I used to go to church, and yet all of a sudden, I’m making this decision and if I do this, it actually could affect the rest of my life.”
She decided to return to her hometown church, where she went on a retreat for young people.
“When I was on that retreat, I was changed,” Faisst said.
She pointed to a moment where those on the retreat had private time to read the Bible. She turned to a random page and started reading the book of Hosea, which told the story of a man who marries a woman who “runs off with other lovers.”
“But God tells him to keep loving his wife because that’s how He loves His people who run away to other lovers,” Faisst said. “I was like, ‘I’m that girl. I ran away and thought I would find fulfillment in modeling, in relationships, in looking a certain way, and I ran away from God, but You would still love me, after all of those things?’”
She said, “It was in that moment I decided, ‘Okay, I want to come back to God,’ because this is actually how He feels about me.”
Today, Faisst uses her platform to spread the gospel to others.
“I am just a girl saved by grace trying to love Jesus in every area of life,” Faisst announced on her blog, adding that she wants to help others “intentionally partner with Jesus in our heart, hope, health, and homes so we can live in the fullness of our destiny in Him.”
Faisst also posts about her faith online. In a recent Instagram post, she wrote, “Our only hope. Our only anchor. Jesus lives, that we may live. Death is swallowed up in victory. Oh what a future awaits those who trust in Him. For one day, we will f o r e v e r be with the Lord. And for that we long for with eager expectation.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Faisst’s faith journey:
YouTuber and blogger Melissa Faisst recently sat down with Kirk Cameron to discuss her views on the pitfalls of the modeling industry and how she found redemption in Christ.
“Deep down, I had this feeling that if I wasn’t perfect, I would not be loved,” Faisst explained. “That same thing happened in the modeling world. If I wasn’t perfect…nobody’s going to want me. I’m not accepted by the world.”
She continued: “I was a model and I put my whole heart into being this model and being something for the world, and then when I got saved, I did a complete 180 and I put everything into just going hard after God.
“I went from model to missionary overnight,” Faisst added.
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