First Muslim Miss USA Says She Now Follows Christ
Posted by cldailywpadmin
Email alert sent 9/19/2019 3:44 PM
Rima Fakih was crowned Miss USA in 2010 and was the first
Muslim to ever win the title.
But she isn’t Muslim anymore.
Since her victory, her eyes have been opened… and now she is
a follower of Jesus!
Rima Fakih isn’t just known for her 2010 win.
She is a Lebanese-American actress and model, familiar to
beauty pageantry.
Oh yeah – and she’s a professional wrestler!
Growing up, Fakih says her family was nominally Muslim,
though she was quite familiar with the Christian faith due to her years
attending a Catholic school as a child in Lebanon.
Once Fakih got to college, her once nominal Muslim faith
became a bigger part of her life as she sought her identity and spiritual
guidance from the teachings of Shia Islam, the most prominent religion in
Lebanon.
However, there is also a strong Christian community in
Lebanon, including the Maronite Catholic Church.
Wassim Slaiby is a Maronite Catholic. Shortly after
meeting each other, Slaiby and Fakih fell in love.
Spirituality was important to both. As they discussed
their different beliefs, the Holy Spirit began to reveal to Fakih many truths
she learned as a child but had since forgotten.
Fakih determined that the answers about life and the world
were found in the God of the Bible.
This was an important decision that led the couple to decide
they could have a future together.
They were married in 2016.
But God had been working in Fakih’s family long before her
personal conversion, and she now recognizes the effect all the relationships in
her life had on her conversion.
In 2010, when Fakih was still a practicing Muslim, she told
the Huffington Post, “My brother-in-law is Christian, and he (and my sister)
baptized their two sons. I have an uncle who converted to Christianity,
and he’s a priest now.”
At the time of her 2010 win, the spotlight she held got
brighter and was causing controversy in her Shia Islam faith.
For a Muslim woman to show her beauty publicly is shamed in
the culture she came from. She was continuously criticized by her faith
community since her career began.
At the end of her reign as Miss USA, Fakih said, “Miss USA
is just a real woman, a real human being who is an adult and has her own
opinion and can make her own decisions.”
She realized that being Miss USA had neither helped nor
harmed her personal validation and the peace she sought internally. The
affirmation of people cannot be a source of lasting peace.
No longer Miss USA, Fakih was led to other career
opportunities and left her home seeking answers inside.
In a brilliant twist of redemption, when God arrested her
life and brought her focus toward Himself, she found the peace and identity she
longed for. There was wholeness. Many things God had impressed upon
her since childhood were coming together.
Now in alignment with Him, God is blessing her career to
continue breaking barriers and bringing strength and positivity.
In fact, she is now the National Director and Executive
Producer for Miss Lebanon/Miss Universe. She is also blessed as a mother and
wife, living with her family in California.
Just a few things she has done since that time are:
“Rima F Slaiby, has appeared at Ronald Reagan’s Centennial
Celebration, riding in a float at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,
Regis&Kelly Show, Good Morning America, The Wendy William Show, Jimmy
Fallon, David Letterman, and attending an American Chamber of Commerce
conference in Cairo alongside former President Bill Clinton. Rima continued to
make many appearances with the World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE),
including a special segment titled ‘Tribute to the Troops’ and a role in the
reality show ‘Tough Enough’, ‘Dancing With the Stars’, and Fox ‘The Choice.””
And less than a year ago in September 2018, her pageant show
caught attention worldwide.
She is using the position and skills God has granted her:
“By combining her pageant and business knowledge, Rima and
her team of professionals lead the vision for the new and improved pageant for
future participants and winners of Miss Lebanon.”
Pray for Fakih-Slaiby and her family that she continues to
learn more about Him and use her talents for His glory.
___________________________
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