Wearing a swimsuit for a magazine cover was not something that Christian singer Natalie Grant planned on doing, but after much prayer and reflection, she decided it would be a good idea to show the world just how fit she is "physically and spiritually."
Grant is the cover girl for First for Women magazine this August, and she said it's a great honour to be the second Christian artist to be featured on the magazine's cover, the first being Amy Grant.
"With a larger circulation than People magazine, when they first asked me I said 'YES!' But then I learned it would be a summer issue and I was asked to be in a bathing suit. My first reaction was 'NO! No no no no no no!' But then honestly, I prayed about it. Having spent the last year making radical changes in my diet and my overall perspective, I thought maybe this was an opportunity I should not pass up. So then I had a list of parameters, which I thought they might not agree to," she revealed on her Facebook page.
The singer requested that she wear a one-piece swimsuit that is "completely modest," and that there would not be "a crazy amount of photoshop" that would make her look younger or thinner than she truly is. Surprisingly, the magazine agreed.
"After I prayed about it, I had a total peace from God to do it. I have been on an amazing journey to health and wholeness in the past year, inside and out. Yes I've lost 40 lbs. but it's not about being skinny, it's about being healthy," she explained. "I've had to debunk the lie in my own life that taking care of myself is 'selfish.' Self care is not selfish but smart. And Godly. My body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. I want to care for my inner and outer self. When I do, I am a better follower of Christ, better wife, better mom and all around better human being."
Grant knows that her cover story will not be "an overtly Christian piece," but she knows that they would still talk about her faith, so many women who read the magazine might become interested to know more about the "Jesus girl" and why she is proud to be a Christian.
