Walking Away from the Victoria’s Secret Runway

Whether it is New York Fashion Week or a photo shoot with Vogue, the world of fashion can appear glamorous. While the career span can be short-lived, few would dream of walking away from it once they landed it. But for Kylie Bisutti she left a successful career as a Victoria’s Secret model. For many models, they aspire to become a Victoria’s Secret model and be an Angel in the infamous fashion show and Bisutti was no exception. She auditioned along with 10,000 other women to earn the coveted title of Victoria’s Secret Angel in 2009. Risen sat down with Bisutti five years ago and talked with her about her experience being a Victoria’s Secret model and what she tells young ladies who want a career in modeling.

“Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.  Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;  you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:18-20

Bisutti opens up about how her husband helped her to understand the impact of being a Victoria’s Secret model.

“It was wearing on his heart a lot earlier than it was on mine and he was just praying about it. He didn’t really come to me. He just brought it to God and then eventually it started convicting my heart and that’s when I came to him and I asked, ‘Do you think what I’m doing is okay? Should I continue to do this? I don’t really know.’ All he said to me was that he wanted me to make the decision on my own. But he did say, ‘How do you feel about me looking at other women in lingerie, or going on-line and seeing pictures of other women half-naked?’ I said, ‘Well I wouldn’t feel good about that.’ And he said, ‘That’s what all kinds of guys are doing with your pictures.’ So it was really eye opening for me. I don’t want to be the woman that other wives husband’s are looking at.”

“Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.” Proverbs 31:29-31

Bisutti shares the advice she gives to young ladies who aspire to be models and still want to follow Christ.

“That is actually the most common question that I get from girls because I feel like whether girls are Christians or not, it seems like most aspire to be a model or an actress or some sort of celebrity. Now I actually just flat out tell them that its something I do not recommend at all. It’s an industry that I think is very destructive to young girls unless they are really solid in their walk with Christ and really know who they are in the Lord and are confident in the Lord. Because I just know how destructive that industry is. I was doing very bad things at such a young age and it could have very easily, outside of God’s grace, gone really bad. I’ve seen so many young girls with eating disorders, and I advise them to pray hard and examine their hearts to see if what they are doing is for the right reasons.”

Risen Reflections

Honor God with your body. Whether you are a professional model, athlete, student or in your career, God wants us to honor him with our bodies. That includes what we wear, what we do, and our actions. Sometimes we don’t realize that what we are doing isn’t honoring God. It can be difficult to change what we wear or our actions. Ask a friend that is mature in their walk with God, your small group leader or a pastor for their advice and if they would be willing to hold you accountable. Ask others who have had to make similar changes how they did it.

Don’t compromise. In our pursuit of success, it can be easy to compromise what we believe. Take time this week to read through the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego [Daniel 3]. He lived in a culture where the king wanted them to compromise what they believe and pray to other gods. The three friends were faced with a difficult decision knowing that if they didn’t they would be thrown into a fiery furnace.

Develop your inner beauty. While there is nothing wrong with putting on makeup and wearing a cute outfit, God wants us to spend just as much time with Him developing our hearts and inner beauty. Take time this week reflecting on Proverbs 31. Look at the qualities that the virtuous women develops and spends time doing. Pray and ask God to help you grow closer to Him and for your character to be like his. 

To read our entire interview with Kylie Bisutti click here and don’t forget to share Risen with a friend!