When God Calls a Beauty Queen

I'm not a beauty pageant fan. I'd rather watch NCIS or Monk. But I've become somewhat of a fan of Miss California, Carrie Prejean. The 21-year-old from San Diego didn't wake up one morning and decide to become Christianity's new spokesperson for traditional marriage...but she did. And she's not the most vocal advocate, just the most visible. During the Miss USA contest, which Miss NC won, Carrie affirmed her conviction that marriage should be between one man and one woman. Since then, a very questionable, semi-nude, topless photo of her (when she was 17) has been published, followed by a dozen more; the dozen more were photoshopped (fake). The other was taken by a female friend. Ok, there's a lot more to the story (such as whether she violated Miss California pageant rules) and all the details may never be known. I certainly don't have all the details and I'll leave them up to people who have nothing better to do with their time.

More to the story . . . Alysha S. Castonguay, now Miss Rhode Island USA, intentionally posed for similar pictures but no one is calling for her crown. Castonguay stated on CBS' The Early Show that Prejean's stance on gay marriage is the issue, not the photos. Really? Surely not! The state pageant is also investigating possible contract violations in her public appearances with groups that oppose same sex marriage.

Now to the point . . . when no person of faith was around, God once used a pagan named Abraham to begin a people of faith; he used a prostitute to protect twelve spies; and a sinful woman washed Jesus' feet, who himself preferred to be with tax collectors and sinners. Is this one of those times when God used a beauty queen to uphold traditional marriage? I don't know Miss California. Don't know what kind of person she is. And I have issues with her chosen direction in life which has called for her to (un)dress before millions of people and parade in a bikini on a catwalk. Yet, I love her statement to all of us regarding our faith: "Do not be silenced." So, I'm not going to judge Miss California. Rather, I'm choosing to thank God for her. She took a stand. She suffered tremendous emotional pain because of her stand. But she took a stand and then defended her stand.

Unbelievable! God decided to use a beauty queen who shows off entirely too much skin before millions of people on public TV all for the purpose of impressing judges and getting their vote of approval. Now, if God had asked me I would have chosen a different spokesperson. But he didn't ask me. He called Miss California, who said she sensed God's calling her to stick by her convictions when the question was asked. And she did. She did not disappoint. I applaud her. It would have been so easy to compromise. It would have been so easy to be politically correct.

God called a beauty queen. And she answered, "Yes, Lord, here I am."

At least that's what I think. --Terrell Lee