Stephen Baldwin made headlines last week when he asked for prayers for his daughter, Hailey and her husband, Justin Bieber. But what do we know about the couple’s personal faith?
Last week, actor Stephen Baldwin, father of Hailey Bieber, made headlines when he shared a (now deleted) Instagram reel that asked for prayers for his daughter and her husband.
The reel originated from Victor Marx, the founder of All Things Possible Ministries, and asked “Christians, please when you think of Justin and Hailey, take a moment to offer a little prayer for them to have wisdom, protection and to draw close to the Lord.”
This understandably prompted concern, especially as it comes after a couple of years of health challenges for the pair. In 2022, Justin was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome – a rare condition that can cause facial paralysis. Taking to Instagram, the singer made a public request to his fans to “keep me in your prayers”, going on to say: “Jesus continues to remind me that he is with me in the midst of the storm.” That same year, Hailey was hospitalised with a blood clot on the brain.
The couple’s Christian faith has long been in the public eye. Justin was baptised by renowned (if now controversial) pastor Carl Lentz back in 2014.
Hailey has made no secret of being raised in a Christian home and her actor father is outspoken about being a born again Christian.
Indeed, after a period of separation from one another (what Hollywood romance is without its breakups?) Hailey and Justin rekindled the flames of their relationship after bumping into one another at a church conference in Miami in 2018.
Counter-cultural chastity
Justin and Hailey’s faith gained further media attention when it was reported that they were waiting until they were married to have sex with one another. Starkly counter-cultural for typical Hollywood stars, their commitment to living out a chaste relationship got tongues wagging.
Justin opened up to fans on Facebook Live about his life choices and regrets, candidly telling them: “If I could go back…I probably would’ve saved myself for marriage.”
Following Jesus together, being a part of the church community together. It’s everything
Speaking of his decision to practise celibacy before getting hitched to Hailey, Justin added: “I wanted to rededicate myself to God in that way because I really felt it was better for the condition of my soul.”
Their Christian faith has been a key feature of their marriage. In an interview with Elle magazine, Hailey spoke of their shared faith, saying: “Being able to share that with each other—to have that bond of faith and spirituality—is so [critical] for us. It’s the most important part of our relationship, following Jesus together, being a part of the church community together. It’s everything.”
A grown up faith
But their commitment hasn’t been without its challenges. Hailey credited her faith with helping her and her husband navigate a “tough” first year of marriage. Although raised as Christians, both celebrities struggled with their relationship with God during their teenage years.
Carl Lentz, who baptised Justin and was pastor of Hillsong Church New York until 2020, commented that “his mom did a great job doing her best to plant the right seeds. But you can get to a point as a man where it goes from being your mama’s relationship…to yours.”
Similarly, Hailey told Elle that, as she got older, it became ”harder to follow church and the Bible because it felt very adult. I don’t want to sound wrong, but it was boring.” It was only after attending Hillsong Church in New York City that Hailey began to develop her own relationship with God separate from that of her parents.
But just because the Biebers have made the decision to follow Jesus for themselves, it does not mean that their parents’ prayers are not needed. Although we don’t know why Stephen Baldwin asked for prayers for his daughter and son-in-law specifically (the pair were photographed headed to church together two days later), we can heed his call and intercede for them both.
Their faith has seen them through rough patches before. If they’re navigating another turbulent time, we know that, by turning to Jesus, they will pull through stronger once again.
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