- Whenever I felt like I wanted to scream

or wanted to fight or wantedto cry, I would go run,

and I would kind of runit out and then come back.

So running, even at a youngage like that was my therapy.

- [Narrator] Amy Compstonoften used running

as a way to channel her energy as a child.

She and her sisters wereraised in a Christian home.

- Every morning before school,we would have Bible study.

And we were in church Sunday morning,

Sunday night, Wednesday night,

every night, a revival,if you had revival.

- [Narrator] But when she was 12,

her family crumbled like a house of cards.

- It came out that my momhad been having an affair,

and that is when life as weknew it completely changed.

And it was that situation in life

that caused my mom and dad to split up

and my dad ultimately to leave my mom

home alone with four children.

I remember being so angry at her.

I remember even in my journals

like journaling that I hate her,

like how could she do this?

- [Narrator] With her father gone,

Amy and her sisters doveinto drugs and alcohol.

- Dad was gone, mom wasweak, she was broken.

Her life had drastically changed.

I don't remember thinking like,

oh, we're gonna get back at mom,

we're gonna pay her back for what she did.

You know if anything,

it was just taking full advantageof a lack of supervision.

- [Narrator] When Amy was just 12,

her sisters threw abig party at their home

while their mom was away.

- My dad being a policeofficer that he is,

he got word of this party.

Him and his policefriends come to the party

and my dad found me, 12years old, passed out.

He makes me take a breathalyzer test.

I blew a 4.0 on the breathalyzer.

I drank enough that nightto kill a grown man.

- [Narrator] Even then, herdrug and alcohol consumption

increased through high school.

- One day I went home withsome friends after school

and they were all doing Xanaxs.

I remember the pill bottledropping into the floor,

and I was picking the pills off the floor

and eating them like candy.

It lands me in the ICU.

- [Narrator] A second overdosefollowed six months later.

Sadly, even these closeencounters with death

were not enough to get Amy sober.

Her mother's sent her toa Christian counselor.

- She saw a 15 year old girlfilling her body with drugs,

filling her body with alcohol,

but she knew who lovedme, and that was Jesus.

And she would take thetruth, God's Word, the Bible,

and she would just tell me truths from it.

You know, Amy, you're wonderfully made,

you're fearfully made.

You know, God has aplan for your life Amy,

you just have to believe it.

And I believed in God,I believed in Jesus,

but I did not believethat God had great plans

for a 15 year old drug addictfrom Greenup, Kentucky.

- [Narrator] After high school,

Any planned to pursue a nursing degree

and continue to pursue her running,

bettering several marathons,

but her party lifestyle continued.

- One night I was up all nightat our drug dealer's house,

and we were partying,

and the next morning Iget up to go to the gym.

On the way home from the gym.

I'm driving down the highway

and I slam into the back of a truck.

My face is slammed off the steering wheel.

And from here to here,I was totally scalped.

- [Narrator] The people shehit were not seriously harmed

and the drugs and alcoholwere out of her system

so no charges were filed.

- After the car wreck, Idefinitely believed I was hopeless.

You know, I had alreadytried court ordered AA

and NA meetings and nothing had worked.

- [Narrator] Amy became a nurseand then a single mom at 21

but she still sought peace in more drugs.

- I turned to harder drugs,

cocaine, heroin, crystalmeth, ecstasy, acid,

anything I could get my hands on,

trying to find peace,love, joy, acceptance.

- [Narrator] She metand later married Chris.

Ironically, throughout most of her 20s,

she continued to read her Bible

and attend church sporadically.

Someone invited her and her husband

to attend a Bible studycalled Master Life.

There's something finally clicked.

- The first week was about obedience.

And Jesus says, if youlove me, you will obey me.

Well, I thought, I love God,

but I wasn't obeying Himwith an ounce of my life.

The Lord spoke to my heart and He said,

Amy, do you love me?

The same question He asked Peterafter Peter had denied Him.

So that week I thought,do I even love God?

- [Narrator] As Easter approached,

the message of the crossbecame clear to Amy.

My pastor said God loves you so much,

that He wants nothingmore than to know you.

He said Amy, He loves you so much

that He sent His onlySon, Jesus to die for you,

to die the worst death ever.

Jesus went to that cross

knowing you're gonna be a drug addict,

Jesus willingly went to that cross

knowing you were gonnabe a pathetic mother,

but Amy, He loves you.

- [Narrator] Amy kneltdown by her bed that night.

- And I said, Lord, I am so sorry

for the way that I have lived my life.

I said, Lord, I'm sorry for the way

that I have just trampledthrough the blood of Jesus,

and I remember justsurrendering to God and saying,

God, I'm done, I'm done with this.

- [Narrator] She told Chrisshe was finally through

with drugs and alcohol.

- It wasn't just a couple hours later,

he called me and he said, Amy,

he said, I've gotten rid ofall the drug paraphernalia.

He said, just come home,I'm done with it also.

And we sat our children down at the table

and we told them, guyslife is gonna be different

because we are going to follow Jesus.

- [Narrator] Amy and Chrisfounded Amy for Africa,

a relief organization that raises

money for schools in Uganda.

- One talent I knew I had was running.

So I sign up for this 50 mile race,

and my plan was to getpeople to sponsor me.

And by race day, it was November 2, 2013,

God had given us $43,000 forthese two schools in Africa.

- [Narrator] Amy still runs marathons,

but is no longer running from God.

- And whenever I realizedhow much Jesus loved me,

I couldn't help but fall in love with Him.

No one had ever loved me like that.

I said, God, you take my lifeand you do what you want.

And He has.

And it's been amazing.