- It was always fear in the house.

Hiding in the closets,

and it's just that we had a bed

that was very dark for me andmy brothers and my mother.

- [Narrator] The painand fear she suffered

when she was young at thehand of her stepfather

still brings up strong emotionsfor Claudette Atkinson.

- He was a very strong alcoholic.

My mom took the bunk of the beatings,

and I would always runand hide in a closet.

After all that torment and trauma,

and you're hearing yourmother being beat down

like a dog, and thenshe comes to the closet

and she's like, come out ofhere, everything is okay.

You know, and I grew upthinking that that was okay.

- [Narrator] The physical and mental abuse

shaped her view ofherself and of the world.

- My life wasn't worth anything,

and I thought the whole world

was closed-off fromlove, even though I had

this love in my heart for people.

- [Narrator] In her teens and 20s,

she clung to her boyfriend,who convinced her

they could make goodmoney by selling drugs.

- I guess because I loved him so much,

I accepted it.

And it went from thatto using and drinking,

and the house turned into a party house,

and no sleep.

And it was a nightmare.

- [Narrator] The relationshipeventually ended,

but her addiction to drugsand alcohol continued.

She now had three daughtersthat she dearly loved,

but knew she couldn't take care of.

- I would cry and pray out to God

and beg Him to help me, to help us,

to stop this, and to the point

that I took my threedaughters to my mother,

and I told her that I couldn'ttake care of 'em anymore.

- [Narrator] Years of alcoholism,

abusive relationships, and drug abuse

left Claudette homeless and desperate.

As she begged for money at a gas station,

a stranger offered to help.

He asked her to followhim to a nearby house.

She had no idea what would happen there.

- Something inside of me

wanted out so bad.

I wanted out, and I had no idea

what was there waiting for me.

- [Narrator] He took herto his pastor's house,

where they were having asmall group Bible study.

Dave and Treva Thompson welcomed her.

- We wanted to do our bestto make her feel at home

in our home.

She was at a really low point,

and just grasping for air, so to speak,

and in need of what onlyGod could do for her.

And so, we just did our bestto put our arms around her

and let her know thatshe's in a safe place.

She didn't have to worry.

Nobody wants anything from her.

- She didn't have anymoney or anything to eat.

She began to share withus that she struggled

with addiction, and we began

to share with her howmuch that Jesus loved her.

- I don't know all these people,

and they're packing meup food and all this,

and she comes out of the room with $20,

and she said, they saidyou needed something.

- It wasn't long 'til she understood

what we were trying to do for her

was just what God haddone for her on the cross.

- She finally, I think, saw a love

that she had not seen atany other time in her life.

Not our love, she saw the love of Christ.

- [Narrator] They began to meet regularly.

Claudette soon prayedto become a Christian,

and asked God to set her free

from what she thought was ahopeless alcohol addiction.

- I started crying, and I wasbegging the Lord, begging Him.

I said, why won't You deliver me?

I seen you deliver other people,

why won't you deliver me, Lord?

And a voice said, walk in it.

Like somebody wasstanding over my shoulder

and bent down and said, walk in it.

It was like somethingsupernatural took over,

and I said, I've beendelivered all this time.

I just wasn't walking in it.

He already delivered me.

- [Narrator] From that moment, Claudette

was completely set freefrom drugs and alcohol.

She has been sober for over 13 years.

- I am so grateful.

I'm a changed person.

God is great.

I thought I was gonna die that way.

I thought that was it for me,

that there was no other way out,

there was no other option butto live my life like that.

- When she finally realized that the power

of Christ could deliver her from this,

oh, the joy is just unbelievable.

Unbelievable to see thatrealization in someone's life.

- [Narrator] Claudette reconciled

with her daughters, and says she finally

found the love she alwayslonged for in Jesus.

- It was the love that I'dbeen looking for all my life.

It was real love, true love, God's love.

And there's no greater lovethan that in this world,

and that's the lovethat I was looking for.

That's the love that I was looking for,

and I'm gonna walk the life of God

for the rest of my life.

Yes, amen.