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Editor's Update: In September 2005, a few months after this story ran in Today's Christian, Ashley Smith's book, Unlikely Angel, came out. In the book, Smith tells of the crisis she faced when suspected killer Brian Nichols held her captive. But she also tells of another crisis that almost killed her, one that started long before that day—her addiction to methamphetamines.

The addiction was so powerful that Smith failed to kick the habit despite several attempts at rehab. But from her recent media appearances it appears that at the time she didn't understand how bad her addiction was, she believed she was in control and that she could stop at any time.

On that fateful Saturday morning in March 2005, Nichols asked for marijuana and Smith offered him what she had—crystal meth. Knowing that the drug "made her crazy," she immediately realized the foolishness of offering it to a man who had allegedly murdered four people and who at that very moment was holding her hostage.

For the first time, Smith saw the futility, the depravity, and the hopelessness of her addiction. Though Nichols asked her to join him, she declined. "If I did die, I wasn't going to heaven and say, 'Oh, excuse me, God. Let me wipe my nose, because I just did some drugs before I got here,' " Smith told the media during her book tour.

Smith claims that was the moment of realization for her—the moment when God finally broke the stronghold of addiction in her life. She writes in her book: "I haven't touched drugs since walking out of my apartment on March 12. … Initially I did not volunteer the information about the drugs [that she gave Nichols]. … I was afraid. Later I came forward and shared the details about the drugs with the appropriate authorities, but I regret not having done so at the very beginning. I remember what Jesus said: The truth will set you free. That's how I want to live my life—I want to be an honest person and experience the freedom that goes with it."

Our original article revealed how God can use us regardless of our past. Ashley Smith's new and disturbing revelations show that even the most hopeless situation—being held hostage by a killer or a killer addiction—can be redeemed by God for His purposes and for our good. The initial version of the story showed how God used Ashley Smith to speak to Brian Nichols's heart and save innocent lives. The new revelations show how God used a divine encounter with Brian Nichols to save Ashley Smith's life.

Ashley Smith's record includes petty thefts, a DUI charge, and an arrest for battery (though the charges were later dropped). When I saw this unlikely heroine on TV, I marveled that her rough past had actually made it possible for her to save lives and bring a violent fugitive to justice.

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