AMAZING STORY
Prodigal Tomboy Leaves Lesbian Lifestyle
By Christine McWhorter
The 700 Club
CBN.com -Questions swirled in Amy Kemp’s mind. “What is going on with my family? What's going on? Why is this going on? Where does this leave me? How am I going to get through this?" Her parents had separated, and at 8 years old she didn’t understand why her dad had to leave.
“Seeing his life apart from us was different. I became angry, trying to get his attention but not getting attention. I think I felt invisible to my dad.”
She found that hanging out with older kids gave her access to something that would block the pain. “When I was about 8 years old, I started experimenting with alcohol. I had my first strong alcohol, liquor, sneaking from my friend's house. I didn’t want to feel pain any more. The way I’d felt all this time – I wanted it to go away.”
Growing up Amy was a tomboy. By high school she was a standout in basketball. She dreamed of one day, playing in college. But she never felt like she fit in with the other girls.
“There's no way that I could be feminine like my girlfriends. No boy would ever like me like he likes my girlfriend."
Eventually, her parents reconciled. Then they moved to different city where she made new friends. They loved to party and also lived a lifestyle that finally made Amy feel accepted.
“When I was 16 I was introduced to the lifestyle of homosexuality through sports, through basketball. I hadn't felt that way towards other women. I didn't look at women or any of that. So they began to share, ‘oh, we just respect each other.’ And when I was introduced to that lifestyle, I began to really embrace it.”
Eventually, she started dating one of her girlfriends.
“Then it got quickly deeper rooted because it became like ‘Okay, then I can build a life with you now. So we can just get married and have kids.’" It was like I was trying so hard to create a family. Then her parents found out. As Christians, they believed their daughter was going down a dangerous path and made her break it off. Amy was livid.
“At that point that's when the rebellion kicked in; at that point I didn't care.”
She dropped out of high school and moved in with a friend who was a drug dealer.
“All this time I’m being just hammered in my thinking with insecurities. Now all this guilt, condemnation; ‘I can’t change. Oh, you messed up. You’re not going to college. Your dream of playing basketball is never going to happen. Look at you, you're a failure.’ All that just drove me even deeper.”
She had never done hard drugs, but she thought amphetamines might cover up the pain. She was addicted immediately. For several months she tried to quit, but couldn’t.
“One particular night, I had been up for days and couldn’t sleep. I was sitting there curled up in a fetal position on the couch and I began to sing, Jesus Loves Me. And when I began to sing that song that I learned as a little kid, I just broke. At that moment I cried out to God and I said, "God, if You'll help me, if You'll deliver me from this, I’ll serve You. And I fell asleep, and I woke up to my friend banging on the door. And I asked her, I said, ‘will you run me by my parents' house?’"
“My mom opens the door and of course is surprised to see me. And I just basically collapsed. All I could say was, ‘I am so tired.’”
Her parents prayed with her, and she gave her life to Christ.
“I knew something was different. He didn’t just take the drug addiction. He took the pain, the rejection, the shame, the regret and He filled me with love and joy and peace. And that just began the journey to healing.”
Amy says after that, the addiction vanished. And over time she says God helped her turn away from the homosexual lifestyle.
“The desire for that was gone. I no longer had a desire for that.”
Amy says she no longer worries about fitting in, because she knows that Christ accepts her. She now enjoys doing missionary work in several countries and has written a book about her journey called, Prodigal Daughter.
All of that regret and all those wrong mindsets (were) broken. I mean just shattered one after another; just broken. And today, I completely live knowing that I’m loved, knowing that no matter what, I’m the beloved daughter of God.”
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