Two or Three (.net)

For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. - Jesus

Surrender Followed Talk about God, 'The Purpose Driven Life'
ATLANTA (AP) - Ashley Smith says she gently talked to the armed suspect in Atlanta's courthouse slayings -- turning from hostage to confidant as they discussed God and the Reverend Rick Warren's "The Purpose Driven Life."During the long weekend ordeal, Brian Nichols eventually untied Smith, who suggested it was a miracle that he would escaped alive. She also told him that God's purpose might be for him to surrender so he could spread the gospel to fellow prisoners.Smith told reporters, "He said he thought that I was an angel sent from God, and that I was his sister and he was my brother in Christ and that he was lost and God led him right to me."When he let her go, the 33-year-old Smith called police, and Nichols surrendered peacefully.


Rick Warren 'Humbled' That Book Helped Hostage Ordeal
LAKE FOREST, Calif. (AP) - The author of "The Purpose Driven Life" says he was "humbled to learn that hostage Ashley Smith found strength and encouragement in its pages" during her weekend ordeal.In a statement, the Reverend Rick Warren said he had learned that Smith shared part of the chapter on "Servanthood" with Brian Nichols, the suspect in last week's Atlanta courthouse killings. Nichols finally released Smith, who had talked him into surrendering peacefully.Warren says, "Jesus sometimes calls us in some of the most difficult situations to be an advocate for Him." He adds that he's "thankful that Ms. Smith was able to draw from the Scriptures and her reading from 'The Purpose Driven Life' to bring some hope to her captor's life that was unraveling so tragically and dramatically."