In the new issue of black Christian women's magazine Precious Times, The View's Sherri Shepherd reveals that her life was once so rough she didn't care if she died.
"My sister was heavy into drugs, and we would have to go and get her from crack houses," Shepherd, 41, says.
At the time, the stand-up comic — then a Jehovah's Witness — was "in a very physically abusive relationship," she said.
"I was sleeping with a lot of guys and had more abortions than I would like to count." She said her self-esteem became so low, "I felt if someone killed me, it wouldn't even make a difference." But after converting to Christianity, she said, "God showed me that it would make a difference." (Shepherd has also said she relied on her faith to get through her split with husband Jeff Tarpley, father of their 3-year-old son. During their seven-year marriage, Tarpley cheated on her and got another woman pregnant.)
Still, Shepherd admitted it is tough talking religion on the popular ABC chat-fest. (She received criticism after she once remarked that ancient Greeks persecuted Christians, even though Christ hadn't been born yet.)
"Oh, sometimes I say, 'Lord, Juanita Bynum or Joyce Meyer would be so good at this table. They could lay hands on Barbara Walters and get her saved,'" she said. "I ask the Lord, 'Why am I here?'" Shepherd added. "I have to trust God when He says, 'Because I said so.'"
