Taraji P. Henson, breakout star of the Fox show “Empire”, told the crowd at the Critics’ Choice Television Awards she is “nothing without God.”

“Thank you God, because without God, I’m nothing,” said Henson. “And the fans. I love awards, they’re great, but this just means I’m touching lives, and that’s why I got into acting.”

Henson had just received the award for Best Actress for her portrayal of “Cookie Lyon” on “Empire”.  The Academy Award and Primetime Emmy award nominee has been very bold about her Christian faith and how God drives her.

“I moved to California with $700 in my pocket with my son and a dream and faith,” explained Henson to the Christian Post. “And every time a door would close I would pray to God, like ‘I know you’ve got a plan for me because I’m still here.’ There’s a plan for me and I believe in that.”

“Whenever I thought I was supposed to get something and it didn’t fall through, I would just fall back to God and be like, ‘OK, well what else, because whatever you’ve got must be better than this,'” she added.

Henson was the first African-American actress to win the award.