EXCLUSIVE: Secrets of Savannah Guthrie's Strength – Why She Will Never Lose Faith and the Moment She Knew Her Mom Was Gone

Savannah Guthrie's life changed forever when she learned her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, had been abducted in the middle of the night on Jan. 31.

"Savannah's whole world was turned upside down in an instant," a source told RadarOnline.com. "She was destroyed – but she stayed strong. Because she has her faith."

Savannah, a devout Baptist, has repeatedly referenced that faith in desperate public pleas to the kidnappers and in messages to supporters across America.

Just one day after Nancy's terrifying abduction from her Tucson, Ariz., home, Savannah, 54, posted a solemn, two-word social media message: "Please Pray."

Days later, on Feb. 4, the Today host fought through tears as she thanked supporters for their prayers, telling fans: "We feel them, and we continue to believe that (Nancy) feels them, too."

Then she spoke directly to her mother.

"You are God's precious daughter, Nancy," she said while flanked by siblings Annie, 56, and Camron, 61.

"We believe and know that even in this valley He is with you. Everyone is looking for you, Mommy, everywhere. We will not rest. Your children will not rest until we are together again."

Eleven grueling days later, on Feb. 15, the Georgetown University-trained lawyer took to YouTube to appeal to whatever goodness might still reside in the kidnappers' hardened hearts.

"We still have hope, and we still believe. It's never too late," she said to them. "You're not lost or alone, and it is never too late to do the right thing. We are here. We believe. We believe in the essential goodness of every human being, and it's never too late."

As the world now knows, Nancy was snatched from the home in which she's lived for the last 50 years and where she raised Savannah, Annie and Camron with her late husband, Charlie, a former mining engineer who moved his family there from Australia in 1975.

Droplets of Nancy's blood were found on her doorstep and – in a twist no one saw coming – a shocking and horrifying image of her alleged abductor emerged on Feb. 10, showing a masked, armed man on her doorstep the night she was taken.

A second image, also snapped by Nancy's doorbell camera, revealed the alleged assailant stalked the home prior to the kidnapping.

As RadarOnline.com reported, police had not identified any suspects or made any arrests – this, despite a $1.1million reward plus thousands of tips.

But Savannah never gave up.

"She's said she will never lose faith that her mother will be found," said the source.

"From the moment she learned her mother was missing, Savannah has leaned on God and drawn strength from Him. Her life continues to be a living hell – there's no peace, no closure – but she will never crumble. She's too strong."

Savannah was born on Dec. 27, 1971, as the third child of Charlie and Nancy – deeply devout Baptists who took their family to church three times a week. Charlie was a man of "deep faith and conviction," Savannah has said, while Nancy was "a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant."

"The greatest gift my mother gave me was faith and belief in God," she's shared. "It changed my whole life."

"Going through deep crises, profound adversity – those are the make-or-break moments for faith; they can be existential threats to your belief, or they can be extraordinary teachers. Sometimes they are both, and not always at the same time," she wrote.

Her faith has also driven her, in part, to the lofty perch she occupies atop the TV news world.

"Being a journalist, you have to realize, was never about fame or glory for Savannah," said the insider. "It was always about using her gifts to serve others – and in turn, serve Him."

Beverly Hills psychiatrist Dr. Carole Lieberman, who has not treated Savannah, told RadarOnline.com, generally speaking, "the stronger a person's faith in God, the better they will be able to weather adversity, because they always feel like God is going to protect them, or their loved ones, or they are able to [see] the adversity as part of a divine plan."