Open house to celebrate two years of freedom

Ron Buch, senior pastor with Breakout Ministries, traces the organization's Jesus Advantage addiction recovery to the emotional healing offered by the Spiritual Boot Camp the ministry has offered since 2008. "A friend who works for Teen Challenge called it JA (Jesus Advantage). "In the recovery world, we are presenting it as JA," said Buch. "We said, 'Let's do the Jesus Advantage and teach how to get free.'" Buch explained that while many people try to willfully stop addiction, JA includes a spiritual component that can lead to transformation. JA, which opens with a meal, has been offered each Saturday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. for two years now.

On Saturday, June 3, from 5 to 8 p.m., JA will hold an anniversary open house at Breakout, 2400 Anita Court, Leola. The event will feature a free meal with coffee and tea. "There will be fellowship, and we will talk about what we do," said Buch, who added that the evening will include testimonies from people who have been positively influenced to stay free from addiction.

Breakout associate pastor Rob Weatherholtz, who specializes in addiction recovery and discipleship, said that JA focuses on continuing recovery from addiction. "You have to be delivered from that lifestyle and everything that has to do with it," said Weatherholtz. "You have to understand the battlefield that you're on." Weatherholtz added that while behavior modification and conflict resolution techniques are part of addiction recovery, they do not offer you a relationship with Christ that leads to transformation. "It is a faith-based approach to recovery," he said. "People get saved and develop an internal perspective on the meaning of life."

Buch noted that the program's tagline is "Get free ... stay free." "A lot of people are working on getting free," he said. "(They ask), 'How do I get out of this loop?' But we are working on once you do get freedom, how do you stay free? We focus on that relationship with God, others, and accountability."

More information about the program may be found at http://www.breakoutministries.org. Readers who have specific questions may email rob.weatherholtz@gmail.com.