Marriage in Recovery Ministry: Ashley Franich’s Story

Most people thought it was crazy.

Ashley had just graduated from Bible school in Dallas, Texas—fully on fire for God, ready to change the world. She came home to Virginia expecting to step into children's ministry, youth work, maybe eventually marry a nice guy from church.

Instead, she met Justin.

Fresh out of Teen Challenge. Five years clean from meth. Zero ministry experience. Just a guy with a testimony and a calling.

On paper, it made no sense.

But 15 years later, they've walked through rehab ministry together, launched a women's program, fostered and adopted children, pastored a church, and continue leading faith-based recovery work in the Shenandoah Valley.

In this raw conversation, Justin sits down with his wife Ashley to share their journey—the obedience, the doubt, the "next yes" principle that's guided every major decision, and why stepping into things that looked like failures often positioned them for God's best.

If you've ever wondered how couples navigate faith-based recovery work, raise a family in ministry, or hear God's direction through the chaos—this conversation is for you.

What You'll Learn:

• How Ashley went from children's ministry to leading women through addiction recovery (without any personal history of substance abuse)
• The "next yes" principle that's guided every major decision in their marriage and ministry
• Why stepping into "failures" often positions you for God's best
• How foster care and adoption became part of their restoration story
• Practical wisdom on staying obedient when you can't see the full picture

Marrying Someone in Early Recovery

Justin opened the conversation with the question everyone wants to know: "What were you thinking?"

Ashley laughed. "It was really just the Jesus factor. My mindset coming home from Bible school was: I met you through another friend, and the whole drug factor wasn't the thing. It was the Jesus factor. Seeing that your walk was real and that you had intentions to be in ministry—that drove everything."

But here's the part most people don't know: Ashley didn't like Justin at first.

"The story is, I didn't like you at first," she admitted. "But you would tell me stories—opportunities to go back and do the things that were part of your life in the drug world, and you said no. That really made it clear to me: this guy is serious. He's really going to pursue God. He's already said no to so many things. He's really going after the things that really matter."

That's what convinced her. Not his past. Not his potential. But his present obedience.

From Bible College to Addiction Ministry

Before Justin, Ashley's path seemed clear.

She got saved in ninth or tenth grade. It was dramatic—a full surrender moment. "Okay, I'm saved now as a teenager. This is going to be for real. I'm not going to steer away from this."

She became a youth leader, went to EMU in Harrisonburg for a semester, but felt like it wasn't serious enough. Too much of a party school. Too close to JMU. She wanted something more committed.

So she moved 1,250 miles away to Christ for the Nations in Dallas, Texas.

"I remember sitting at the table with my mom and dad and saying, 'Hey guys, I'm going to Texas.' And they're like, 'What?' And I was like, 'I'm going to see AF&I, and I'm going next semester.' And they're just kind of like, 'Okay.'"

She packed the car. Her parents drove her down, flew back, and Ashley dove headfirst into Bible school.

But here's the twist: Ashley didn't want to come back.

"I was set to graduate in Texas. I had a pastor and his wife—they had an extra room in their basement. I was going to stay and help them with a church plant. But I was praying about it, maybe a month left in the semester, and God was like, 'You're going home.' And I was like, 'I'm not going home.' And He was like, 'No, you're going home.' So I was like, 'Okay, I'll go home.'"

She had no idea why. But she went.

And that's when she met Justin.

Stepping Into Drug and Alcohol Ministry

Ashley went from children's ministry and youth work to drug and alcohol recovery.

She had zero personal history with addiction. She didn't know the lingo. The first time Justin mentioned "Mary Jane," she asked, "Who's Mary Jane?"

So how did she step into that world confidently?

"I think it just comes down to obedience. We were married, we're going to walk in this thing together. That was your passion. You were already at Teen Challenge and leading when I met you. So it was just me stepping into that with you. And I think that was really easy for me because we were doing it together. I didn't have any doubt—I was going to be obedient to the Lord, not to you. I was going to walk with my husband."

But she also had a framework that helped her push past the inevitable pushback from people who said, "You've never been an addict—how can you help?"

"David Wilkerson wasn't an addict," Ashley said. "He followed the Holy Spirit, and he was compassionate and he loved well. So that said to me: it's possible. No matter what people would say or how they would look at me, Teen Challenge was started by someone who was just loving and following the call of God. And anything can happen when you're just walking with the Spirit and being obedient."

What Would You Say to Someone at a Crossroads?

Justin asked: "What would you say to somebody standing at a crossroads, grappling with God calling them to something? There's no question God's asking them to do this thing—but they're wrestling with self-doubt, feelings of inadequacy. How did you cope with that?"

Ashley's answer was simple but profound:

"Just be obedient. Really stay in your Word and focus on the plan and the call He has on you. If He's called you to it, He's going to walk you through it. He's going to get you through it. People say that all the time, but it's real. So stay focused on that. So many people want to say so many things, but when you stay confident that God's called you here, He's obviously showed you this is where you're supposed to go—just stay confident in that and be obedient. He's going to take you through."

The Grit: Raising a Family in Recovery Ministry

Here's what nobody tells you about ministry life:

Ashley was pregnant. They had kids. She was still nursing their daughter Lydia when they started the women's home in their basement.

Three bedrooms downstairs. Family living upstairs. Women in active recovery just feet away from their young children.

"That was wild," Justin said. "Just walking through that season—raising a young family while having to trust in every step of obedience because that's where the Lord had called us."

Ashley laughed. "There were some fun stories. Praying for people and then getting cursed out by them 30 minutes later. 'I love you!' at the altar, and then right up in your face ready to fight a few minutes later. 'I hate you so much!' Yeah, that happened for real."

It wasn't easy. But it was obedient.

And that's been the theme of their entire marriage.

Foster Care and Adoption: Dreams Becoming Reality

From the beginning, Justin and Ashley both wanted to adopt.

"We both came together with that idea, which is cool," Justin said. "But everything's easy until you do it."

For Ashley, the call to foster care and adoption started with dreams.

"I would have these God dreams," she said. "One particular dream: I found a baby sitting in a shopping cart outside of Walmart. It's dark outside, the light is shining down on him, and he's just sitting in the cart crying. That was the very first dream. I was like, 'What is this? Where is this going?'"

From there, God kept melting her heart.

"I would see commercials or advertisements, and as soon as it started, I'd just start bawling. Something's happening here. God is shifting me. Now I'm really passionate about kids having a family. They all deserve a family. Being pulled out of hard situations."

Their first foster placement came during the pandemic—two older girls who stayed for 18 months.

Then came the call that changed everything.

The Call Over the Mountain: Emily's Story

They got a call to come hold a baby. That's all they knew.

They didn't know if it was a placement or an adoption. They had no information. Just: "Come hold this baby."

Ashley went over the mountain to the NICU. And she kept going back. Every other day for hours at a time.

A few days in, the nurse said the baby hadn't been named yet. They'd been calling her "Baby Girl."

"They said, 'We've been waiting for Jesus to name her. Would you guys do it?'" Ashley recalled. "And I was like, 'Oh my gosh.' I remember sitting in our bedroom thinking, 'When you name a baby, it causes so much more connection.' I was praying, 'God, are we supposed to do this? Should we name her? What's going on here?' And I remember Him saying, 'You're going to give her identity.' That was it. And I was like, 'Okay, we're going to do this.'"

At the time, Justin wasn't sure. They'd signed up for short-term foster care—not adoption. The medical unknowns terrified him.

"I remember pacing around the yard just praying and pondering one evening," Justin said. "And that's when the Lord really shifted my heart. It wasn't easy. We had to go through some stuff. But from there, we were in."

Two years later, Emily is running, healthy, joyful—thriving in ways they couldn't have known back then.

"She's so joyful," Ashley said. "Like nothing's ever gone wrong. It's just life for her."

The "Next Yes" Principle

Throughout their marriage and ministry, Ashley and Justin have operated on what they call "the next yes" principle.

"We don't have to figure the whole plan out," Justin explained. "It's just the very next yes."

That's been their life:

• Youth ministry
• A church plant that looked like a failure
• Teen Challenge
• Women's ministry
• Foster care
• Pastoring
• Back to Teen Challenge

To outsiders, it might look scattered. But to them, it's obedience.

"Sometimes what looks like failure to everybody on the outside is really God setting us up for the next thing," Justin said. "God's not always calling us to success—at least not by worldly standards. He's calling us to obedience."

Ashley agreed: "If He's got the big picture and this is the way He's pointing me, then why not?"

When God Calls You to Something That Looks Like Failure

One of the most powerful parts of their story is the church plant.

They stepped away from Teen Challenge to plant a church. It felt like the right move. They were all in.

And then it didn't work.

"It felt like a failure," Justin said. "We were there, and it felt like this was for nothing."

But here's what they learned: Had they not said yes to that thing that failed, they wouldn't have been positioned for what came next.

The women's program at Teen Challenge exploded in growth during that season. And it happened because they were obedient—even when it didn't make sense.

"I think sometimes we don't think about that a lot," Justin said. "That God's not calling us to success always. He's calling us to obedience. And even going and doing that church plant thing—when it felt like a failure—from that place, God began to grow what we talk about. And had we not said yes, I don't think that would have ever happened."

God Doesn't Waste Anything

Ashley said something that's stuck with her for years:

"Someone said to me, 'He doesn't waste anything that happens to you.' God turns all things around for the good. So I don't know if I've ever really doubted. Because if He's got the big picture and this is the way He's pointing me, then why not?"

That's the heart of their story.

Not perfection. Not a clear roadmap. Just sustained obedience over the long haul.

"Sustained obedience to the Lord over the long term is not easy," Justin said. "But Ashley is just consistent. No matter where we go, no matter what opportunities come, she's just who she is. And that's a good thing."

How to Keep Your Heart Tender

Justin asked Ashley the question a lot of people wonder: "How do you keep your heart tender and your mind and spirit open to hear from the Lord and just say yes consistently?"

Her answer was rooted in one truth:

"He's a good Father. Really keeping that in the front of your mind—that He wants all good things for me. Even if I don't like it or it's different or there's a change—in the end, it's for my good. And He doesn't waste anything."

She paused. "I don't know if I've ever really doubted. Because if He's got the big picture and this is the way He's pointing me, then why not?"

Dreams and God's Faithfulness

Ashley's dreams aren't just about foster care.

One time, she had a dream about something being covered up on the Teen Challenge property.

"I dreamed that something was being covered up on the mountain," she said. "And we were always like, 'Well, if there's something going on, God's going to reveal it.' So I had this dream, and I was like, 'This is interesting. Let's go check it out.'"

Justin went and searched. And sure enough, exactly where Ashley dreamed it would be, he found what was being hidden.

"That season gave me so much patience," Justin said. "It taught me that God will fight our battles. Sometimes we cause more chaos trying to uncover and expose things. But if God uncovers something, His correction is going to be much better than mine will ever be."

The Beauty of Being Different

At the end of the conversation, Justin asked Ashley: "What's the thing that annoys you about me the most?"

She laughed. "We are so different. You're a visionary. You're on the go. You jump from one thing to the other. I like the details and keeping things steady."

She gave an example: homeschooling.

"There'll be days where we're working, working, working—especially toward the end of the year because you have to get things done for testing. I'll be on track, focused, the girls are focused. And then in the middle of it, you hop in the door and you're like, 'Let's go for ice cream!' And I'm like, 'Are you kidding me? Do you see my schedule here?'"

But she's learned something: "It was actually healthy most of the time. It would take some of the stress off. It would break up our day. The girls super enjoyed it. It was a brain break we actually really needed. So it turned out to be a blessing most of the time."

Justin smiled. "That's the beauty of God bringing us together—the two different worlds we came from, the difference in personalities. You have dreams. I have dreams. But none of that happens without you. I live in the clouds, and you've always been the steady and the balance. You need both."

Final Thoughts

This isn't a story about a perfect marriage or a flawless ministry journey.

It's a story about two people who keep saying yes.

Yes to obedience when it doesn't make sense.
Yes to foster care when it's terrifying.
Yes to failure when God's calling them to step in.
Yes to each other when life gets chaotic.

And 15 years later, they're still saying yes.

Because God doesn't waste anything—including the messy middle parts of the journey.

Scripture References:

• God turns all things for good (Romans 8:28)
• David Wilkerson's story (The Cross and the Switchblade)
• Obedience over sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22)