Episode 204: Ashley Franich | Why Community is the Key to Recovery Success

On paper, Ben Fuller had everything going for him—captain of the football team, hard-working farm kid from Vermont, chasing his music dreams all the way to Nashville. But behind the image was a secret life of cocaine, alcohol, and shame that lasted nearly fifteen years. He tried to outrun it by moving 1,250 miles, changing scenes and friend groups, but the addiction followed him everywhere he went.

Everything shifted the night a Vermont family living in Tennessee invited him to dinner—and then to church. At Church of the City in Franklin, Ben walked into a worship service and felt a presence he couldn’t explain. Standing in the aisle, he remembered Romans 10:9 and prayed, “Jesus, help me. I need Your help. I don’t even know who You are.” That simple, desperate prayer became the turning point. Jesus didn’t just get him sober; He gave Ben a brand-new identity as a child of God.

Today, Ben Fuller travels the country sharing his story, leading worship, and taking the hope of the gospel into some of the darkest places in America—including maximum-security prisons. His life is living proof that no addict is too far gone and no story is too broken for Jesus to rewrite.