John Barrow knows what it’s like to hit bottom because of drugs and alcohol.

Earlier in his life he spent time in juvenile detention centers, reform schools, prison and even solitary confinement and now, after 15 years of sobriety and working in the construction industry, Barrow, a Sharpsburg resident, wants to minister to young men who may be in a situation that is similar to his past and help them find the Lord and find their way out of trouble.

Barrow has established A Better Way Ministries, Inc. on a 52-acre plot of land in Sharpsburg. The ministry uses the Teen Challenge curriculum, which has saved thousands of troubled youth since it was formed by David Wilkerson in 1958. Teen Challenge is a faith-based solution for the drug epidemic and boasts a very high rate of rehabilitation.

Barrow had his first experience with Teen Challenge when he was in the Fulton County Juvenile Detention Center at the age of 12 and he heard the testimony of John Koch, a former gang leader in New York who had just completed the Teen Challenge program. Though Barrow still got into trouble after leaving the detention center and battled drugs for over 13 years after that night, he admits that the seed for his transformation was planted that night.

“I had bought this land and had started coming out here to pray,” said Barrow of the 52-acre tract where he is building his ministry. "I was planning on building a subdivision but God wanted something different.”

Barrow stated that it has been his dream for awhile to minister to people and live on the same land and now that dream is coming to fruition. There are five young men living in the house and going through the one year program and Barrow is assisted in his efforts by one staff member and one intern.

The word of mouth is starting to spread to others who need help and Barrow has also found support from people like Jorge Valdez of Coming Clean Ministries, Peachtree City Police Chief James Murray, and Teen Challenge Georgia International Director Tim Newbon, among others.

The typical day for the young men participating in Barrow’s program starts with quiet time and prayer in the morning. After breakfast, they will complete chores or start working. While some tasks involve projects that will help build the ministry out, Barrow also looks for opportunities in the community, such as yard work or helping people move, where the young men can generate funds for the program. After working for several hours, the guys have lunch and are then encouraged to pray somewhere for 15 minutes. The group will then go back to work before returning to the home for dinner and classes, which includes the Teen Challenge curriculum and bible study. There is no secular television or music allowed in the house, although sometimes DVDs are shown.

The young men currently in the program are 16 and older and Barrow one day hopes to have another home on the land that will help young men ages 13-16. Currently, Barrow recommends children in this age group go to a similar facility in Griffin. Barrow looks forward to the day when both groups are on the same land so that the older group, some of whom are fathers who have never met their children, learns to be mentors to the younger group.

Barrow stated that the program has an 86 percent success rate with the participants in the program and credits Jesus as the reason for the success.

“It works because it works on the heart,” said Barrow. “We don’t try to change them through incarceration, we work from the inside out and rejuvenate their heart.”

Valdez, who was present at the interview, agreed, adding that kids don’t need education about drugs. “Anybody who tries drugs knows that they are bad for them,” Valdez said. “Christ is the only way to change a person’s heart.”

Valdez also had a personal experience with the Teen Challenge program, stating that it is one of the few groups that he will fundraise and make personal appearances for.

“It has such an impact because the kids will change when they see that people like them can change.”

Both Valdez and Barrow have had a troubled past but they also see the problems affecting young people in the community today and know that something must be done to try to help them.

“We need the churches to help, but we also need leaders in the community, like John, to step forward and help those kids, acting as a bridge for the kids who don’t go to church but need a bridge to Christ,” said Valdez.

Barrow has set several goals for his ministry for the next year. Among them are completing the renovations of the farmhouse, which Square Foot Ministries is helping with, so that it can house 12 men comfortably. He also hopes to add the facility for the younger kids within the next year or so, as well as getting the attention and support of the community.

During the interview, a young man who has been addicted to heroin was being admitted to the program.

“If at the end of the day we’ve kept one kid alive that otherwise would’ve been dead, it’s all been worth it,” said Barrow.

For more information on A Better Way Ministries, phone 770-599-8111.

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