RYAN SCOTT OTTNEY

PDT Staff Writer

The Christians Reviving America’s Values (CRAVE) Crusade will host a free public ministry at Spartan Stadium in Portsmouth on Saturday, evangelizing their message, “Breaking the Chains of Addiction” with Pastor Daniel VanGundy.

CRAVE Crusade was started in 1999 by Pastor Don Swarthout after states began removing the Ten Commandments from public spaces. Today his ministry has grown, writing to 1.5 million Christians each year.

“It was created initially because people were fighting against Christianity, and they were winning at the time,” Swarthout said.

CRAVE Crusade will host a free public ministry at Spartan Stadium in Portsmouth, at 7 p.m. on Saturday, with the Christian rock band God’s Dirt and speaker Pastor Daniel VanGundy of Columbus.

“I saw Danny speak at two or three different places. One was a Christian-based program for alcoholics and drug-addicted people and he really brought the house down. There were 41 people who came out to hear him that day and 17 of those people came forward to accept the Lord,” Swarthout said.

VanGundy is a former drug addict who broke free from his addiction with help of the Lord.

“I was addicted to OxyContin, Percocet, Vicoden, and cocaine myself and I actually died one night from an overdose of OxyContin and cocaine. I gave my life to the Lord; had an experience and went to Hell; had an experience and God brought me up out of Hell and put me in college and I got my degree. I’ve been preaching the gospel for about six years now,” VanGundy said.

He has been traveling with the ministry for more than a year sharing his message with communities. Pastor Swarthout asked Pastor VanGundy to select a city in Ohio where they should evangelize.

“I picked Portsmouth because I knew when I was in my addiction that all the pills came up from Portsmouth,” VanGundy said. “The reason CRAVE Crusade is coming to Portsmouth is to give the city hope that it can be done. You can be delivered from drug addiction.”

He said he knows it will be a successful meeting that will transform the city.

“God’s already told me that He’s going to open up the windows of Heaven and pull out a blessing on Portsmouth and it will once again become holy ground. Poverty’s got to go, addiction’s got to go, prostitution’s got to go. It’s because we’re coming in, not in our power but in the power of the Holy Spirit and He’s going to do a mighty work in Portsmouth Saturday night,” VanGundy said.

For more information about CRAVE Crusades, find them at www.christians4america.com.

Ryan Scott Ottney can be reached at 740-353-3101, ext. 235, or rottney@heartlandpublications.com.