Jonathan Bellamy spoke with the 'Beast of the North East'

I didn't know what was happening. The light got brighter and brighter. I suppose it was a bit like Paul on the road to Damascus. This bright light was certainly brighter than the noonday sun. I put me hands to me eyes, I couldn't look at it, it was so bright. But after a while I took me hands away and Jesus was standing there. He was just there and he said, "Son, your sins are forgiven, go now and sin no more'.

I want to say Jon, at that moment, there was a fifteen-year drug habit went out of the window instantly. Twenty years of being a drug addict went out the window instantly. The violence left us, the anger left us and for the first time in me life I had a real peace. And that peace has never left me in thirteen years. It's still there.

Jesus gave me a bigger high than any cocaine or heroin ever could, and like I say, the drug habit was broken at that moment.

Since then, me life's been totally transformed. I'm an ordained minister. I travel all over the world. I've preached in about thirty countries, led thousands of people to Jesus. God uses me powerfully in the healing ministry. I've seen many miracles, people getting healed of all kinds of things. Blind eyes opened, deaf ears opened, cancers disappear. I mean it's just been an absolute adventure.

For a year I ran a drug rehabilitation centre in the borders. It's been literally amazing.

One miracle that stands out. I was arrested at gunpoint in 1983 by an officer in the Northumbria police. After he retired (he went on to become a Chief Inspector) he came to our church and he got healed of diabetes. Just absolutely amazing, you know. This adventure just goes on and on and on.

The book's now going out all over the world, the Gangland to God book. The DVD's doing well, and it's leading people, thousands to Jesus. It's not anything about me, it's all about God. But I have that personal relationship with him and he's me best friend and he's totally changed and transformed me life, you know. It's absolutely amazing.
I pastor the Action Family church up here in Northumberland. Like I said, I travel all over the world now preaching in stadiums, all kinds of stuff. Me life's totally different.

Jonathan: It is. It's almost like two different lives isn't it!

Davey: Well, it is absolutely. It's like taken us from one extreme to the other. Like I say, I've mixed with the worse of the worse. When I go into jails, people get saved. Recently, I was in Northern Ireland, saw a load of guy's getting saved in Maghaberry prison; top security prison. I was in 'Balini' and the entire chapel got saved. I been in Glasgow, because people know who I was like, I was part of the main firm here. I mixed with criminals, criminals like the Kray's and everybody else. And so people know who I was from that.

In a way I don't look at the bad now because that's helped me to reach people that are deemed unreachable. God uses us in that way you know. If Jesus can transform me he can transform anybody you know.

Jonathan: For people who are sceptical about that, either they doubt the stories in the Bible or they think that was back then when Jesus was around. How would you answer them in terms of seeing God heal people today?

Davey: Well I see it as a regular thing. I see it like every week. Like in our Sunday night meetings people are getting healed of all different types of stuff. I mean like I see it, from serious things like cancers. I mean there was a lady healed of leukaemia, who was on death's door a few weeks ago. I mean its miraculous healings. I've seen people getting out of wheelchairs and all kinds of stuff. It's absolutely amazing.

One major healing, actually it was quite funny. It was a guy, a friend of ours who got healed of 'servisophia', a guy called John Cuthbert. And John used to be a blind man and walked with a dog and a stick, the black 'peepers' and all. He got healed in the service. And so he went there to take his guide dog back to the hospital. He went to the specialist and the specialist wouldn't believe that. He said, "John what are you doing? He said, "I've come to bring the dog back." And he said, "Why John, you need a dog, you're blind. And John said, "Well actually, I'm not. Jesus has healed us, you know. He said, "I can't believe this John.

So John pulled his Bible out and read to him the story of Jesus healing blind Bartimaeus. And do you know, that guy's a bus driver now. That's what he's doing; he drives buses for a living. Like the chief inspector, seen the video about me. On the video he was talking and saying, 'I went to a church totally sceptical. I heard David had become a Christian'. And he got healed of diabetes you know. So it's a regular thing.