The evangelistic newspaper of the modern Jesus Army
2011
"MY MATE DRAGGED ME FROM DEATH'S DOOR!"
Alex Newson, 20, talks about the day his mate, David, found him as good as dead.
“I woke up with a bit of a headache and felt queasy. But I should have been dead."
Alex had taken 20 paracetamol and 40 antihistamines in an attempt to end his life.
Amazingly, no treatment was needed. "I was perfectly fine. None of the nurses could understand it".
Alex's suicide attempt was the tragic upshot of a tough childhood. His parents separated when he was young. Alex's father suffered from schizophrenia and struggled with alcoholism. He died when Alex was 14. His mother, who raised Alex on her own, suffered from depression.
"I was the 'man of the house' from a young age" explains Alex "I had to look after her, but I went off the rails myself around the time I went to secondary school".
Alex got involved with a gang in his hometown, Leicester. A cocktail of drink, drugs and crime threatened to derail him completely.
But there were good influences at work in Alex's life, too. Alex attended a course at a local church, designed to explain Christian faith. Alex admits he "just went for the free meal". But the things he heard about God made sense.
A chink of light appeared in Alex's darkening world. But it wasn't until his life really hit rock bottom that God became a living reality to Alex.
Alex's best friend at school, David, was a Christian. On the night Alex took the overdose, David couldn't throw off a feeling his friend was in trouble. He now sees it as God speaking to him.
"David was so concerned about me, he knocked down my door when there was no answer." says Alex.
It was as well that he did: David found Alex, who had just taken handfuls of pills, and rushed him to hospital.
Alex describes what happened next. "I was laying in hospital, in a daze. I heard a voice say 'I love you, and I have chosen you, and I want you to build My kingdom'."
When Alex regained consciousness, he was completely well. The medics were baffled as to why he had not been affected more seriously by the overdose.
But Alex had an explanation - he had met God.
After this, Alex started to come to a Jesus Army house in Leicester with David and his family. He found real friendship and love there.
"It was the brotherhood that really stood out to me" he says. "You don't have to wear a suit or be a certain way to be part of a church like this".
When Alex was 18, he moved into the Jesus Army house for a "training year" - a year to grow as a Christian, and learn how to love and serve others more effectively.
Two years on, Alex is now a stable young man with a strong Christian faith. "The training year was challenging" he admits "but it was awesome, too. It's helped me to find healing and I've grown up a lot".
