The Church on the Street in the deprived northern town of Burnley is reaching out to the homeless, hungry and the seemingly hopeless.
It was founded by Pastor Mick Fleming, pictured above, who was transformed from a dangerous drug dealer to man of the cloth through a Damascus Road encounter with Jesus.
Teaming up with Father Alex Frost, he now offers food, clothing and hope to many afflicted by poverty, abuse, drug and alcohol addiction, and more.
Mick’s amazing story is told in full in his book Blown Away: From Drug Dealer to Life Bringer (SPCK), which recounts the many miracles he has witnessed.
His life spiralled into serious crime after his beloved big sister died suddenly of a heart attack, aged 20, only a day after he’d been raped, aged 11, in a park. He had no time to share his personal trauma before the whole family was engulfed by sorrow.
Covering up his painful childhood memories, Mick lived in a violent underworld for nearly three decades until one day, with his gun loaded, his intended victim emerged with two young children – blonde girls of about five years old.
As he reached for his weapon, he was struck by the faces of the innocent kids, and a blinding light came from one of the children’s hands.
“It was white – brilliant white. For 15 seconds I couldn’t see,” he told Ed Thomas of the BBC. “It was like looking into the sun and I was paralysed by it.”
As he collapsed and suffered a complete breakdown, he pleaded with God to help him. He even tried to shoot himself, but the gun failed to fire. And when a policeman caught up with him at traffic lights and shot at him three times from close range, none of the bullets touched him.
He endured 30 years of hell, during which he was twice arrested for murder, and three times for armed robbery.
All the time, his mum was praying for him.
Following the blinding light experience, comparable to the Apostle Paul’s dramatic conversion on the road to Damascus, Mick was initially sectioned under the Mental Health Act and admitted to the Burnley psychiatric unit, where he was treated with love and care and met ‘Pastor Tony’, who brought new hope to his life.
Though it was a slow process, his life was completely turned around as he built a close relationship with his new friend, Jesus, eventually graduating in theology and sharing the love he has found with others struggling to survive.
He began by sharing sandwiches and coffee with the homeless outside McDonald’s but, as his story became more widely known thanks to the BBC, he was inundated with donations, enabling him to invest in a building from which to base his growing ministry.
It was some years ago that he befriended a homeless alcoholic – listened to him, cared for him, helped him to get sober and be reunited with his family. The man died two years later, but his family were thankful they’d all been together. It was the man who raped him. He had been able not only to forgive him, but also care for him.
