‘I was living a double life while I was in the Newsboys’

In the mid-1990s, the Newsboys had the world at their feet. Christian music had risen to unimaginable heights and the band, together with dcTalk, were at the top of the Christian Contemporary Music (CCM) tree. Signed to Virgin Records, they played to packed stadia full of adoring fans. 

Albums such as Going Public brilliantly captured the mood of American Christian youth with lines such as: “There’s no straddling fences here”, and: “We’re going public with this.” But behind the displays of spiritual boldness, there was a personal tragedy unfolding in the heart of the band. 

Lead singer, John James, was living a double life. He had become addicted to alcohol and cocaine, and was unfaithful to his wife. In 1997, James left the band and drummer, Peter Furler, took over as lead singer. Management silence about the reason for James’ departure was deafening.  

Unbeknown to fans, his destructive lifestyle led to the breakdown of his marriage and his wife, Vesna, returned to their native Australia. James followed her, but, despite counselling from his brother-in-law, who is a pastor, they eventually divorced. Nonetheless, James continued to attend his brother-in-law’s church. One Sunday morning, the guest speaker strode down the aisle, straight towards James. “He pointed directly at me. His eyes locked onto mine,” James recalls. “It was as if he had a direct line from God, like he was reading the deepest, darkest parts of my soul. He spoke things no one knew, private thoughts I’d never shared with another living person. I was completely exposed. The walls I’d built, the hardness in my heart, everything I’d tried to suppress – it all shattered in an instant. 

“The presence of God hit me like a tidal wave. I fell to my knees, and the tears came like a flood. Years of running, hiding, denying – all of it broke under the weight of God’s love. I didn’t know what the rest of the congregation was doing, and I didn’t care. In that moment, I realised that despite everything, God hadn’t turned His back on me. His hand was still stretched out, drawing me towards repentance, towards the cross.”

James began working as a salesman but, after a while, he began to feel a nudge from the Holy Spirit to return to the USA. Once there, he began sharing his story wherever and whenever he was asked. Then, unexpectedly, through social media, he became aware of a music minister called Tanya Riley who had a similar testimony to his. Over the following months, they communicated via Facebook, then by phone, before finally meeting up in Florida. They married in December 2019 and began to travel together, ministering side by side. 

Redemption is never up to you and I

The full story is contained in James’ new book Newsboy: My story of hope and second chances (BroadStreet Publishing). The release comes less than a year since Furler’s successor as the Newsboys lead singer, Michael Tait, also confessed to drug and alcohol abuse and sexual immorality. In a statement Tait said: “I am ashamed of my life choices and actions and make no excuses for them. I will simply call it what God calls it – sin.” 

James’ book had been in the making for several years, he says, and in that respect, the timing was purely coincidental. “But I gotta be honest, I believe that, in light of the fallout with the Newsboys and Mike Tait, God knew the powerful redemptive story of my message needs to be shouted louder than ever.

“More than ever, we need to hear that no one is so lost that they can’t experience God’s redemption. The danger is when we, as Christians, become the barometer and the gauge of who deserves redemption or not. Redemption is never up to you and I. It is in the hands of Almighty God. And He doesn’t need our opinion or our approval. 

“We’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God [Romans 3:23]. My prayer is that out of the mess, the pain, the chaos, the wounds, the scars, God is still able to turn it around and bring a redemptive miracle story out of it. If God could do a miracle in somebody as broken as me, no one is so far gone that God can’t reach them.”

The growth of CCM sales means that there is strong motivation for record companies to put artists into a world which has often proved destructive to their spiritual health. James believes it is irresponsible to send young Christians on the road without any kind of spiritual covering. “It’s absolutely ridiculous,” he says. “You have these young men and women who have incredible gifts, who are fast-tracked, put on this platform and given a stage and influence. But what about their foundation? What about their integrity? What about their biblical worldview? Often, these young men and women who are made role models don’t always have a solid theological foundation. So, we wonder why they fall.”