Based in Warrington.
Colin Pownall’s life is a powerful testimony of how an encounter with Jesus Christ can transform even the most broken circumstances.
Once caught in a world of violence, drugs and alcohol addiction, crime and imprisonment, Colin now travels to share the Gospel. He travels bringing the message of hope and freedom to people whose lives may seem beyond repair.
Known as an ex-Hell’s Angel who became a bikers’ pastor, Colin’s story is one of redemption, healing and discovering a love he had never known.
A Difficult Childhood and a Life on the Edge
Colin’s early life was marked by rejection and instability. At just ten years old, he was placed in a children’s home, where he spent the remainder of his childhood.
At sixteen, he bought his first motorbike and began spending time with motorcycle gangs. Over the following years, he became involved with outlaw motorcycle clubs, including “back patch” clubs. Increasingly Colin found himself drawn into a dangerous lifestyle.
Behind the bikes and the gang culture was a young man struggling with deep anger, bitterness and hatred. Drug and alcohol addiction took hold, and his life became increasingly destructive.
At twenty-one, Colin found himself in a mental hospital. By twenty-four, he was in a maximum-security prison. His life was spiralling further out of control, and he had become accustomed to violence, crime and substance abuse.
Looking back, Colin recognised that he had been living with little hope for the future. He had tried many things, but nothing had filled the emptiness within him.
A Church Meeting That Changed Everything
In his thirties, Colin attended a church meeting where the preacher spoke about Heaven and Hell.
At first, the message did not frighten him in the way the preacher might have expected. Colin had his own ideas about Hell. He imagined a place where people rode big motorbikes, the sun always shone, and alcohol and drugs were freely available.
But the preacher continued, he described Hell as a place without love, joy or peace.
Colin began to recognise something deeply uncomfortable.
He was already living a life without those things.
The hatred, bitterness and emptiness that had shaped his existence were no longer something he could ignore. For the first time, the message of Hell became real to him, and he was frightened by the thought of spending eternity in such a place.
Then came the message of HOPE: Jesus could save him.
At the end of the meeting, the preacher invited anyone who wanted to receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour to respond. Colin knew he needed to make a decision. He responded to the invitation and was led in prayer.
“I Knew Jesus Had Answered Me”
What happened next changed Colin’s life.
As he prayed, he experienced the love of God in a way he had never known before. Overcome with emotion, he began to cry. Colin later described the moment simply: “I knew Jesus had answered me.”
The change was immediate and profound. Colin has described how his addictions to drugs and alcohol disappeared almost immediately after he gave his life to Jesus. But the transformation went far beyond giving up destructive habits. For the first time, Colin discovered what it meant to love. As he put it:
“I was able to love for the first time in my life.”
The hatred and bitterness that had dominated his past began to give way to a new sense of freedom, belonging and purpose. The man who had spent years pushing people away had discovered the love of God and a new family in the Christian community.
Colin’s testimony is a reminder that Jesus does not simply offer people a way to change their behaviour. He offers a transformed life, rooted in forgiveness, love and a relationship with Him.
From Outlaw Biker to Bikers’ Pastor
Becoming a Christian did not mean Colin had to abandon his lifelong passion for motorbikes. Instead, God gave him a new purpose for it.
Colin continued riding, but now through the Christian Motorcyclists Association, using his connections and experience to reach people who might never otherwise walk into a church.
His past became a way to connect with others. He understood the culture, the language and the struggles of the people he was reaching because he had lived that life himself.
Rather than being defined by his former identity, Colin began using his story to point others towards Jesus.
His transformation also led him into ministry with the Full Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship International (FGB). Although he had little knowledge of Scripture when he first became a Christian, he recognised FGB as a place where he belonged and could serve God.
Through the Fellowship, he found opportunities to travel, speak about his testimony and share the message of Jesus with people from many different backgrounds and nations.
The man who once lived without hope now had a purpose: to tell others about the One who had changed his life.
Taking the Gospel Beyond the Church Walls
Colin’s ministry has taken him well beyond the UK, including outreach missions to Romania and Serbia, where he has worked alongside other FGB members, Bikers’ Church representatives and local Christian leaders.
These missions have included visits to prisons, church meetings, radio ministry and FGB dinners. The team has shared testimonies, preached the Gospel, prayed for people and encouraged local believers.
During one ten-day mission to Romania and Serbia, Colin reported that the team visited five prisons, took part in three church meetings and held two FGB dinners. He estimated that more than 150 prisoners responded to the Gospel during the prison visits.
On a later fourteen-day outreach, the team visited six prisons, held three FGB dinner outreaches and took part in two church meetings, alongside numerous other opportunities to minister.
One particularly moving account involved a young homeless woman named Claudia, who attended an FGB outreach dinner. When she responded to the invitation to receive Jesus, she wept throughout the prayer and asked the translator to speak the words slowly and clearly because she did not want to miss a single word.
For Colin, moments like these demonstrate why sharing the Gospel matters. A single encounter with Jesus can change the direction of a person’s life, just as it changed his own.
Hope Behind Prison Walls
Colin’s own experience of imprisonment gives particular significance to his work in prisons.
He knows what it means to be trapped in a destructive life, consumed by anger and unable to see a way forward. When he enters a prison to speak about Jesus, he brings not only a message but also a personal example of the possibility of change.
During the Romania and Serbia outreach missions, Colin described seeing prisoners respond emotionally to the Gospel, with many weeping as they prayed to receive Christ. There were also opportunities to pray for healing and encourage people in their faith.
The work extended to a women’s prison, where 45 women responded to an invitation to receive Jesus during one meeting. According to Colin’s report, the response was so striking that prison staff, including the governor, came to see what was happening.
These experiences reflect the heart of Colin’s testimony: no one should be written off as beyond the reach of God’s love.
The man who once found himself behind prison walls is now helping to take a message of hope into those same places.
A Life with a New Purpose
Colin’s story is not simply about leaving addiction and crime behind. It is about discovering a new identity and a reason to live.
He has spoken about finding a family that loved him, a place to serve God and the opportunity to share his experience with others around the world. He is married to Anita, has four children and two grandchildren, and continues to use his testimony to encourage people to consider the difference Jesus can make in their lives.
His passion for motorbikes remains, but the purpose behind his life has changed completely.
Where hatred once shaped his relationships, he now speaks about love. Where addiction once controlled him, he has found freedom. Where his past seemed to offer little hope, he has discovered a future dedicated to serving God and sharing the Gospel.
From Darkness to Freedom in Christ
Colin Pownall’s testimony demonstrates that no past is too difficult for God to redeem. His journey from children’s homes and prison to Christian ministry shows how an encounter with Jesus can bring a profound change of direction.
Through FGB and biker outreach, Colin continues to share the message that transformed his own life: Jesus Christ offers forgiveness, freedom, love and a new beginning.
His story is a challenge to look beyond a person’s past and recognise what God can do in their future.
The man who once believed he was on a one-way journey towards hell now travels the world telling others about the Jesus who changed his life and gave him a life worth living.