Since coming to the Vineyard four years ago, God has been transforming and shaping my life in amazing ways.

My husband and I came to the Vineyard looking for a church to call our own. At the time we were engaged and wanting to find a community where we and our family would be able to mature, grow and experience relationship with God and people.

I, personally, was coming from my family’s church where I had grown up experiencing Jesus. But those God moments were over-shadowed with a lot sour experiences with church and its people.

My identity was skewed by false truths that I chose to believe because they were either spoken about/to me verbally by people or conveyed through their attitudes, responses and treatment of me. The “truth” about myself that I believed was that I didn’t have much, if anything, to offer. This was because who I was, and my talents and skills, weren’t good enough. Essentially, I didn’t measure up. This standard I had for myself wasn’t God’s, but rather something I had contrived based on the false truths I believed.

Through the Vineyard, I was able to participate in the Gospel of Wholeness course and meet one-on-one with a coach. During this process Jesus gently and lovingly peeled off layer after layer of the false truths that I was letting myself believe. He showed me how ridiculous my “standard” was and began tearing it down and replacing it with His perfect standard, which is full of mercy, grace and love.

In the midst of this transformation Jesus was able to clearly give me a vision of who he created me to be. This version of myself was confident, not because of her abilities, but because of who her Father is and what He is doing and putting in her. Out of that confidence I saw and felt myself becoming more compassionate, merciful and creative. There was also the freedom and ability to imagine and dream, without fear of failure.

Jesus’ work is still going on in my life, but I am amazed at where He has already taken me, what He has had me say “yes” to and utterly grateful for how He is changing and challenging me.

-Andrea Bryant