Our Vision

“My vision is to see Austin holy and married to the Lord!” Barb Bucklin

One day all of Austin will experience the joy of Jesus Christ and live in His Presence.

Our Mission

Luke 4:18 Ministry’s mission is to activate the Body of Christ to move in authority and power to manifest the Kingdom of God in Austin, TX. This battle for city-wide transformation is won or lost in the spiritual realm. United prayer resulting in strategic cooperative action is the critical step toward winning this spiritual battle.

We work to facilitate a major paradigm and strategy shift through believers involved in transforming the atmosphere in Austin and the Central Texas region.

This charge is taken directly from Jesus’ own mission statement in Luke 4:18:

“…to proclaim good news to the poor,
freedom for the prisoners,
recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

• Raising Ekklesia – united prayer followed by inspired action to take back the land
• Healing and deliverance was key to the evangelistic success of Jesus and His apostles and they are still a major part of our strategy today.
• Empowering individuals to walk in the fullness of their identity so they will fulfill their destiny in the Kingdom of God.

Our Values

• Worship in Spirit and Truth
• Spiritual warfare through spiritual authority and united prayer
• Full Expression of Holy Spirit
• Five-fold ministry
• Kingdom Identity
• Honor God’s Calendar
• Joyful Generosity

Our Beliefs

• We believe that there is one God eternally existing in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
• We believe that the Bible is God’s written revelation to humanity and that it is inspired by God, authoritative in all areas of life without error in the original manuscripts, and is preserved reliably today and throughout history
• We believe in the complete deity of Jesus Christ, his complete humanity, his virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, death on a cross to provide our redemption, bodily resurrection and ascension to heaven, present ministry of intercession for us, and his return to earth in power and glory.
• We believe in the deity of the Holy Spirit, that he performs the miracle of new birth in an unbeliever and indwells believers, enabling them to live a godly life that would be impossible if attempted in our human efforts.
• We believe that man was created in the image of God, but because of sin was alienated from God. That alienation can only be removed by accepting God’s graceful gift of salvation through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Having Christ as Lord of our lives by professing a faith in him is the only way to spend eternity with God in heaven rather than separated eternally from him in hell.
• We believe that human life is sacred from conception to its natural end. We will not withhold prayer and support in the form of physical, emotional and spiritual needs, regardless of citizenship, race, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status or political affiliation.
• We believe God’s plan for human sexuality is to be expressed only within the context of marriage, that God created man and woman as unique biological persons made to complete each other. God instituted monogamous marriage between one genetic male and one genetic female as the foundation of the family and the basic structure of human society. Luke 4:18 strongly opposes victimization or violence against any sector of society that disagrees with the biblical view. We honor the dignity and rights of all who differ from us on the matter of human sexuality.

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Our Team

Barb Bucklin is the founder of Vision Luke 4:18 Ministries, a ministry serving the Body of Christ by providing prayer, meeting physical needs of the homeless and poor, and working toward the unity that Jesus so desired.

Luke 4:18’s healing and deliverance ministry has become one of the most sought-after services in the city of Austin and surrounding areas, attracting people from all walks of life who desire physical and spiritual freedom and restoration. A respected citywide ministry leader, Barb has served and is presently serving on boards and steering committees for numerous inter-church and citywide ministry groups. Barb describes her role as a “gatherer”, bringing together churches, ministries and individuals with the ultimate goal of transforming the city of Austin into a place called Beulah, the Hebrew word for “married.” She believes that prayer is the answer.

Barb, in her own words:

A native of Chicago, my husband and I moved to Austin in 1994.  I was called to Church under the Bridge (CUB) in 1997. A Monday night prayer meeting in my house was the start of Luke 4:18 Ministries, which was formed to serve the homeless at CUB.

My passions

• To be a “Deliverer of Truth”
• To model a Kingdom mindset
• To empower the priesthood of believers
• To see Jesus’ Luke 4:18 mission accomplished with people saved, healed and delivered
• To see believers united as one, as Jesus prayed in John 17

My Faith Journey

My serious walk with the Lord began about 1994 when I was touched by the Holy Spirit in Santa Fe, New Mexico, during the visit of an itinerant Texas pastor. My walk was transformed and intensified during a 1997 mission trip to Argentina with Ed Silvoso of Harvest Evangelism. It was the trip Ed wrote about in his book, Prayer Evangelism.

My equipping track has been focused, fast, fulfilling, and phenomenal! Virtually all of it has taken place in the last 25 years here in the Austin area, starting with a women’s Bible class in Lakeway. I was “dragged” to my first prayer meeting, and then heard Dutch Sheets speak – opening my eyes to what God had in mind for prayer. I also attended a summer session at Glorietta Baptist Center in Glorietta, N.M., where Henry Blackaby taught on “Experiencing God in Revival.” That fall, the Bible class tackled Blackaby’s seminal book, Experiencing God. It was the start of many amazing encounters with prayer and healing.

The Best Advice I Ever Received

“Pray for wisdom. Walk through open doors. Let the Lord fight your battles.”

Life Verses

I’m inspired by Luke 4:18 and Isaiah 61 – those beautiful verses about how He is the greatest exchange agent – beauty for ashes, and the oil of joy for mourning. It constantly amazes me that we can partner with Him to see heaven invade earth, that we are able to carry His presence with us and expect miracles as we go in. I’m inspired by His name alone.

My Dreams for Austin

To cultivate a great appetite for the presence of God that would allow His Glory to move in the city. God gave me such a love for Austin and its people, and then granted me favor to do those things that He had given me such a passion for – the desires of my heart. One of my prayers is to see people as He sees them, and then help them activate their gifts. It is a joy to partner with Him to see others jump into the river of life!

To teach people about both physical and emotional healing so the Body of Christ can walk out of a place of woundedness and into its rightful destiny. This applies to both individuals and to Austin corporately. This is happening now! Luke 4:18 Ministries sponsors many healing prayer training classes, attended by all faith streams. I see more teaching in the future, both here and abroad!

To educate the Body of Christ so they understand that we are in a spiritual war, but we have been given all we need to win against our enemy. We are continually battling principalities and the powers of darkness, not flesh and blood. Paul describes this warfare in Ephesians 6:10-18. Jesus is clear that He defeated satan on the Cross and He came to destroy the works of satan. It is our job to enforce what He did and take back the ground the enemy has stolen. God provided all we need for the Body of Christ to walk in the Spirit, live in divine health, overcome all by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of our testimony, and that we love not our lives unto death.

“My vision is to see Austin holy and married to the Lord!”

Goals Yet to Be Fulfilled

• To establish a Christian transformation center in Austin – containing all of the modalities and disciplines needed for folks to achieve spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health.
• To provide safe Christian housing for women who are stepping out of abuse, addictions, prison and other life traumas.
• To be part of establishing adequate housing for the homeless.
• To watch as He builds His church which will flood Austin with love!

Jesus was all about healing – and so am I!

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Luke 4:18 Ministries is able to do what it does because of the great number of volunteers that serve the needs of people. The Lord continues to bring many harvesters into His ripe field here in Austin, the central Texas region, and around the world.

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Our Board

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Our History

Since 1997, Luke 4:18 Ministries has been dedicated to helping the body of Christ in Austin, Texas, live out Jesus’ commitment to heal, restore and transform.

While working with Austin’s C.U.B., Barbara Bucklin developed a passion to see Jesus’ followers united in serving the poor. She began to model this by leading a prayer and healing ministry in her home, offering housing to women in crisis and providing leadership to city-wide initiatives.

Over time, these efforts became Vision Luke 4:18 Ministries.

Today, Barb opens her home to those in need of prayer, counseling and deliverance. She provides wisdom and leadership to a variety of citywide initiatives and international organizations. She is an advocate for the homeless and downtrodden, and a deliverer of Truth to those that are seeking.

She has inspired and united a large group of deliverance volunteers and partners from across the region that are driven by the vision that one day all of Austin will experience the joy of Jesus Christ and live in His Presence.