How I came to Christ
I always had a sense that I needed to be saved.
I remember living in the parish of Clarendon in Jamaica. One day, walking in the hills, I met a missionary who stopped and asked if he could pray for me. He prayed, but I was not saved then.
Some years later I went to live with my grandmother in Kingston. She took me to church, and there I felt the call more urgently. Somehow I knew I was not saved and that I needed to be. After a while I joined the youth group. While I was in high school, through my grandmother's influence and my own sense of God's calling, I made a commitment to Christ at our church camp.
After that I struggled with assurance. I had great doubts. I worried so much about my spiritual condition that I was barely eating. Then one day, somewhere between sleeping and waking, a verse of Scripture came to me:
“So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.”Romans 9:16
That put my heart to rest. I saw that there was nothing I could do. No amount of doubting or worrying could change God. I needed simply to trust in His grace, and I did.
Romans 9:16 has been at the centre of my testimony ever since. My salvation does not rest on how hard I will it or how fast I run. It rests on God, who shows mercy.
Grounded in the Word
From then on I read everything I could find. At the Youth for Christ office in Half Way Tree I would devour books: John Bunyan's Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, Andrew Murray, Watchman Nee, Norman Grubb. Those books, and serving in different areas of ministry with Youth for Christ, strengthened my faith.
That is why my passion today is to see others grounded in the Word. Many believers live the way I once did, saved but unsure, working hard to feel accepted by a God who has already accepted them in Christ. I want you to know what is already yours.
Why Liberating Truths
Liberating Truths is a grace-centered gospel ministry. Here you will find articles, reflections and resources grounded in the finished work of Christ, and Truth Watch, where I look at the news carefully and ask how the gospel speaks to it.
My aim is simple. I want to open the Scriptures plainly, point to what Christ has done, and help you walk in the freedom He has won for you.
The artist
I began drawing at twelve, copying pictures from magazines and newspapers. In my late teens an aunt gave me a set of oil paints, and I have been painting ever since. I never had formal training. I taught myself to work in oil, watercolour and acrylic, and I still thank God for the gift.
In 1999 I received a silver medal and a certificate of merit in the Jamaica National Festival Fine Arts Competition. My paintings are in the collections of the Bank of Jamaica and Digicel Jamaica, and my public artwork, The Light on Lauderhill, is at the Lauderhill Police Station in Florida. I call my artist statement “The Hills Are Alive”, because I believe art should be alive with peace, joy and love.
Today I teach others to paint through the Vaughn Tucker Art Academy, and my own work can be seen at vaughntucker.art.
Family
I am married to Narice, and I am the father of two children, Jasmine and Nathaniel.
At a glance
- My verseRomans 9:16. “So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.”
- MinistryAssociate Pastor, Providence Baptist Church, Plantation, Florida. Founder of Liberating Truths.
- TrainingBachelor of Divinity, Christian Leaders Institute.
- TeachingArt teacher, Trinitas Academy. Founder of the Vaughn Tucker Art Academy.
- ArtSelf-taught painter in oil, watercolour and acrylic. Silver medal, Jamaica National Festival Fine Arts Competition, 1999.
- HomeBorn in St. Ann, Jamaica. In the United States since 2004.
How this site is made
Everything here is taught, checked and approved by me before it is published. I use AI tools to help with research, editing and production, the way a writer might use a research assistant and an editor.
AI tools may assist with research, editing and production. Theological conclusions and editorial responsibility remain with Vaughn Tucker.
Stay in touch
If these truths have helped you, I would love for you to keep reading with me.