Barry Byrne-

I was born in Pennsylvania, the fifth of thirteen children in an Irish/Italian, Catholic family. My dad was a coal miner and I began working on our mink ranch before I began school. Even as a young boy I loved church and was always interested in spiritual things. The Catholic Church taught me a deep reverence for God and I was launched into a quest for truth that has influenced my entire life, while attending a Catholic seminary during high school.

I received a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in counseling from California State University, Fullerton. While I was in college I left the Catholic Church and began attending an evangelical church where I met my wife, Lori, (the pastor’s daughter). In July of 1979 Lori and I married. This began the most gratifying experience of my life – being married and raising four sons. My wife, Lori, is my best friend. My wife and sons are my favorite people to be with. During my eighteen years of active involvement and service in an evangelical church I learned to study the Word of God. I deepened my understanding about discipleship, evangelism and how to live as a godly husband and father.

In 1994 my wife and I experienced a renewed filling of the Holy Spirit through the ministry of the Vineyard Church. This new encounter with the Holy Spirit launched us into a whole new passion for God, the bible, ministry and for seeing God work supernaturally. We began learning inner healing methods and understanding the spiritual dynamics of physical and emotional healing. We began to hear the Lord speak to us and lead us in intimate ways through dreams, visions and prophetic words.

In 2003 the Lord led us to make the most dramatic change of our life. We were both self employed and we left our jobs and moved to Bethel Church in Redding, Ca. Our years here have been both challenging and exceptionally rewarding. I deeply value each aspect of the Body of Christ that I have experienced and Lori and I greatly desire to be a bridge between the different expressions of Christ’s church.

My career experience includes a background in business through fifteen years of work for Safeway Stores in southern California. I realized that I am not called to the corporate world, but I did learn skills of management that served me during my fifteen years of employment as the Executive director of Alpha Center, a community counseling center. I have worked as a marriage and family therapist for twenty five years and have maintained a private practice since 2000.

I enjoy taking walks and praying with my wife, mountain biking, fishing, studying the bible, gardening, I have done quite a bit of building on our homes, I enjoy an occasional 9 holes of golf and last but not least, I enjoy conducting Love After Marriage workshops and counseling together with Lori.

Lori Byrne-

I was born in Southern California into a pastor’s family (fourth generation pastor), the oldest of 4 kids. Although my mom and dad were very involved in running the church and shepherding the flock, they always made it clear by what they said and did that we kids were their first ministry priority.

I was very involved in music most of my life. I taught piano for 30 years, wrote, produced and performed children’s musicals, taught aerobics dance, was a worship/harp and bowl leader, and sang at Disneyland as a substitute Dickens Caroler for a season (got Barry and the boys in for free, whoo hooo) and all along was so blessed to be home as we raised our boys! As long as I can remember I have been involved in some form or another of bringing restoration, healing and encouragement to people who needed breakthrough so they could keep growing and experiencing God’s love. Ministry and strengthening family relationships in the church has always been a significant part of my life.

The Holy Spirit rocked our world back in ’94, after introducing us to signs and wonders, healing, words of knowledge, visions, dreams, interpretation, unexpected salvations and just generally seeing God work and manifest in ways we had not experienced before. He moved us and our 4 boys out of my parents church and into the Anaheim Vineyard when John Wimber was still alive. We were there for a few years and then The Lord intentionally started moving us on to other churches, educating and teaching us about what was going on in the Body of Christ. Through our continuous cry for more, the Lord finally directed us through more dreams, visions and spiritual experiences to Bethel Church in Redding. We are home and so blessed to be here!

I love rainy, cloudy, dark gray weather… Family talks by the fire…My Barry B coming home from work… sweet, delicious, juicy pears….Reading, I love reading!…..Going on a hike with people that I love….my precious boys….Double rainbows and hummingbirds! …. When the Lord speaks….Swimming in the lake…..When the Lord shows up and impossible things become possible…..Watching a great movie….walking and praying in our neighborhood with my Barry B …..feeling closer after a healthy fight…..hearing what my boys are thinking and feeling….Talking in the early hours of the morning with my Barry B about a dream the Lord just gave one of us and getting the interpretation!….Helping couples connect spiritually, emotionally and sexually in the ways God intended…..