With a heart to share Christ and love people, Joyce’s messages help people in all walks of life to grow in their faith, learn to study the Bible, find healing from the wounds of life, get answers to life’s questions and encounter the love of God in a powerful way.
we are Christ’s personal representatives
and through our lives God is pleading
with people be reconciled to me can you
get this understanding when you go to
work
God wants to plead through you to
somebody who’s lost please and you don’t
even you don’t have to preach one word
to do it you say well Joyce I’m just not
good at witnessing let your lives be a
witness if you’re bold enough to say
something you think the time is right
then say it in a loving way hand
somebody a book give somebody a Bible
but let your wives be a witness when my
husband worked in the engineering field
everybody knew he was different they
knew it and I don’t mean like different
in a weird way but yeah there were
things that they did they didn’t invite
Dave to do he ate lunch by himself a lot
of days when their marriages were
falling apart
I mean honestly everybody came to him
even people who’d made fun of him even
people who who maybe had given him a
hard time or had tried to persecute him
a little bit they they come around to
Dave you know they had big drawing
boards back then because he was in the
engineering field kind of hang around
his drawing board hey Dave hey doing
today well you know whatever I don’t
know you know what’s up you know well
man my wife left me I was wondering if
you could talk to me a little say if you
stand your ground people will come to
you
because the time is going to come when
they’re going to get desperate enough
they need to talk to somebody I love
what that one woman shared in that media
presentation last night she said I
finally got to the point where God gave
me the gift of desperation I love that
and we need to pray for that that God
would give unsaved people the gift of
desperation I think that would be a
great thing to pray for people that they
will be so fed up with their lives but
what are they going to do if their life
is full of darkness and everywhere they
look it’s darkness what are they going
to do oh you guys are like how many of
you agree that it’s very easy to go out
in the world and just start compromising
and kind of just you know well yeah you
know we’re believers and oh yeah we go
to church we got a bumper sticker
you know we wear our cross and but you
know we just we want to fit in you know
so we just kind of blend a little and
it’s just a little well if you’ll just
just bow down to me this once if you
just compromise just a little you can
get that promotion at work and because
you know you need to make more money and
you know you already know if you don’t
compromise if you stand your ground then
you’re not going to get promoted come on
I tell I tell a good story that happened
in my life and I’m going to take the
time to retell it because it’ll help get
my point across I worked at a seafood
company many many years ago before I
ever knew anything about being in
ministry but I did have a love for God
and I I didn’t want to do wrong things
and I was the bookkeeper and at the end
of every month we sent out all the
customers statements telling them what
their balance was but occasionally
somebody would have a huge credit and if
they got a statement with a credit on it
they might just wait let future
purchases eat up that credit but
sometimes they would call us and say can
you just send me a check well this one
particular customer had a pretty
good-sized credit and so my boss said to
me he said just I want you just to debit
that off of there and
and make it looked like they had
purchases so when they get it there’s we
don’t owe them any money well I was
scared all day long because I’m thinking
I can’t do that I know I can’t do that
should I do that and all the reason well
he is the boss and I definitely what he
tells me to and I can’t afford to lose
my job you know I just started a bunch
of work on my teeth and I was in the
middle of that what am I gonna do if I
lose my job and you know all the things
that we think about well I went home
that night and I was so stinkin
miserable how many of you know about
being so miserable you can’t hardly
stand it
until you finally get around to saying
okay I’m going to do it God’s Way so I
went back in the next morning just
pretty sure that I probably would get
fired and I just I went in and I said to
him I said look I know that you don’t
believe the way that I do but I’m a
Christian and I believe that I believe
in the Bible and I believe that it would
be wrong for me to do that and I told I
said I don’t want to lose my job I need
my job but I can’t I can’t do what
you’re asking me to do because I would
be offending God if I did and man he
sputtered and popped and got red in the
face went well just get back out there
and go to work well all day long I kept
thinking I get fired
finally just about five minutes before
quitting time I can imagine the battle
he went through all day he came out and
slept that statement down on my desk and
said justice ain’t on my check so I sent
him a check well
the devil would have had me think that I
would get fired for doing the right
thing but as it turned out I kept
getting promoted in that company until I
was the only person any more authority
than I did was him and I didn’t have
enough education to be doing what they
were paying me to do so please please
please don’t compromise you know riches
are deceitful the Bible says in mark 4
that many in the world are deceived by
riches and that’s what Satan was trying
to deceive Jesus with I can give you the
world I can give you this I can give you
that I can give you promotion
I can alleviate your suffering you can
be part of the group and Jesus and all
you have to do is just bow down to me
just once and Jesus didn’t even have to
think about it get thee behind me Satan
for it is written when are we going to
learn that this book contains the truth
that we need for our lives
but say this messes with people’s lives
I can I can hear your thoughts I mean
not like really but I kind of get a
little stuff don’t you get too scared
but I get this little sensing of like I
can hear the wheels turning what what
does this mean what what am I gonna have
to change oh my gosh if I’m gonna live
by this I may have to quit my job I mean
oh what’s gonna happen I mean if I live
like this I’m liable to lose all my
friends I’ll be rejected I won’t be part
of the growth I need to go back to the
woes I’ve left them I’m telling you what
I believe that God can put up with just
about anything better than a hypocrite
and I’ll say one thing for the young
people today which by the way young
people they are very unimpressed with
Christians because for anything else you
want to say about them they want
something real and we need to show them
something real they’re not in for
hypocrites and I believe if there’s
anything that’s just tasteful to God
it’s hypocrites I think he’d rather you
just be a full-on sinner than to act
like a religious person
that has all kinds of compromising
hidden things in your life
verse 13 but woe to you scribes and
Pharisees pretenders hypocrites for you
shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s
faces but you neither enter yourselves
nor do you allow those who are about to
go in to enter woe to you scribes and
Pharisees pretenders hypocrites for you
swallow widows houses and for a pretence
to cover it up make long prayers oh oh
won’t help anybody that’s in need but go
to early morning prayer at church oh you
guys you know
listen I remember when I did it I
remember going to 6 a.m. prayer 3 times
a week with all my spiritual buddies and
we would rant and rave and scream at the
devil and March around the church and
then I would go home and couldn’t even
be respectful to my husband maybe if I
get a little plainer we’ll understand
this I had a mouth that wouldn’t quit
I mean I’d go pray with all the people
even gossip about them that’s what a
hypocrite is that’s what a pretender is
that’s a scribe and a Pharisee they know
what to do and they’re very willing to
tell everybody else what to do but they
only do it when people are watching it
doesn’t matter to me how people behave
in church I couldn’t care less
it’s how they behave at home behind
closed doors well I’m having fun I don’t
know about you but I am
you say what choice I just make mistakes
that I can’t help it well when you make
mistakes and you can’t help it all you
got to do is repent ask God to forgive
you and it’s done instantly I’m not
talking about not making mistakes I’m
talking about having a determined
attitude that I’m going to press forward
I’m not going to keep mistreating people
I’m not going to be a phony and a
hypocrite I’m not going to get out in
society and just blend in god I need
courage I need you to get I need you to
make me bold help me God we need to
begin to address these issues and not
just float along in our little religious
boat thinking it’s all okay I don’t have
time for all these woes let’s look at
2nd Timothy 3 1 through 5 I think more
than any time in history and I know that
everybody’s probably said this every
preachers every preachers probably said
what I’m saying right now probably more
than any other time in history it is
vital that we take a stand and act like
we really believe what we say that we
believe how many of you believe that
Jesus is coming back soon ok now look at
me please don’t get mad when I say this
but no you don’t
because if we really believe that let me
ask if somebody could tell you and you
knew for sure that Sunday at noon Jesus
was coming back is there anything in
your life that you would change right
away real quick
that makes me squirm a little too of
course so then it’s just kind of become
something we say oh Jesus is coming soon
well what if he really is what if you
meet him before you thought you might
what if he comes tonight for me or for
you I think it’s time that we need to
learn how to live ready just in case you
won’t have time to get ready
let’s live ready amen
come on now
come on all my beautiful wonderful
people watching at home
don’t put this decision off if you’ve
not made Jesus the Lord of your life
call the number on your screen right now
let us pray with you and lead you into a
personal relationship with God please
second Timothy three one through five
but understand this that in the last
days we’ll come and sit in perilous
times of great stress and trouble hard
to deal with and hard to bear for people
will be lovers of self uh Turley
self-centered lovers of money aroused by
an inordinate greedy desire for wealth
proud and arrogant and contemptuous
boasters they will be abusive
blasphemous scoffing disobedient to
parents ungrateful unholy profane I
think we’re there they will be without
natural human affection callous inhuman
relentless admitting of no truce or
appeasement they will be slanders false
accusers troublemakers intemperate
loosen morals conduct uncontrolled and
fierce haters of all that is good they
will be treacherous betrayers rash and
inflated with self conceit they will be
lovers of sensual pleasures and Bane
amusements more than and rather than
lovers of God and let’s look at verse 5
because I wrote beside verse five Wow
for although they hold a form of true
religion they deny and reject and are
strangers to the power of it their
conduct belies the genuineness of their
profession avoid all such people turn
away from them do you know that you’re
better off hanging out with a sold-out
sinner who knows they’re a sinner and is
honest about it then a goofy starchy
religious legalistic person who pretends
to be one thing to your face and is
something else behind closed doors
dude I could use a little coffee right
now second Timothy three 10 through 14
you guys love it don’t you
I know you can take it here in
Minneapolis because you’re the ones that
God let me pick on
I thought about it I forgot are you sure
you want me to preach that in
Minneapolis all right now here this is
so good let’s get this now you have
closely observed and diligently followed
my teaching my conduct my purpose in
life faith patience love and
steadfastness my persecutions my
suffering such as occurred to me at
Antioch at Iconium and Lystra
persecutions I endured and I love this
but out of them all the Lord delivered
me now I am NOT going to tell you that
if you really decide to live what you
say you believe that you’re not going to
experience any persecution matter of
fact I can promise you that you will you
will be made fun of you will be talked
about you will lose a few friends you
might get passed over at work for a
promotion but true promotion comes from
God it doesn’t come from men and I can
tell you a little secret that I believe
with all my heart I believe when that
situation happened to me at that seafood
company that I worked for I think I was
checking me out I think he had me in
mind for this job that I’m doing right
now I do I believe that and I believe
that if I would have compromised them
that I wouldn’t be sitting here today
now I don’t mean that God doesn’t give
us second chances in third I don’t know
maybe he would have let me had another
try but I look back and I see several
things over the years that God asked me
to do our things he told me not to do
and I believe that they were key to me
being where I’m at today indeed all who
delight in piety and are determined to
live a devoted in a godly life in Christ
Jesus will meet with persecution that
will be made to suffer because of their
religious stand but wicked men and
imposters will go on from bad to worse
deceiving and leading astray others and
being deceived and led astray themselves
but watch verse 14 but as for you no
matter what anybody else out there does
no matter what any other Christian that
you know does as for you continue to
hold to the things that you have learned
and of which you are convinced knowing
from whom you have learned them so
what’s our job no matter what anybody
else does we’re supposed to hold fast
one more scripture I want to read you I
have to go through all my notes to get
to it I didn’t preach much on here
second Peter 3 10 and 11 so tonight I
come with four messages second Peter 3
10 and 11 but the day of the Lord will
come like a thief and then the heavens
will vanish and pass away with a
thunderous crash and the material
elements of the universe will be
dissolved with fire and the earth and
the works that are upon it will be
burned up since all these things are
thus in the process of being dissolved
what we just read in verse 10 is in the
process of happening we have not seen
the fullness of it yet but someday the
trumpet is going to blow the heavens are
going to be rolled back and everything
that we have invested so much into and
lied to get and compromise to get is
going to go since all these things are
thus in the process of being dissolved
what kind of person on each of you to be
in the meanwhile
I don’t know about you that gets me how
then shall we live if this wonderful
savior that we have died to give us this
life and he’s given us the privilege to
work for him and to be his
representatives in the earth can I tell
you something if you work for God and
you’re on his payroll he’s going to
always take care of you did you hear me
and I’m not talk about having to work in
a ministry or have a river in front of
your name I’m passing out applications
today to find out who wants to work for
God
I would love it if everyday when we get
up we would think about today I’m going
out to work for God I’m going out today
to represent God I’m going fishing today
and I’m going to catch fish with holy
behavior come on the Bible says in
Colossians put on behavior that’s a
credit to God put on kindness put on
humility above all that you put on put
on love in Ephesians that talks about
our behavior talks about our behavior
all over the place could I just say what
a tragedy it would be if the stores and
the businesses around here didn’t have a
wonderful report about all the people
who came to this conference but you know
what we have to stand up and tell people
in our conferences we do this especially
at the Women’s Conference in st. Louis
this year we’ll probably have 25 30,000
women hit downtown st. Louis and then
there won’t be a piece of clothing left
or a doughnut that hasn’t been eaten and
sadly we’ve had times when the people in
the restaurants have come and said those
Christians are some other rudest
cheapest most ridiculous asking look at
acting people so now we get up and tell
people if you are going to come to this
conference do not get out in my city and
make a fool out of me you get out there
and you represent God the way you should
represent it treat people the way you
want to be treated be patient be kind
don’t shove don’t push give good tips
say thank you if your meal doesn’t come
out exactly the way you want it says no
problem I understand you know what we
have to get the attitude you know what
I’m not so important that everything has
to be the way I want it
and you know what scares me I mean
really scares me that people could come
and sit all weekend in something like
this and then be nasty to somebody even
at the resource table and it happens all
time all time pushing and shoving I had
two ladies getting a fight one time they
were both sprung to sit in the same seat
in the front row
this is a very important word and you
know many of you are wonderful godly
beautiful people I mean you’ve let God
work with you and you’ve got good
behavior and you do represent God well
and God bless you I hope it gets
catching I hope other people catch your
vision and learn from you but we all
need to be that way let me ask you just
think with me for just in it what would
happen in the world
if everybody who calls themself a
Christian but just simply go out and act
like one
come on this this is not rocket science
what would happen I’m telling you what
light swallows up darkness and it’s just
that something all we need to do is turn
the lights on and get out our salt
shakers amen come on get up on your feet
and give God some praise today whoo
hallelujah come on you might as well get
happy you got more tonight more tomorrow
Oh glory
now let me tell you something you don’t
change by trying you change by praying
and asking God to get involved and help
you you change by studying yes I want
you to go out and try to behave better
but I don’t want you just to try I want
you to pray and say God I need your help
I do need to be more patient I do need
to be kinder I do need to forgive and I
cannot do it without you God help me
help me help me help me help me help me
help me and the more you pray for God to
help you the more he’s going to help you
and me and the better we’re going to
behave I’m going to be nice to somebody
how about you love you