DON'T COMPARE YOURSELF WITH OTHER PEOPLE.
DON'T LOOK AT WHAT THEY'RE GETTING AND WONDER WHY YOU'RE
NOT GETTING THE SAME AND ESPECIALLY THE MESSAGE IS
WHATEVER IT IS THAT GOD IS DOING FOR YOU, DON'T EVER MAKE
THE MISTAKE OF THINKING THAT YOU DESERVE IT.
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: I'LL GO SLOW BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, HONESTLY WHEN WE TALK
ABOUT THINGS LIKE THIS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HEART MOTIVES,
THINGS THAT ARE BURIED DEEP DOWN IN PEOPLE THAT MANY OF US NEVER
EVER, EVER EVEN GET AROUND TO DEALING WITH.
YOU WOULD HAVE TO BE ONE SUPER-DUPER-CHRISTIAN IF YOU
COULD SIT THERE THIS MORNING AND TELL ME THAT YOU NEVER FEEL
JEALOUS OF OTHER PEOPLE OR THAT WHEN SOMEBODY THAT YOU THINK IS
NOT NEARLY AS SPIRITUAL AS YOU--
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: WHEN THEY GET BLESSED MORE THAN YOU, OH MAN, DON'T ACT
LIKE THAT DOESN'T TICK YOU OFF BECAUSE IT DOES, AMEN?
"WELL GOD, I GET UP EVERY MORNING AND
PRAY 3 HOURS BEFORE I GO TO WORK AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF THEY
KNOW HOW TO PRAY, AND," YOU KNOW.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: "WELL, I'VE BEEN IN CHURCH ALL MY LIFE,"
BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.
I SO REMEMBER A SITUATION IN MY OWN LIFE OVER 40 YEARS AGO AND,
YOU KNOW, SO OFTEN WHEN THINGS HAPPEN AND WE DON'T UNDERSTAND
WHY THEY HAPPEN, GOD IS LETTING THINGS HAPPEN BECAUSE THERE'S
A LESSON THAT HE WANTS TO TEACH US.
AND I HAD A FRIEND, MAYBE YOU'VE HEARD ME TELL THIS STORY.
I HAD A FRIEND AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS--I MEAN, I REALLY DID LOVE
THE GIRL BUT THERE WAS A LOT ABOUT HER PERSONALITY THAT I
DIDN'T LIKE.
I WAS REAL DISCIPLINED, SHE WASN'T SO DISCIPLINED.
I HAD A PLAN FOR EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY, YOU KNOW?
SHE WAS JUST REALLY...
YOU KNOW, WHATEVER.
DO YOU REALIZE HOW HARD IT IS TO LET OTHER PEOPLE BE THE WAY THEY
ARE EVEN IF THEY'RE DIFFERENT THAN YOU AND NOT RESENT THEM
FOR BEING THAT WAY?
AND TO BE HONEST, SHE ENJOYED HER LIFE A WHOLE LOT MORE THAN
I DID.
AND I THINK THAT MADE ME MAD TOO.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: WELL, ANYWAY, I WAS BELIEVING GOD FOR A CERTAIN
THING AND WASN'T GETTING IT, WASN'T GETTING IT, WASN'T
GETTING IT.
AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, GOD GAVE HER WHAT IT WAS THAT I WANTED.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: AND WHEN SHE CAME OVER, "OH, YOU ARE NOT GONNA
BELIEVE WHAT GOD DID FOR ME."
AND SHE WAS ALL EXCITED AND I WAS TRYING TO BE
THE PROPER CHRISTIAN, "OH, PRAISE THE LORD."
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: "OH, HOW AWESOME.
WOW, THAT--" AND, YOU KNOW,
INSIDE I'M THINKING, "GOD, GET HER OUT OF MY HOUSE BEFORE I
ABSOLUTELY HAVE A SCREAMING FIT."
I DID NOT--I DID NOT THINK THAT SHE DESERVED IT.
I SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN IT BECAUSE I DESERVED IT.
I GAVE MORE TO THE KINGDOM THAN SHE DID.
I PRAYED LONGER THAN SHE DID.
I TAUGHT THE BIBLE.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: YOU KNOW WHAT A HYPOCRITE IS?
WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT HYPOCRITES TODAY.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: 'CAUSE YOU KNOW WHAT, IF THE CHURCH WASN'T FULL OF
HYPOCRITES THE REST OF THE WORLD WOULD ALREADY BE SAVED, RIGHT?
[AUDIENCE CHEERING]
JOYCE: I MEAN HONESTLY AND TRULY, THAT'S THE BIGGEST
PROBLEM THAT THEY HAVE IS WE'RE GOOD AT TELLING PEOPLE WHAT TO
DO BUT THEN NOT DOING IT OURSELVES.
OOH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE SO MUCH FUN TODAY.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: ACTUALLY, THIS AFTERNOON MAY BE EASY COMPARED
TO THIS MORNING, I DON'T KNOW.
AND SO THE THING THAT I REALIZED, YOU KNOW, I MEAN,
I GOT MAD AT GOD.
I WAS MAD BECAUSE HE WAS GENEROUS TO THIS PERSON THAT I
DID NOT THINK DESERVED IT.
AND SEE, THE POINT IS, IS NOT ONE OF US DESERVE ANYTHING THAT
GOD DOES FOR US.
DID YOU HEAR ME?
NOT ONE OF US DESERVE ONE THING THAT GOD DOES FOR US AND UNTIL
WE KNOW THAT WE WILL NEVER BE REALLY TRULY GRATEFUL IN THE WAY
THAT GOD WANTS US TO BE GRATEFUL BECAUSE THE MINUTE THAT WE START
THINKING THAT GOD OWES US SOMETHING BECAUSE OF OUR GOOD
WORKS--"WELL, I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THAT HAPPENED TO ME.
I MEAN, I GO TO CHURCH, I TITHE, I SERVE AT CHURCH.
WHY DID I GET SICK?
WHY DID MY CHILD GET SICK?
I MEAN, THIS UNBELIEVER OVER HERE, THEY DIDN'T GET
THE FLU AND, HERE, I GOT THE FLU AND I'M--I DO,
I DO, I DO, I DO THIS, I DO THAT."
AND MANY TIMES, GOD LETS THOSE THINGS HAPPEN JUST SO WE CAN--HE
CAN GET TO THE ROOT OF THIS ATTITUDE, THIS RELIGIOUS
ATTITUDE THAT GETS DOWN ON THE INSIDE OF US THAT WE DESERVE
GOD'S BLESSINGS BECAUSE WE'RE DOING ALL THE RIGHT THINGS.
DOES ANYBODY NEED THIS TODAY?
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: YOU'RE NOT SURE YET, OKAY.
WELL, I REALIZED LATER THAT I WAS BEING SO PHONY.
I WAS PRETENDING LIKE I WAS HAPPY FOR HER AND I WAS NOT
HAPPY.
I WAS ENVIOUS.
I WAS JEALOUS.
AND NOT ONLY THAT, I WAS MAD AT GOD FOR BLESSING HER.
AND I MEAN, THE STUFF THAT WAS COMING OUT OF ME.
YOU KNOW WHAT?
WE NEED TO PAY MORE ATTENTION TO WHAT'S GOING ON IN OUR HEARTS
AND NOT JUST PUT ON THIS CHRISTIAN SHOW FOR EVERYBODY.
"OH, PRAISE THE LORD.
I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU.
OH, BLESS YOU, BLESS YOU."
WE'VE ALL GOT A CHURCH FACE, DON'T WE?
AND SOME OF YOU PUT YOURS ON THIS MORNING BEFORE YOU WALKED
IN THE BUILDING.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: I WELL REMEMBER WHEN DAVE AND I WOULD FIGHT AND ARGUE
ALL THE WAY TO CHURCH BUT LET ME TELL YOU, WHEN WE GOT TO
THE CHURCH DOOR, "PRAISE THE LORD."
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: ALL RIGHT, COMPARISON.
YOU KNOW, THIS THING ABOUT COMPARING OURSELVES WITH OTHER
PEOPLE AND COMPARING OUR BLESSINGS WITH OTHER--OR
COMPARING YOUR TRIALS.
SOMETIMES WE WONDER WHY DO WE HAVE SO MANY TRIALS AND THIS
PERSON OVER HERE DOESN'T SEEM TO HAVE ANY.
WELL, LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING.
EVERYBODY GOES THROUGH STUFF.
EVERYBODY GOES THROUGH THINGS.
IT MAY NOT BE WHAT YOU'RE GOING THROUGH, IT MAY NOT BE SOMETHING
THAT WOULD EVEN BOTHER YOU BUT EVERYBODY GOES THROUGH
DIFFICULTIES IN THEIR LIFE.