GINGER: YEAH, THERE ARE MANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE NEXT STEPS.
LET ME JUST RATTLE A FEW OFF AND YOU CAN TELL US WHAT
YOU FEEL IS IMPORTANT.
SHAMEN SAYS, "WHAT BOOKS OF THE BIBLE SHOULD I READ FIRST?"
DEBORAH SAYS, "HOW DO I CHOOSE THE RIGHT CHURCH?"
PEOPLE ASK ABOUT BAPTISM.
SO, WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS THAT FOLLOW THE SALVATION MOMENT?
JOYCE: WELL, BAPTISM IS IMPORTANT.
IT'S AN OUTWARD SIGN OF THIS INWARD COMMITMENT THAT YOU
HAVE MADE TO FOLLOW CHRIST.
AND SO, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE BAPTIZED IN A CHURCH,
BUT THAT'S A GOOD PLACE TO GET BAPTIZED.
YOU KNOW, JOHN THE BAPTIST TOOK PEOPLE TO THE RIVER AND BAPTIZED
'EM, AND SO I'VE BAPTIZED PEOPLE IN SWIMMING POOLS AND YOU KNOW,
ALL KINDS OF THINGS.
SO--BUT IT IS GOOD TO HAVE SOMEBODY THAT BELIEVES,
THAT'S LIKE-MINDED WITH YOU TO DO THE BAPTISM FOR YOU.
SO, BAPTISM IS VERY IMPORTANT.
AND I THINK THAT BEING IN CHURCH IS VERY IMPORTANT.
AND IT'S NOT BECAUSE CHURCH SAVES YOU, BUT YOU GO TO CHURCH
TO LEARN, TO HAVE NEW FRIENDS, TO MAKE--TO GET INTO
RELATIONSHIP WITH PEOPLE THAT ARE GOING TO BELIEVE LIKE YOU
AND BE LIKE-MINDED WITH YOU.
YOU WANT TO HEAR THE WORD, YOU WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN
CORPORATE WORSHIP, YOU KNOW, THE SINGING OF SONGS
AND PRAISE AND WORSHIPPING GOD.
AND IF YOU'RE IN THE RIGHT CHURCH, THERE'S MANY GOOD
OPPORTUNITIES TO SERVE THROUGH THAT CHURCH, WHICH IS SOMETHING
ELSE THAT'S IMPORTANT.
SO, HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU'RE IN THE RIGHT CHURCH?
WELL, YOU WANT TO BE IN ONE THAT YOU KNOW IS TEACHING
THE PROPER DOCTRINE.
AND WHAT I TELL PEOPLE A LOT OF TIMES IS DON'T GET
DISCOURAGED WITH TRYING TO FIND A CHURCH.
YOU MIGHT GO TO 10 THAT YOU DON'T FEEL RIGHT ABOUT AND THEN
YOU'LL GO TO ONE WHERE YOU JUST FEEL LIKE YOU'RE HOME.
IT'S JUST RIGHT.
YOU JUST FEEL RIGHT ABOUT IT.
AND SO MANY PEOPLE, IF THEY TRY A CHURCH AND THEY
GET HURT, OR THEY TRY A CHURCH AND THEY FEEL LIKE PEOPLE
WEREN'T FRIENDLY, OR YOU KNOW, WHATEVER THE CASE MIGHT BE,
THEN THEY JUST WANT TO DITCH IT ALL AND FORGET IT
AND GIVE UP.
BUT, IT'S NOT--YOU KNOW, LIKE I SAID, CHURCH DOESN'T
SAVE YOU.
I DON'T REALLY LIKE IT WHEN I SAY TO SOMEBODY,
"ARE YOU A CHRISTIAN?" AND THEY TELL ME WHAT RELIGION
THEY ARE.
YOU KNOW, JESUS DIDN'T DIE SO WE CAN HAVE A RELIGION, HE DIED
SO WE COULD HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THROUGH HIM.
HE COMES TO LIVE ON THE INSIDE OF US, PROMISES TO NEVER LEAVE
US NOR FORSAKE US.
BUT IT IS IMPORTANT, I THINK, TO BE IN CHURCH.
AND THE OTHER THING THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT IS THE STUDY
OF GOD'S WORD.
AND I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT PEOPLE BEGIN
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT.
PSALMS AND PROVERBS ARE ALSO VERY GOOD.
PSALMS ARE VERY COMFORTING.
PROVERBS ARE FULL OF LITTLE WISDOM POINTS.
YOU COULD READ ONE CHAPTER OF PROVERBS AND THERE MIGHT
BE 20 OR 30 DIFFERENT POINTS IN THERE OF--I MEAN,
THINGS LIKE BE HONEST, DON'T GOSSIP, DON'T SLANDER,
JUST THINGS THAT...
GINGER: VERY PRACTICAL.
JOYCE: JUST VERY PRACTICAL ADVICE.
PROBABLY MOST PEOPLE WOULD TELL YOU TO BEGIN WITH
THE GOSPEL OF JOHN BECAUSE IT'S JUST ONE OF THE REALLY,
REALLY BEAUTIFUL ONES.
BUT, ANYWHERE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT IS GOOD.
HOWEVER, I WOULD PROBABLY GO ALONG WITH, YOU KNOW, BEGINNING
WITH ONE OF THE GOSPELS, MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE, OR JOHN
BECAUSE IT TAKES YOU FROM THE BIRTH OF CHRIST ALL
THE WAY THROUGH TO THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.
WHICH YOU NEED TO HAVE A GOOD BASIC UNDERSTANDING
OF THOSE THINGS.
THERE'S MANY, MANY, MANY DIFFERENT TRANSLATIONS
OF THE BIBLE AVAILABLE TODAY.
I'VE TAUGHT FROM AN AMPLIFIED BIBLE FOR OVER 40 YEARS.
THERE'S MANY OTHER REALLY GOOD NEW ENGLISH VERSIONS
THAT ARE PUT INTO A LITTLE MORE MODERN LANGUAGE.
I LIKE THE AMPLIFIED BIBLE BECAUSE IT KINDA GIVES YOU
A LITTLE DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF SOME OF THE GREEK WORDS,
WHICH I DON'T READ GREEK.
I DON'T SPEAK GREEK.
I DON'T KNOW GREEK, AND SO IT HELPS ME BE A LITTLE MORE OF A
SCHOLAR WITHOUT HAVING TO GO GET A DEGREE IN THE GREEK LANGUAGE.
BUT, LIKE I SAID, THERE'S A LOT OF THEM.
SO FIND ONE THAT YOU UNDERSTAND.
AND YOU KNOW, WHAT WE SUGGEST-- A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE JUST
NEED A DIRECTION, SO I WOULD JUST SAY, IF YOU START
WITH 30 MINUTES A DAY, IF YOU CAN DEDICATE 30 MINUTES
OF YOUR DAY, AND TO BE HONEST, IF THAT'S TOO MUCH THEN
START WITH 15 MINUTES, BUT START SOMEWHERE AND SPEND
SOME TIME STUDYING THE WORD.
I LIKE TO SAY, "STUDY," RATHER THAN READ, BECAUSE YOU CAN GLOSS
OVER SOMETHING VERY QUICK AND NOT REALLY GET ANYTHING IN IT.
I WOULD STUDY THE WORD EACH DAY UNTIL YOU FEEL THAT YOU HAVE AT
LEAST ONE POINT THAT YOU CAN LOCK INTO AND SAY, "WOW," THAT'S
YOU KNOW, "I DIDN'T KNOW THAT," OR, "THAT'S REALLY GOOD," OR...
GINGER: IT'S SOMETHING TO CHEW ON THROUGHOUT
THE DAY AND SEE HOW I APPLIES.
JOYCE: SOMETHING TO MEDITATE ON AND THINK ABOUT, I MEAN LIKE,
SO MANY PEOPLE DON'T FEEL LIKE ANYBODY LOVES 'EM.
AND JUST TO KNOW THAT GOD IS LOVE AND THAT HE LOVES YOU AND
HE LOVES YOU UNCONDITIONALLY, I MEAN, FOR SOME PEOPLE
THAT VERY ONE THING WOULD BE LIFE-CHANGING.
SO, THE WORD OF GOD IS THE FOOD THAT WE NEED FOR OUR SPIRIT MAN,
TO HELP IT GROW AFTER WE BECOME SPIRITUAL BABIES IN CHRIST.
SO, BAPTISM, GETTING IN A GOOD CHURCH, A GOOD WORD-BASED
CHURCH WHERE YOU REALLY FEEL LIKE YOU'RE GROWING.
DON'T JUST GO SOMEWHERE JUST FOR THE SAKE OF GOING.
BUT MAKE SURE THAT IT'S HELPING YOU, THAT YOU'RE LEARNING,
THAT YOU'RE GROWING AND THAT YOU FEEL LIKE IT'S HELPING
YOU CHANGE.
AND GET INVOLVED ENOUGH IN SOMETHING THAT SOMEBODY
KNOWS YOU'RE THERE AND THAT SOMEBODY'S GOING TO MISS
YOU IF YOU'RE NOT THERE.
WE NEED SOME KIND OF ACCOUNTABILITY.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S TOO MANY PEOPLE THAT JUST GO SIT
ON THE BACK ROW OF A CHURCH, THEY DON'T WANT TO BE INVOLVED,
THEY DON'T WANNA-- THEY DON'T WANT ANYBODY
TO BOTHER WITH THEM IF THEY'RE NOT THERE.
BUT, TO BE IN COMMUNITY WITH PEOPLE REQUIRES SOME
ACCOUNTABILITY AND IT'S GOOD FOR US.
IT'S NOT A MATTER OF SOMEBODY SPYING ON YOU OR BEING NOSEY,
BUT IT'S JUST--IT'S GOOD FOR US IF SOMEBODY SAYS, "HEY, WE
HAVEN'T SEEN YOU FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS, IS EVERYTHING OKAY?"
EVERYBODY WANTS TO KNOW THAT SOMEBODY CARES ABOUT THEM.
AND THEN, THE OTHER THING VERY IMPORTANT, AND THESE ARE
NOT LIKE, I'M NOT SAYING THIS FOURTH BECAUSE IT'S FOURTH
IN IMPORTANCE, BUT IS PRAYER.
BUT LET ME SAY THAT PRAYER IS REALLY JUST TALKING TO GOD.
IT'S TALKING TO GOD...
GINGER: JUST LIKE YOU WOULD A FRIEND.
JOYCE: ...ABOUT EVERYTHING.
IT'S TALKING AND LISTENING.
YOU'RE NOT GOING TO HEAR GOD LIKE YOU HEAR FROM ANOTHER
HUMAN BEING BUT YOU ARE GOING TO--HE'S GOING TO GIVE
YOU UNDERSTANDING.
HE'S GOING TO SPEAK TO YOU.
THE BIBLE TALKS ABOUT THE STILL SMALL VOICE.
AND GOD USES HIS WORD TO SPEAK TO YOU.
GOD WILL BEGIN TO LEAD YOU AND GUIDE YOU,
AND YOU'LL HAVE A KNOWING ON THE INSIDE OF WHAT'S RIGHT,
AND WHAT'S WRONG.
BUT, YOU NEED TO JUST BEGIN TO TALK TO HIM, "GOD, HELP ME
WITH MY DAY, TODAY.
FORGIVE MY SINS.
USE ME TO BE A BLESSING TO SOMEBODY TODAY."
YOU KNOW, "HELP ME DRIVE IN TRAFFIC THIS MORNING
WITHOUT HAVING ACCIDENTS." I MEAN, YOU DON'T--
GOD IS NOT JUST FOR DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES OR WHEN WE,
"THINK," WE'RE OVER OUR HEAD, BECAUSE TO BE HONEST,
WE'RE ALL OVER OUR HEAD EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY.
GINGER: THAT'S VERY TRUE.
JOYCE: WITHOUT GOD, WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO VERY MUCH.
AND SO, IT'S--ONE THING'S FOR CERTAIN, IF YOU HAVE A SINCERE
HEART, YOU DON'T HAVE TO FOLLOW SOME KIND OF A FORMULA.
YOU JUST GO TO GOD LIKE A LITTLE CHILD.