Joyce Meyer - Finding God's Will for Your Life (Talk It Out) - Part 1
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Ginger Stache: Hello and welcome to, "Enjoying Everyday Life". We are so glad that you're here. Today, Joyce shares practical advice to answer some of life's most important questions. "What is God's purpose for my life"? "What do I do now"? "Is this really you"? "Should I stay or should I go"? So many questions. It is a truly helpful and practical discussion about discovering our purpose in life and we take questions from you. That's right, many viewers submitted questions that we were all wondering. So, let's dig into that huge topic, knowing God's will and trusting him to show us.
Ginger Stache: What are some of the things that come up in you?
Joyce Meyer: Well, you've heard me say this probably a number of times. But I remember so well, I was driving down highway 44, one night, coming home from work and there was a decision I needed to make, and I felt like God was leading me to do a certain thing and I kept saying, "But God, what if I miss you? What if I miss you"? And I'll never forget, he spoke in my heart, and he said, "Joyce, if you miss me, I'll find you". And the thing is, is we get way too worried about making a mistake.
Erin Cluley: We do.
Joyce Meyer: That has to stop if people are gonna have any freedom or liberty. People need to understand that God wants you to make choices. He wants you to think through things and decide things and maybe sometimes have to back up and, you know, do something again. I always look at finding God's will like going out and looking for an outfit.
Ginger Stache: I like that: that's a good way.
Erin Cluley: Shoes too.
Joyce Meyer: You try on different things until you find something that's comfortable and something that you think looks good on you. And sometimes, women will spend all day or even maybe go back out to the mall two or three times because we're looking just for that thing that's just right. And I think that many times, especially, when you're inexperienced at hearing God's voice, the way that you find out what God wants you to do is to try on some things.
Ginger Stache: Yeah.
Joyce Meyer: And I call it "Step out and find out". But in order to do that, you have to not be afraid to step back. I think we're way too concerned about being wrong.
Erin Cluley: So much.
Joyce Meyer: So much.
Ginger Stache: It's a lot of pressure.
Erin Cluley: It is.
Joyce Meyer: I think that comes out of insecurity and lack of confidence and also fear of what other people are gonna think. We don't wanna say, "I thought I was hearing from God, but I wasn't".
Erin Cluley: Because what if I have to tell you, "God told me this so I'm gonna do it," but then what if I'm wrong and I now have to go back and say, "I was actually completely not what I thought it was supposed to be"?
Joyce Meyer: But you know what I think, Erin? I think that people respect you more if you're open and honest. And it actually helps them realize that they could make a mistake too and it wouldn't be the end of the world. We're always trying to be perfect for everybody. And until we stop trying to impress each other, we're never free.
Ginger Stache: The other side of that is we also don't wanna disappoint God.
Joyce Meyer: Right.
Ginger Stache: So, you know, we try to hear so hard sometimes that there's just no way that he could even get through to us.
Erin Cluley: Oh, there's so much noise.
Ginger Stache: Exactly, because we're just searching in so many ways: we have to still our self enough to hear.
Joyce Meyer: But see, the very fact that you want to hear from God so bad...
Ginger Stache: Yes.
Joyce Meyer: Pleases him.
Erin Cluley: I love it when you talk about that because there's a lot of freedom in that. I can feel myself sometimes paralyzed by not wanting to mess up and make God mad or tell somebody else I did it wrong.
Joyce Meyer: And that's just not his nature.
Erin Cluley: No, because he loves me. And I go back to what you say a lot. Like, he knows my heart. He knows I am trying to do what he's asking. And there's such freedom in that.
Ginger Stache: And I love what you're saying too, because it means that it's okay to try some things and send them back if they don't work.
Joyce Meyer: First things, I've got just a few like one-liners that I want people to get. Trust instead of trying. We're always trying to hear from God. And what he wants us to do is want to know his will and then trust him to show it to you. That's important to get. You know, it's like, I don't have to try to figure out what God wants me to do. I have to just, "God, I really want your will". And be willing to do anything that God shows you. When I first just fell head over heels in love with Jesus, I always call it, "When I got serious in my relationship with God". And I was a Christian a long time before I got serious. You know, before I was just, I went to church. I tried to live somewhat of a moral life, but I wasn't really concerned about living my life totally for God. I hadn't even been taught that. And when I really fell in love with God and started wanting his will, I just was willing to do anything. And so, don't be picky. You know, because God may have you do several things before you hit "The thing". Paul and Barnabas, if you look in acts, they had been out ministering for years and years. And then the apostles prayed and laid hands on them and said, "Now", the Holy Spirit said, it's time "To separate you unto the work that he has called you". So, all those other things they were doing, they were in the will of God, but they were really practice. And they were learning things that they needed to know for when they would actually move into the thing they were called to do.
Ginger Stache: Yeah.
Erin Cluley: 'cause I just want, I want that one that's over there, that's already done.
Joyce Meyer: Right.
Erin Cluley: And I don't, it feels like the steps in-between are just a waste of my time, to be honest.
Joyce Meyer: Yeah.
Erin Cluley: But you can't do that one thing if you haven't learned the steps. That's really good, Joyce.
Joyce Meyer: I mean, I taught a home Bible study for five years and that was God's will for me right then.
Erin Cluley: Sure.
Joyce Meyer: But it was training for God's "Perfect will..."
Ginger Stache: Right.
Joyce Meyer: For my life.
Ginger Stache: And that training is so important: we all need that desperately. Here's a question, this comes from Christy. She says, "How do I balance having so many purposes and callings in my life that are pulling me in different directions? For example, balancing the ministry of being a wife, being a mother, being a writer, and a student, and a teacher," you know? So.
Joyce Meyer: Okay, well, something that I've learned, people that are extremely creative, and I don't call myself an extremely creative person. You know, like, I see this in you sometimes, you know, and I know another girl that I know very well, and have known for her whole life and she's like that, she's got a creative idea every time she turns around. But then, sometimes, she ends up not doing anything because she's just got another creative idea before she can ever get finished with that one. Now, you're not like that. But you have a lot of ideas and so I think we have to learn that every idea we have is not necessarily a God idea. It may be a good idea.
Ginger Stache: That's very true.
Joyce Meyer: But it doesn't mean it's a God idea for you. I mean, do you have any? I mean, I get so many ideas about books.
Erin Cluley: Yeah, that's why you have 150.
Joyce Meyer: Yeah, but I mean, you know, books I can write, there's like four or five things in my heart now and you know, "Well, is that what I wanna write"? You know, just because I wanna write it doesn't mean it's what people really need.
Ginger Stache: Right.
Joyce Meyer: Here, like see, I'm really, really on fire about this subject because I think it's not just what I want to say or teach, but this is something that will make such a difference in people's lives if they'll get hold of this, that they can enter God's rest and know that if they want God's will, truly want God's will, he will show them what that is at the right time. And so, all of you don't need to worry about it anymore. Isn't that good?
Ginger Stache: And we're done here.
Erin Cluley: Thanks for coming.
Joyce Meyer: So, I tried, before I ever taught the home Bible study, I tried street witnessing because the church I was going to was really big on street witnessing. And every Saturday we'd drag our kids downtown in the winter, pass out gospel tracts. And I absolutely hated it. I mean, I just hated it. And then I felt bad about myself because I hated it. I felt like I should like it, but God's not gonna call you to do something that you hate and you're not comfortable with. I don't know why we think that God wouldn't give us something to do that we can actually like and enjoy.
Ginger Stache: Might we be uncomfortable with it, though, in the beginning?
Joyce Meyer: Well, I mean, if it's something...
Ginger Stache: He's gonna pull us out of our comfort zone, but that's not the same.
Joyce Meyer: Well, yeah, like teaching. Now, you know, I was fine with the little home Bible study, but the first time I stood in front of a big audience, I was so nervous, my voice would hardly work. So, yes, but it didn't take me very long to get comfortable with it. I mean, you're not gonna spend months and years doing something that you hate.
Ginger Stache: That's helpful.
Joyce Meyer: I tried working in the nursery. And...
Erin Cluley: That was fast, huh?
Joyce Meyer: That only took a couple of weeks for me and the kids to know that wasn't my call. And I tried cleaning my pastor's house. I mean, I was willing to do anything. And it just, yeah, I could do it. But just because you can do something, doesn't mean it's what God's called you to do. But boy, when I started teaching, that was the outfit that fit.
Erin Cluley: That's so good that you said that. I was talking to a friend last night about this very thing. Like, I have all these things I am involved in, and I've got little kids. And I'm feeling very overwhelmed. But I like them all. How do you know what you're supposed to say "No" to? But we can't do them all. I'm gonna miss out on the purpose he has for me by saying "Yes" to everything.
Joyce Meyer: You have to know your priorities. And your priority first is God. And then secondly, it's your family. And you need to not give them your leftover time. You need to give them a good portion of your time where you're really listening to them and realizing that you're having, especially the first seven years of a child's life, I mean, they learn things in those first seven years that can affect them the entire rest of their life. But if you have a call on your life, like, I always say, "I wasn't a normal mother, but I was a good mother". And see, I believe if God calls you to do something like what he called me to do, that he will anoint your whole family. There will be a special grace on your whole family. So, you might not be able to do everything with your kids that somebody else does, but you can find special things.
Erin Cluley: Yeah, that's good.
Ginger Stache: I think that also helps Christy's question, too. Because she has a lot of different things that are happening in her life, but God will anoint her for what he calls her to do. So, it may feel like a pull between them sometimes, but there's grace on that.
Joyce Meyer: And she's right: you can't do it all. You just can't do it all. And so, you're constantly, I find, especially now in my life, there's definitely a cycle of life. And what she's doing right now will be different than what she's doing 10 years from now.
Erin Cluley: Sure. So, you think his purpose changes?
Joyce Meyer: Oh, sure, yeah, because you, right now, you have little kids. So, you have to say "No" to some things that maybe are things that God wants you to do. But if you're mixed up about the timing, you know, David, the little shepherd boy, David, he was anointed to be king 20 years before he wore the crown.
Erin Cluley: Wow.
Joyce Meyer: Twenty years, he carried that anointing. So, he knew, when you're anointed for something, you wanna do it, you wanna get after it, you wanna get busy and do it.
Erin Cluley: We do. Yeah, we wanna do it.
Ginger Stache: "I gotta do it now".
Joyce Meyer: You know, being out of God's timing is equivalent to being out of his will. And so, we have to wait for doors to open and not try to kick 'em down.
Ginger Stache: You know, that's something else I love about David in 1 Samuel 24, 'cause I just love this so much, I wrote it down. David had been hunted by Saul to kill him, right? So, he's been running away, and he finally gets the opportunity where he finds Saul and he can kill him to save his own life. And he knows he's been called to be the leader. It seems like this is God saying, "I've prepared a way," you know, "I'm gonna save your life, I'm gonna make you the leader". And yet, David knew that he should not lay a hand on God's current anointed.
Joyce Meyer: That he should not do it that way.
Ginger Stache: Exactly. So, part of David's purpose was to be a man after God's own heart before anything else. So, even though he knew what he was anointed for, his true purpose was to honor God.
Joyce Meyer: Most of those 20 years were testing years.
Erin Cluley: That's a long time.
Joyce Meyer: And see, that's something people don't understand. When you're called to do something, first you have to learn how to do it. I mean, like, if you wanna be a doctor, you don't just go out and be a doctor. You have to go to school for a lot of years and you gotta be an intern, you know, all these things. And so, you get, you're gonna go to school in different ways, and that doesn't necessarily mean go off to Bible college. I went to the school of the Holy Ghost: he just taught me where I was at. And then you will be tested. In every area, you'll be tested before you're promoted. And you're talking about how David could have killed Saul and even thought, "Well, this is my chance". But he knew that he was not to touch God's anointed. And when I was waiting on God to do the bigger thing in my life, I had a promoter come to me and say, "You know, you are really good at what you're doing and if you'll sign on with me, I can get you engagements all over the place. It won't be long, and your name will be known everywhere". And oh, how tempted I was. But I remember, I was out in California, and I remember laying across the bed and I wanted to do that so bad, but I said, "God, I'm not gonna do that. If you don't open the doors for me, then I don't wanna try to walk through 'em".
Ginger Stache: So, our number one purpose is to follow God's leading, to do what his word says. 'cause what he asks us to do will never be contrary to that.
Joyce Meyer: That's exactly right.
Erin Cluley: It reminds me of Proverbs 16:9. I should put this verse everywhere I go because i, as a planner, I like to plan my steps. I'm really great at planning steps. However, oftentimes, my steps that I plan are not how God's directing. So, I feel like in my life, I can see he's using the things I'm deciding, but it's not for the things I think he's using it for. So, I'm having to learn to be kind of open-handed with those things, but I think that's good perspective.
Ginger Stache: Yeah, Proverbs 16:9 says, "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps". And what I love about that too is it teaches us to really cherish the surprises of God. 'cause as a planner, you know, I agree with you. I want it to work the way that I think it should, but I've learned that there's so much great wonder in God's plan that's so much better. And to celebrate that.
Joyce Meyer: That's a great scripture to go to when you have got a plan that seems like a great plan, but it just is not working. "Man's mind plans his way, but God directs his steps". You're trying to go in this door and God's opening this door.
Ginger Stache: Right. So, here's another question. "How do you prevent burnout when you're doing what you feel God is asking you to do, his purpose for your life"?
Joyce Meyer: Well, in the Amplified Bible, 1 Peter 5 says, "Be well balanced, for your adversary the devil roams about like a lion, roaring in fierce hunger, seeking someone that he can seize upon and devour". So, let's just think about, if you have an unbalanced diet, you just eat way too many potato chips, and drink too many sodas, and eat too many candy bars, and you know, whatever, you're not gonna feel good, you're not gonna be healthy, more than likely you may be overweight. So, they talk to us a lot about having a balanced diet. But you need to have a balanced life, you know, where you work, but you also rest, you have fun, but life can't be all about just nothing but fun all the time. You need to have friends, but you can have so many friends that you start getting pulled in so many directions that you can't really be a good friend to anybody. I've heard someone say that you can only actually have three really good, close friends. You just don't have the time in your life. And some people just wanna keep up with everybody on the planet. And you can be friendly with a lot of people, but to be close to somebody, you know, and when she was, I don't know, we may be on a different person, but I was thinking the girl who asked about noise, you have to be careful that you don't ask too many people what you should do in a situation.
Erin Cluley: Oh, yeah.
Joyce Meyer: Because everybody, I mean, most people don't even know what they're doing, let alone know how to tell you what you should do.
Erin Cluley: That's so true.
Joyce Meyer: So, you have to be careful about, "Well, what would you do"? "What would you do"? And a lot of times that's done out of people-pleasing. We wanna make sure...
Ginger Stache: And burnout is too, isn't it? Yeah, terry says, "I'm seeing a lot of anxiety in the chat as individuals are trying to hear from God. Can you address how anxiety impedes us actually hearing from God"? You know, we're almost working out of fear, at that point, but we just get so anxious.
Joyce Meyer: That's why I started with that. It's really, to me, it's the linchpin to this whole teaching is trust instead of trying. See, all these people that are anxious, it's because they're trying so hard to hear from God, and they're afraid that they're not gonna hear the right thing. And we have to start by knowing how much God loves us. And I heard somebody, I read this in a book recently, and it's just so good. It was like, every morning, turn your hands up and just sit quietly for a few minutes and say, "God, I receive your love". You know, we can have that, well, sure, everybody knows that God loves 'em, but do you ever really take the time to just sit and soak in the love of God? And so, you know, I've been doing that really regularly. And it's interesting, the more of God's love you receive, the more comfortable you get with him, and the more you realize that he's not an ogre that's just waiting for you to make a mistake so he can jump all over you. I mean, that's not, all God wants is for us to want to do the right thing. And he kind of already knows we're not capable of always doing the right thing. Nobody is a surprise to God. He knows all about us before he brings us into relationship with him. And so, you don't have to be anxious. "A righteous man falls seven times and gets up again". If you miss God's, what he's saying, if you really wanna know, but you're just, you just really don't know how to hear from God yet, if you miss him seven times, it's like great man of God, when he was asked, "How did you learn to hear from God"? He said, "By making a lot of mistakes". And that really is a lot of times the way, you know, some of the things that I've learned, some of the places I've learned the most at, I've learned what not to do.
Erin Cluley: I relate to that question a lot 'cause I struggle with anxiety. And it usually is induced by my fear of missing something that is related to the call on my life, which is so silly when I say it out loud, the pressure I'm putting on myself. Like, I'm going to mess it up because of this one thing, but I understand what that feels like. And it is overwhelming, and it can feel so paralyzing when you're trying to just do what he wants you to do. And I've just had to learn to, just like you're saying, like, just rest and stop striving in my head. I have to just, "I can't do this on my own, anyways. If he wants me to do it, he's just gonna have to make it happen". So, I understand what that feels like.
Ginger Stache: Yeah, I remember a time like that where I was just really trying to find this next step. It's like, "Just tell me, is this a 'yes' or a 'no'? And I'll do it," you know?
Erin Cluley: "I just need to know the answer".
Ginger Stache: We want to do it, yes. And I just knew at that point that that's not how God was gonna answer me. And he gave me a verse in Psalms, and it says, "I will sing of the Lord's great love forever with my mouth. I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself". And it was like God telling me, "This is my greatest calling to do these things. That is my calling". A or b does not matter that much in what I was asking right then. It's as long as whatever I do, this is my calling within that choice.
Joyce Meyer: And this is something that can be really scary to people. Many times, God doesn't really care what you do. As long as...
Erin Cluley: I remember when you told, go ahead, keep going.
Joyce Meyer: As long as if you want his will, it's kind of like if you tell your kid, "Go play". You don't really care if he plays in his room or the backyard.
Erin Cluley: Yeah.
Joyce Meyer: You just want him to go play. And so, God gives us a lot of room to make decisions. He wants us to think. He wants us to think things through. He wants us to search things out. And if everybody can just remember this, the whole key is your heart. What is your heart toward God? "I want what God wants. I want to do what God wants me to do". And he's given us free choice and free will. And I say this jokingly, but it's true, the Bible says that we're to have our "Mind renewed". And I think a lot of people think it says we need our "Mind removed".
Erin Cluley: That's so true.
Joyce Meyer: We don't stop thinking and being human when we come into a relationship with God. He's not gonna give us a word about...
Ginger Stache: Yeah, we're not little Jesus robots.
Joyce Meyer: No, about everything that we're supposed to do. He wants us to think and plan.