Joyce may refer to:

People:

• Joyce (name), including people and fictional characters with the given name or surname

Places:

• Joyce, Washington, an unincorporated community
• Mount Joyce, Victoria Land, Antarctica
• Joyce Peak, Ross Island, off the coast of Victoria Land
• Joyce Glacier, Victoria Land
• Lake Joyce, Victoria Land
• Joyce Country, a region in counties Galway and Mayo in Ireland
• 5418 Joyce, a main-belt asteroid

In business:

• Joyce, house brand of Hong Kong company Joyce Boutique
• Joyces 365, a supermarket chain based in Galway, Ireland
• Amstrad PCW personal computer, sold under license in Europe as the "Joyce"

Other uses:

• Hurricane Joyce (disambiguation), multiple storms
• USS Joyce (DE-317), a destroyer escort that served in World War II
• Joyce (programming language)
• Joyce Theater, Manhattan, New York
• Joyce Foundation, a charitable foundation based in Chicago, Illinois

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Joyce Jonathan
Background information
Born	(1989-11-03) 3 November 1989 (age 22)
Origin	Levallois-Perret, France
Genres	French pop, folk, french mandopop
Occupations	Singer
Years active	2009–present
Labels	My Major Company
Website	www.mymajorcompany.com/artistes/joycejonathan/

Joyce Jonathan (born 3 November 1989 in Levallois-Perret) is a French singer, revealed through the label My Major Company.

Her first album Sur mes gardes went gold in May 2010 only five months after its release.^[1] Less than a year after, the album was certified platinum. January 23, 2011, she received the NRJ Music Awards of the French revelation of the year.

Biography[link]

Childhood and adolescence[link]

She is the youngest of a family of three girls. Her mother is the director of a travel agency and her father is an architect. She was educated at the Alsatian School in Paris, and as of 2011, is studying psychology.

At the age of 7, she learned to play the piano and composed her first songs secretly. She continued her efforts by signing up for singing and piano lessons, influenced by artists such as Teri Moses and Tracy Chapman.^[2]

Joyce Jonathan was only 16 when she posted on the site MySpace ^[3] three of her compositions. She also contacted Michael Goldman, co-founder of the new label My Major Company , to make him listen to her tracks.

In December 2007, at the age of 18, Jonathan Joyce was launched on the website of the label My Major Company. It reaches from May 13, 2008 while the 70,000 euros needed for the production of his album, with its 486 producers. Six months after the first album, web-producers of Joyce Jonathan have already amortized their investment ^[4]

Musical career[link]

Thanks to the Internet, Jonathan Joyce began in 2008 the making of her first album. Then she asked for the help of Louis Bertignac (guitarist of the band Téléphone). Impressed by the talent and soft voice of the young artist, he agreed to work with her on the arrangement of her songs. It was in the studio of the famous musician that they worked together for a year. Joyce also recorded a duet with Tété, Sur mes gardes.

Her two singles, "Je ne sais pas" and "Pas besoin de toi", come from her fist album "Sur mes gardes" released in January 2010. Only five months after its release, the album was certified gold. In August, the album climbed to first place in sales of albums for download.^[5]

In August 2010, her single L'heure avait sonné was chosen by the directors of the American series Gossip Girl to illustrate the soundtrack of the first episode of season 4.

In 2011, she won the category French revelation of the year of the NRJ Music Awards 2011. She has just recorded a song "Mystères" with Pétula Clark.^[6]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Singles[link]

• 2009 : Pas besoin de toi
• 2009 - 2010 : Je ne sais pas
• 2010 : L'Heure avait sonné
• 2011 : Tant pis

References[link]

Joyce Sims (born August 6, 1959, Rochester,^[1] New York, United States) is an American singer-songwriter. Her biggest hit single was "Come into My Life," which reached top-10 status in both the US Billboard R&B chart and the UK Singles Chart in 1987/8.

Biography[link]

Sims formally studied music in college, learning a number of instruments. In 1986, Sims signed with the now-defunct record label Sleeping Bag Records.^[1]

Her biggest success was "Come into My Life," although it was her only top-10 record on the R&B chart. Both "All and All" and her remake of "Love Makes a Woman" with Jimmy Castor were chart entries, but Sims did not garner enough attention to break out beyond the dance market.^[1] Sims' debut album, Come into My Life, reached #22 in the US R&B album chart. All songs were written by Sims except for "Love Makes a Woman".

In 1994, Sims released released the single "Who's Crying Now" on Warlock Records, which absorbed her Sleeping Bag Records contract. She continued to tour internationally and make club appearances.

	Joyce Sims: “Come into My Life” excerpt noicon An excerpt from the short version of Come into My Life
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

She made her return in 2006 with the single "What The World Needs Now is Love," from her album A New Beginning, which was released on Vessel Entertainment, after teaming up with record producers Junior Vasquez and Glen Frisica.

Her music can be heard on the soundtrack of the movie Species, and her songs were recorded or sampled by Randy Crawford, Angie Stone, and Snoop Dog. Sims most recent release was "Wishing You Were Here" on her own imprint, August Rose Records. A new album, Back in Love Again, is to follow.^[2]

In 2009, Come into My Life: the Very Best of Joyce Sims, a double-CD of her greatest hits and remixes was released, which included the original studio versions on the first disc and extended mixes on the second disc.

Her most famous song, "Come into my Life," was copied by the Indian film-music composition duo of Nadeem Shravan in the film Aashiqui with a track called "Dheere dheere meri Zindagi me aana," virtually stealing the lyrics as well.^{[citation needed]}

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Come into My Life (1987)
• All About Love (1989)
• A New Beginning (2006)
• Come into My Life: Her Greatest Hits (2008)
• Come into My Life: the Very Best of Joyce Sims (2009)

Singles[link]

• "All And All" (1986) UK #16; US R&B #69; #6 US Dance chart.^[3]
• "Lifetime Love" (1987) UK #34; US R&B #23
• "Come Into My Life" (1988) UK #7; US R&B #10
• "Walk Away" (1988) UK #24; US R&B #56
• "Love Makes A Woman" (1988) US R&B #29
• "Looking For A Love" (1989) UK #39
• "Take Caution With My Heart" (1989)
• "All About Love" (1990)
• "Come Into My Life" (remix) (1994) UK #72
• "Who's Crying Now" (1995)
• "Come Into My Life" (2004 remix) (2004)
• "Praise His Name" (2006)
• "What The World Needs Now" (2006)
• "Wishing You Were Here" (2009)

^{[4] [5]}

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Web Site
• Joyce Sims at Vh1.com
• Joyce Sims at Soulwalking.co.uk
• Joyce Sims - Live in Europe

Joyce Hilda Banda née Mtila (born 12 April 1950) is a Malawian politician who has been the President of Malawi since 7 April 2012. An educator and grassroots women's' rights activist, she was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and Vice-President of Malawi from May 2009 to April 2012.^[2] Banda took office as President following the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika. She is Malawi's fourth president^[3] and its first female president. Prior to becoming president, she served as the country's first female vice-president.^[4]

She was also Member of Parliament and Minister for Gender, Children's Affairs and Community Services. Prior to an active career in politics she was the founder of the Joyce Banda Foundation, founder of the National Association of Business Women (NABW), Young Women Leaders Network and the Hunger Project. She was listed in Forbes Magazine 2011 as the third most powerful woman in Africa.^[5]

She is the founder and leader of the People's Party created in 2011, and prior to Bingu wa Mutharika's death was considered likely to contest the Presidency of Malawi in the 2014 general election.^[6]

Personal and family life[link]

Joyce Hilda Ntila^[7] was born on 12 April 1950 in Malemia, a village in the Zomba District of Nyasaland (now Malawi).^[8][9] Her father was an accomplished and popular police brass band musician. She began her career as a secretary and became a well-known figure during the rule of dictator Kamuzu Banda, no relation to her.^[10]

She has a Cambridge School Certificate,^[1] a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Early Childhood Education from Columbus University^[4] and a Diploma in Management that she received in Italy.^[11] She married Roy Kachale with whom she had three children. By age 25, she was living in Nairobi, Kenya.^[12] In 1975, a growing women's movement in Kenya provided Banda the spirit she needed to take her three children and leave what she has described as an abusive marriage.^[13] Her marriage to Roy Kachele ended in 1981. She is now married to Richard Banda, retired Chief Justice of the Republic of Malawi with whom she has two children.^[14]

Between 1985 and 1997 Banda managed and established various businesses and organisations including Ndekani Garments, (1985), Akajuwe Enterprises (1992), and Kalingidza Bakery (1995).^[1] Her success moved her to help other women achieve financial independence and break the cycles of abuse and poverty.^[15]

She is sister to Anjimile Oponyo, former CEO of the never-built^[16] Raising Malawi Academy for Girls founded by Madonna. Madonna dismissed Banda's sister from the position amidst controversy. Anjimile Oponyo sued Madonna who responded with a counter-suit. The case was settle out of court.^[17]

Political life[link]

Public offices (1999–2009)[link]

Joyce Banda entered politics in 1999. She won a parliamentary seat in Malawi's second democratic election as a member of president Bakili Muluzi's party. She represented the Zomba-Malosa constituency.^[15] Muluzi named her Minister for Gender and Community Services.^[10] As minister, she fought to enact the Domestic Violence Bill, which had failed for seven years previously. She designed the National Platform for Action on Orphans and Vulnerable Children and the Zero Tolerance Campaign Against Child Abuse.^[15]

In 2004, she was reelected as a member of Muluzi's Party. Bingu wa Mutharika became President. Even though Banda was not a member of his party, Mutharika appointed her as foreign minister in 2006. She led her country to cut ties with Taiwan and establish relations with Beijing. She said the switch would bring economic benefits to Malawi.^[10] In 2010, China finished the construction of a new parliament building for Malawi.^[18]

Vice President (2009–2012)[link]

Banda ran as the vice-presidential candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the May 2009 presidential election, running alongside Mutharika, the DPP presidential candidate.^[19] She served as Malawi's first female vice-president, before becoming the country's first woman president on Mutharika's death. In a surprise move by the DPP, Joyce Banda and second vice president Khumbo Kachali were fired as the vice Presidents of the DPP on 12 December 2010 for undefined 'anti-party' activities.^[20] In attempts to ostracize her, the president had continued to give roles that were previously held by her to Callista Mutharika who was included in the cabinet in September 2011.^[21] The court had blocked attempts by Bingu wa Mutharika to fire her as Vice-President on constitutional grounds. This included attempts to seize her official government vehicle and to block her from registering her new party.^[22][23] On 8 September 2011, the role of Vice President was left out in a cabinet reshuffle. However, she was still the legal Vice-President of the country as mandated by the constitution.^[21] She was urged by DPP spokesman Hetherwick Ntaba to resign as Vice-President.^[24]

Factions in DPP[link]

The relationship between her and the previous President of Malawi, Bingu wa Mutharika had become increasingly tense because of Mutharika's attempts to position his own brother, Peter Mutharika as the successor of the party and as the next president of the country.^[20] Although she was fired from the position as Vice President of the DPP together with second Vice President Khumbo Kachali, she continued to serve as Vice-President of Malawi as stipulated in the constitution of the Republic of Malawi.^[20] This move led to mass resignations in the DPP and the formation of networks that supported her candidacy to become President of Malawi in the 2014 general election.^[25] The DPP denied that mass resignations had occurred and insisted that they were only a few.^[25]

People's Party[link]

Joyce Banda is the founder and leader of the People's Party, formed in 2011 after Banda was expelled from the ruling DPP when she refused to endorse President Mutharika's younger brother Peter Mutharika as the successor to the presidency for the 2014 general election.^{[26] [27]}

President (2012–present)[link]

Transition of Power[link]

On April 5, President Mutharika died.^[28] After his death, the government failed to notify the public, in a timely manner, that the president had died. This led to the fear of a constitutional crisis in Malawi.^[29][30] Subsequently, Information and Civic Education Minister Patricia Kaliati's stated on public television that "the conduct of the honorable Joyce Banda in forming her own opposition party precludes her from being eligible to succeed the presidency."^[31][32]

Agence France-Presse reported Malawi’s ex-President Bakili Muluzi as insisting on "constitutional order," saying the vice president must automatically take power under the constitution. "I am calling for a constitutional order, for continued peace and order. The laws of Malawi are very clear that the vice president takes over" when the sitting president can no longer govern. We have to avoid a situation where there is disorder. Let us follow the constitution. We have no choice but follow the constitution. It's very important that there must be peace and calm."^[33] Malawi's security forces also wanted the constitutional order to prevail.^[34] The Malawi Law Society confimed that under section 83(4) of the constitution of Malawi, she is the legitimate successor to the Presidency.^[35]

On 7 April, Malawi's cabinet sought a court order to block Banda from becoming president. In turn, she phoned the army commander, General Henry Odillo, and asked if he would support her. He agreed and stationed troops around her house.^[36]

Her Excellency Mrs. Joyce Banda was sworn in on Saturday, 7th April, as the President of the Republic of Malawi; the first woman to hold the office.^[37] Chief Justice Mr. Lovemore Munlo presided over the ceremony which was held at the National Assembly in Lilongwe.^[28] After she was sworn in, she appealed for national unity. "I want all of us to move into the future with hope and with the spirit of oneness and unity...I hope we shall stand united and I hope that as a God-fearing nation we allow God to come before us, because if we don't do that then we have failed."^[37]

The Malawian and international media reported on Joyce Banda’s smooth inauguration. They called it a triumph for democracy. A Malawi Sunday Times editorial said that the new president’s inauguration had “helped to entrench and cement a democratic culture in the country”.^[3]

Cabinet appointments[link]

On April 26, 2012, President Banda chose her cabinet; 23 ministers and nine deputy ministers. She gave herself several key portfolios to strengthen her own power as the country's leader.^[38]

International relations[link]

During Mutharika's presidency, Malawi was left in a poor economic situation due to foreign relations under the Mutharika administration. Within the last year of Mutharika's presidency, Britain, the United States, Germany, Norway, the European Union, the World Bank, and the African Development Bank had all suspended financial aid. They had expressed concern for Mutharika's attacks on democracy domestically and his increasingly erratic policies. In March 2012, Mutharika told these foreign donors to "go to hell". He accused them of plotting to bring down his government.^[39] Part of Banda's challenge as President is to restore diplomatic ties with the aid donors. She also has the challenge of restoring diplomatic ties with Malawi's immediate neighbours like Mozambique and Botswana.

Within the first week of her presidency, Banda launched a diplomatic offensive to repair Malawi's international relations.^[36] She spoke to Henry Bellingham of the United Kingdom's Foreign Office. He assured her that a new British envoy will be sent "within the shortest time possible." She spoke to United States Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. Clinton promised to resume discussions on the $350 million energy grant as soon as possible. Banda announced plans to speak to Baroness Ashton of the European Union's Foreign Affairs office and the Malawi's IMF Resident Representative, Ruby Randall. She and Zambian president Michael Sata had also conferred about resuming close working relations.^[36]

Domestic policy[link]

On 18 May, Banda announced her intention to overturn Malawi's ban on homosexuality. The measure was reported to already have the support of a majority of MPs. If successful, it would make Malawi the first African nation to legalize homosexuality since 1994.^[40]

Joyce Banda Foundation[link]

Prior to becoming vice-president, she was the founder and CEO of the Joyce Banda Foundation.^[41] for better Education. A charitable foundation that assists Malawian children and orphans through education. It a complex of Primary and Secondary School situated in Chimwankhunda area of Blantyre. It includes an Orphan Care Center that consists of 6 centres and 600 children.^[42] It also assists the surrounding villages by providing micro-credit to 40 women and 10 youth groups. Provided seeds to over 10,000 farmers, and has provided other donations. The foundation has also constructed 4 clinics in 4 of the 200 villages it assists. the foundation also assists in rural development.It has a partnership with the Jack Brewer Foundation, a global development foundation founded by NFL star, Jack Brewer.

National Association of Business Women[link]

She is the founder of the National Association of Business Women in Malawi that was established in 1990. It is a registered non-profit foundation in Malawi.^[43] The association aims to lift women out of poverty by strengthening their capacity and empowering them economically.^[44] This is a social network of 30,000 women, dedicated to supporting women's businesses and supporting women that want to participate in business. Its activities include business training, technical training, record keeping and management skills.^[44] They work towards creating dialogue with the policy makers to make policies favourable to women business owners.^[45] Its current director is Mary Malunga.^[45] The foundation has a partnership with the Netherlands based Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation (Hivos) at The Hague since 2003.^[44]

Philanthropy and development initiatives[link]

She has been involved with many grassroots projects with women since the age of 25 to bring about policy change, particularly in education. She founded the Joyce Banda Foundation for Better Education. She also founded the Young Women Leaders Network, National Association of Business Women and the Hunger Project in Malawi. She (jointly with President Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique) was awarded the 1997 Africa Prize for Leadership for the Sustainable End of Hunger by the Hunger Project, a New York-based non-governmental organization. She used the prize money to fund the building of the Joyce Banda foundation for children.^[42] In 2006, she recevied the International Award for the Health and Dignity of Women for her dedication to the rights of the women of Malawi by the Americans for United Nations Population Fund.^[15]
She served as commissioner for "Bridging a World Divided" alongside personalities such as Bishop Desmond Tutu, and United Nations Human Rights Commissioner, Mary Robinson.^[1] She was also member of the Advisory Board for Education in Washington DC, and on the advisory board for the Federation of World Peace and Love in Taiwan (China).^[1]

Global Leaders Council for Reproductive Health[link]

In 2010, she became a member of the Global Leaders Council for Reproductive Health,^[46] a group of sixteen sitting and former heads of state, high-level policymakers and other leaders committed to advancing reproductive health for lasting development and prosperity.^[46] Chaired by former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, these leaders seek to mobilize the political will and financial resources necessary to achieve universal access to reproductive health by 2015 – a key target of the UN Millennium Development Goals.^[46]

National awards[link]

• Woman of the Year, Malawi, 1997^[1]
• Woman of the Year, Malawi, 1998^[1]
• Nyasa Times Multimedia 'Person of the Year', 2010^[47]

International awards[link]

• Women of Substance Award, 2010, African women Development Fund^[48]
• Africa Prize for Leadership for the Sustainable End of Hunger, 1997, Hunger Project of NY^[1]
• International award for entrepreneurship development, 1998, Africa Federation of Woman Entrepreneurs and Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)^[1]
• 100 Heroines award, 1998, Rochester, New York^[1]
• Certificate of Honors, 2001, Federation of World Peace and Love, Taiwan, Republic of China^[1]

See also[link]

• Malawian Constitutional Crisis 2012

References[link]

This article uses bare URLs for citations. Please consider adding full citations so that the article remains verifiable. Several templates and the Reflinks tool are available to assist in formatting. (Reflinks documentation) (May 2012)

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Joyce Banda

• United Nations 1997 Africa Prize
• Donnelly, John (October 10, 2011). "Joyce Banda: "Women lacked training, credit and information"". Global Pulse (Boston, Mass.: Global Post). http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/global-pulse/joyce-banda-women-lacked-training-credit-and-information. Retrieved 2012-04-15. 

v t e Presidents of Malawi Hastings Banda Bakili Muluzi Bingu wa Mutharika Joyce Banda

Joyce Meyer
Meyer teaching at the Hillsong Conference in Kiev on October 4, 2007
Born	Pauline Joyce Hutchison (1943-06-04) June 4, 1943 (age 69) St. Louis, Missouri U.S.
Occupation	Bible teacher, author, speaker
Nationality	American Citizen
Spouse(s)	Dave Meyer
Influences Tommy Barnett John C. Maxwell
www.joycemeyer.org

Joyce Meyer (born Pauline Joyce Hutchison; June 4, 1943) is a Charismatic Christian author and speaker. Meyer and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her ministry is headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri.

Early life[link]

Meyer was born Pauline Joyce Hutchison in south St. Louis in 1943. Her father went into the army to fight in World War II soon after she was born. She has said in interviews that he began sexually abusing her upon his return, and discusses this experience in her meetings.^[1]

A graduate of O'Fallon Technical High School in St. Louis, she married a part-time car salesman shortly after her senior year of high school. The marriage lasted for five years. She maintains that her husband frequently cheated on her and persuaded her to steal payroll checks from her employer. They used the money to go on a vacation to California. She states that she returned the money years later.^[1] After her divorce, Meyer frequented local bars before meeting Dave Meyer, an engineering draftsman. They were married on January 7, 1967.

Meyer also reports that she was praying intensely while driving to work one morning in 1976 when she said she heard God call her name. She had been born-again at age nine, but her unhappiness drove her deeper into her faith. She says that she came home later that day from a beauty appointment "full of liquid love" and was "drunk with the Spirit of God" that night while at the local bowling alley.^[1]

I didn't have any knowledge. I didn't go to church. And I had a lot of problems, and I needed somebody to kind of help me along. And I think sometimes even people who want to serve God, if they have got so many problems that they don't think right and they don't act right and they don't behave right, they almost need somebody to take them by the hand and help lead them through the early years.^[2]

Meyer was briefly a member of Our Savior's Lutheran Church in St. Louis, a congregation of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.^[1][3] She began leading an early-morning Bible class at a local cafeteria and became active in Life Christian Center, a charismatic church in Fenton. Within a few years, Meyer was the church's associate pastor. The church became one of the leading charismatic churches in the area, largely because of her popularity as a Bible teacher.^[1] She also began airing a daily 15-minute radio broadcast on a St. Louis radio station.

In 1985, Meyer resigned as associate pastor and founded her own ministry, initially called "Life in the Word". She began airing her radio show on six other stations from Chicago to Kansas City.

In 1993, her husband Dave suggested that they start a television ministry.^[1] Initially airing on superstation WGN-TV in Chicago and BET, her program, now called Enjoying Everyday Life, is still on the air today.

In 2004 St. Louis Christian television station KNLC, operated by the Rev. Larry Rice of New Life Evangelistic Center, dropped Meyer's programming. According to Rice, a longstanding Meyer supporter, Meyer's "excessive lifestyle" and her teachings often going "beyond Scripture" were the impetus for canceling the program.^[4]

In 2005, Time magazine's "25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America" ranked Meyer as 17th.^[5]

Ministry[link]

Meyer speaks humorously, sharing with her audience her own shortcomings and taking playful jabs at stereotypical church behavior. A particular crowd favorite is the "robot" routine, in which she goes into a stiff-armed imitation of a robot chanting "What about me? What about me?"^[6]

According to Joyce Meyer Ministries, Meyer earned her doctoral degree from Life Christian University, an unaccredited institution in Tampa, Florida.^[7] Meyer has been given an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity by Oral Roberts University, an accredited institution in Tulsa, Oklahoma.^[7]

Salary and finances[link]

Joyce Meyer used to travel in this Canadair Challenger 600S; seen here in Sydney, Australia, when she was a 'special guest' at the Hillsong Conference in July 2005. It has since been replaced by a Gulfstream IV

Meyer, who owns several homes and travels in a private jet (currently a Gulfstream IV),^[8][9] has been criticized by some of her peers for living an excessive lifestyle. She responded that she doesn't have to defend her spending habits because "there’s no need for us to apologize for being blessed."^[8] Meyer commented, "You can be a businessman here in St. Louis, and people think the more you have, the more wonderful it is...but if you’re a preacher, then all of a sudden it becomes a problem."^[8]

On November 11, 2003, the St. Louis Post Dispatch published a four part series."^[8] exposing Meyer’s "$10 million corporate jet, her husband’s $107,000 silver-gray Mercedes sedan, her then $2 million home and houses worth another $2 million for her four children", her $20 million headquarters, furnished with "$5.7 million worth of furniture, artwork, glassware, and the latest equipment and machinery, including a malachite round table, a marble-topped antique commode, a custom office bookcase, a $7,000 Stations of the Cross in Dresden porcelain, an eagle sculpture on a pedestal, another eagle made of silver, and numerous paintings", among many other expensive items — all paid for by "her ministry". The article prompted Wall Watchers^[10] (a Christian nonprofit watchdog group) to call on the Internal Revenue Service to investigate Meyer and her family.

Following the adverse publicity about her lifestyle and Ministry Watch's request for an IRS probe, Meyer announced in 2004 plans to take a salary reduction from the $900,000 per year she had been receiving from Joyce Meyer Ministries (in addition to the $450,000 her husband received) ^[11] and instead personally keep more of the royalties from her outside book sales which Meyer had previously donated back to Joyce Meyer Ministries. She now retains royalties on books sold outside the ministry through retail outlets such as Wal-Mart, Amazon.com, and bookstores, while continuing to donate to her ministry royalties from books sold through her conferences, catalogues, website, and television program.^[12] "The net effect of all of this," notes Ministry Watch,^[10] "was most likely a sizable increase in the personal compensation of Joyce Meyer and reduced revenues for JMM." In an article in the St. Louis Business Journal, Meyer's public relations director, Mark Sutherland, confirmed that her new income would be "way above" her previous levels.^[13] Joyce Meyer Ministries says it has made a commitment to maintain transparency in financial dealings,^[14] publish their annual reports,^[15] have a Board majority who are not Meyer relatives^[16] and submit to a voluntary annual audit.^[14][17] Currently this ministry is receiving a "C" rating (81-90) in financial transparency from Ministry Watch.^[18]

Senate investigation[link]

On November 6, 2007, United States senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa announced an investigation of Meyer’s ministry by the United States Senate Committee on Finance.^[19] Grassley asked for the ministry to divulge financial information^[20][21] to the committee to determine if Meyer made any personal profit from financial donations, asking for a detailed accounting for such things as cosmetic surgery and foreign bank accounts and citing such expenses as the $23,000 commode mentioned earlier. He also requested that Meyer's ministry make the information available by December 6, 2007. In her November 29 response to Grassley, Meyer notes that the commode is a chest of drawers. Meyer writes that it was part of a large lot of items totaling $262,000 that were needed to furnish the ministry's 150,000-square-foot (14,000 m²) headquarters purchased in 2001. She said the commode's price tag was an "errant value" assigned by the selling agent and apologized for "not paying close attention to specific 'assigned values' placed on the pieces."^[20] The investigation also aimed to scrutinize five other televangelists: Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Eddie L. Long, Paula White, and Creflo Dollar.^[19]

Joyce Meyer Ministries responded with a newsletter to its e-mail list subscribers on November 9, 2007. The organization referred to its annual financial reports, asserting that, in 2006, the ministry spent 82 percent of its total expenses "for outreach and program services toward reaching people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as attested by independent accounting firm Stanfield & O'Dell, LLP." The message also quoted an October 10, 2007, letter from the Internal Revenue Service which stated, "We determined that you [Joyce Meyer Ministries] continue to qualify as an organization exempt from federal income tax under IRC section 501(c)(3)." The same information was also posted to the ministry website.

Meyer and Hinn were the only two ministries to comply with the Senate's requests for financial records, and both of them made commitments to future financial transparency. Neither party were found to have done any wrongdoing.^[22]

ECFA accreditation[link]

In 2009, Joyce Meyer Ministries received accreditation from the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA). In an announcement on March 12, 2009, the ECFA said that Joyce Meyer Ministries and Oral Roberts University had met their requirements of "'responsible stewardship', which involves ministries' financial accountability, transparency, board governance and fund-raising practices."^[23]

Works[link]

• Battlefield of the Mind: Winning the Battle in Your Mind. 1993. ISBN 0-446-69109-7. 
• Me and My Big Mouth: Your Answer is Right Under Your Nose. 2002. ISBN 0-446-69107-0. 
• How to Hear from God: Learn to Know His Voice and Make Right Decisions. 2003. ISBN ISBN 0-446-53256-8. 
• The Secret Power of Speaking God's Word. 2004. ISBN 0-446-57736-7. 
• In Pursuit of Peace: 21 Ways to Conquer Anxiety, Fear, and Discontentment. 2004. ISBN 0-446-53195-2. 
• Straight Talk: Overcoming Emotional Battles with the Power of God's Word. 2005. ISBN 0-446-57800-2. 
• Approval Addiction: Overcoming Your Need to Please Everyone. 2005. ISBN 0-446-57772-3. 
• Look Great Feel Great: Joyce shares twelve practical keys that will help you look and feel great. 2006. ISBN 0-446-57946-7. 
• The Everyday Life Bible: The Power of God's Word for Everyday Living. 2006. ISBN 0-446-57827-4. 
• The Confident Woman: Start Today Living Boldly and Without Fear. 2007. ISBN 0-446-53198-7. 
• Woman to Woman: Candid Conversations from Me to You. 2007. ISBN 0-446-58180-1. 
• I Dare You: Embrace Life With Passion. 2007. ISBN 0-446-53197-9. 
• The Power of Simple Prayer: How to Talk with God about Everything. 2007. ISBN 0-446-53196-0. 
• Top 10 Qualities of a Great Leader. 2007. ISBN 1-57794-913-7.  (by Joyce Meyer and Phil Pringle)
• Conflict Free Living. 2008. ISBN 1-59979-062-9. 
• Start Your New Life Today: An Exciting New Beginning with God. 2008. ISBN 0-446-50965-5. 
• The Secret To True Happiness: Enjoy Today, Embrace Tomorrow. 2008. ISBN 0-446-53199-5. 
• Never Give Up!: Relentless Determination to Overcome Life's Challenges. 2009. ISBN 0-446-58035-X. 
• Eat the Cookie--Buy the Shoes: Giving Yourself Permission to Lighten Up. 2010. ISBN 0-446-53864-7. 
• Power Thoughts: 12 Strategies to Win the Battle. 2010. ISBN 0-446-58036-8. 
• Beauty for Ashes. 
• The Penny.