Rachel Joyce is the founder and leader of Living Loved Today Ministry as well as a monthly writer and editor. She and Lisa Peat are co-leaders and speakers at LLT’s Woman to Woman Ministry.
Rachel received her BA in English from the University of Southern Maine, equipping her with strong writing skills and an eye for detail. After graduating, she married the love of her life, Bryan Joyce, and moved to live with him in Newfoundland, where she volunteered in a public high school, assisting children with reading difficulties.
A few years later, her husband became a full-time traveling evangelist, and she dedicated her time to assisting him and raising their children. The ministry required a number of moves and time spent living in remote locations and with every move, Rachel felt that she left a little bit of her heart behind with the people and church she had grown to love. All of this gave her a deep compassion for women who live in isolated places without a good support system. And it also gave her a broader perspective of the needs of her Christian sisters around the globe.
Although Rachel had trusted Jesus as a little, seven-year-old girl, and had grown up hearing about God's love, living in the good of His love was something she struggled to do. Cognitively, she knew He loved her, but somehow she still felt unlovable, and much of her Christian service was done out of an earnest desire to please God coupled with a nagging sense of never measuring up. Grace was a word in her vocabulary, but not in her heart.
To help her learn how to live out of the abundance of His love and grace, God gave her the gift of chronic pain. It has not been easy for her and there have been many days she has longed for Him to take it away, but through it all, He has drawn her close to His heart and filled her with the strength to endure. Best of all, she has come to cherish His nearness and delight in His lavish love.
Through all the years of pain and disability, Rachel has been grateful for the support and gentle devotion of her husband. She and Bryan take great joy in serving God together.
They are deeply thankful for their grown children: Abigayle, Theanna, James and his lovely wife Janneylee, and Benjamin and his beautiful wife Daniela and their precious daughter Elena. Added to this mix is a sweet pooch who cuddles up close to Rachel through every flare-up. He looks like a little white fluff ball but has a huge heart and a mind of his own. God has used each one of Rachel’s family to teach her more about His tender love and how to live in the abundance of it daily.