#thegenerationoftheunashamed

[josephmwillis]

What to do when you don’t know what to do

Hi fam! So after a year of radio silence I figured it may be a good time to come back on and share just a few things God has been on my case about over this crazy lockdown chapter in life. 

There’s is a story in Luke 8 that always fascinates me, where Jesus on his way through a bustling crowd to heal the synagogue leader Jairus’ daughter. 

En route, the woman “with the issue of blood” (what a way to be remembered..!) reaches out through the crowd and grabs Jesus cloak and is immediately healed from 12 years of suffering. Pretty cool right?

Jesus however, makes a big fuss… “who touched me!?” he enquires, “not being funny, but just about everyone!” Peter replies. (*JWV - Jo Willis version!) 

One of my favourite verse of scripture is Luke 8 verse 47 - Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed came and fell as his feet.

That’s the story of you and I right there. 

You need to know today that those who reach out in faith to Jesus CANNOT go unnoticed. He sees.

No prayer is too basic, no plea too junior, no life too far away. 

After an instant healing, Jesus’ response is simply “daughter, your faith has healed you, go in peace”

Love this redemptive story; of a lady who was at the end of herself - one account says no one could heal her, one says that she’d spent all of her money on doctors and it had only gotten worse. 

She has no idea what to do but made 2 decisions that would change her life;

1. She decided to do something

This woman was relentless. Doctors, advisers; she’d tried it all. 

You could forgive her for coming to the end of the track and thinking ‘well I guess this is how it’ll always be’

Almost like I so often do, to freeze up, to think of a thousand next steps she could take but be so overcome by them all that you don’t move on any of them. 

Maybe you’re in the same place right now, at the end of yourself and with no idea of where to turn, but the thing that changed the game for this lady is that the something she decided to do was to turn to Jesus. 

This man who was turning the world upside down and defying social norms suddenly gave her permission to do the same

Let me encourage you, wherever you’re at, if you’re lost or wondering then to not freeze up or bury your head but to maybe do something. 

Something that will make a difference. Something that will change someone. 

Because the alternative was for her to be isolated in her own struggle but can I say isolation is optional. You have the chance to be a part of something so rich and so fun but the choice is yours. 

Jesus is in town and we have the opportunity to be near him, what will you decide to do?

2. Decide to be something 

Do you know that the choices you make end up making you?

I remember walking around the park with a great friend called Pete Dunys 10+ years ago, and coming be decision that we would be the people that others talked about; men of gutsy faith, determined to change something and make God famous. 

We make a conscious decision every day about who we are becoming 

‘Seeing she couldn’t go unnoticed’ – BUSTED

Could have gone one of two ways. 

She was either going to get healed

Or she was going to get stoned

She wasn’t allowed near people by Jewish law!!

Being something will cost you

She became the woman who defied the social norms and become a walking story of God’s goodness

Wouldn’t that be a cool story for your life?

You may not know right now what to do. Choose to live from the echo of your future. What’s God saying? Then work it back. 

If you’re still wondering then ask this simple question. What can I add? Not what can I get, but what can I give. 

God gave his one and only son for you and I. It’s a pretty good place to start!

[josephmwillis]

The brotherhood (/sisterhood!)

So Proverbs 27 is getting me stirred up today, in regards to thinking about who’s around my life and who I’m allowing to speak into it.

It’s filled with nuggets and wisdom on friendships and how they increase or decrease our personal sphere of influence.

Take verse 2 as an example; “Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth; an outsider, and not your own lips.”

Referring to being someone who is surrounded by encouragers.

Or verse 6 is another gem; “Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.”

‭I know this from personal experience, whilst it hurts more in the moment, my life is so much better for honest and trusted feedback! As a commentator so brilliantly says regarding this, “a doctors care is to the patients condition not their comfort”.

I’m also a big fan of verse 10 which states “Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family, and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you— better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.”

Now let me be honest, this verse initially confused me.

But having wrapped my head around it, I knew it needed some work on my side.

As a guy it’s not always easy to open up but what is easy is appearing to be open. First rule of manhood.

But to be truly open, to be vulnerable when disaster strikes, that really takes some guts.

Which is why we need the brotherhood (or sisterhood!) more now than ever before.

To have strong, open and vulnerable guys who’s friendships go deeper than the football scores and the chain of command in the workplace.

I’ve put some things in place immediately off the back of this as if the bible is active then so should I be.

What do you need to do?

[josephmwillis]

Aaron is on his way

January. A time for new beginnings, new ideas, new dreams and new ways to get them.

We look back at 2018, some in relief, some with sadness and I know I for one look back and see what I hoped for, with some things more successful than others.

But I come into 2019 with a real sense and conviction that something will be different to any year that’s passed. Why? Because Aaron is on is way.

Well who’s Aaron you ask?

Aaron the elder brother of Moses is found in the book of Exodus. He appears off the back of many excuses Moses gives God as to why he’s not the right man to lead a nation out of captivity.

As Moses gets to his final excuse in Exodus 4, it reads;

Exodus 4:13-14 - “But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.” Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you.”

This is extraordinary. Moses is ‘the other side’ of the wilderness and so why on earth would Aaron be on his way?

What strikes me about this text is that although God was telling Moses not just who he was but also what he could do, he knew Moses would discount himself from the story. So he sends backup.

And that’s what we all need hey.

Firstly and foremostly we need to be in conversation with heaven about what this year entails.

But secondly we need someone who can support us in our endeavours.

If you’re reading this then this is a word for you.

Aaron is on his way.

Someone who can help you find your sweet spot.

Someone who can speak to people on your behalf.

Someone with wisdom in areas you don’t have.

And that’ll mean this year you’ll be able to see and do things you only ever dreamed of.

Now this may mean you’ll need to change a few things up, find a community to get stuck into or be a bit more intentional in your friendships.

But the other side of the equation is the calling you were built for.

And I for one cannot wait to see it unfold. 2019 let’s go!

[josephmwillis]

Stupid prayers

We’ve all done it right?! 

We’ve all prayed prayers that are just plain dumb.

Joshua sends up a classic in Joshua 6:7 where he states ‘If only we’d been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan!’

For context - the other side of the Jordan was the desert. 

It was a place no one desired to have a long term property. It was a place they lived day to day, not knowing when food would run out. It was a place which brought back memories of failure and past pain.

But Joshua in the face of a recent loss found himself praying this crazy prayer and I found myself comforted.

Aren’t we glad God doesn’t always answer every prayer we pray?

Tim Keller puts it like this; God will either answer our prayers, or he’ll answer the prayers we would have prayed if we knew what he knew.

Don’t worry about your stupid prayers. You’re welcome to moan at God as long as it’s less frequent than your thanks to him and ends with trust in the one who spun the stars into their place.

He’s good. And he loves you. It’s going to be ok

[josephmwillis]

The pieces are already in place

It’s September...! Wow. This is gonna be a big year!! Here we go.

So I’ll start by being frank with you. I’m mainly a New Testament kinda guy. Some people I know are big into the Isaiah’s of the bible which is cool, but give me the gospels any day of the week.

I’ve recently been prompted to read Nehemiah though, which has thrown some gems up that I’ve previously missed!

Chapter 1 finds Nehemiah, an Israelite in Persia, who has been informed of the tragic demise of his homeland. The city he loved was in ruins and he decides that he is going to be a part of rebuilding a once breathtaking city.

What’s cool, is that if you check out Nehemiah 1:11, his prayer finishes with just one small sentence, a footnote, a statement which shows the telling nature of God all throughout this story.

‘I was cupbearer to the king.’

Now if Nehemiah had been anything else, would he have been able to have this conversation?

It certainly helped that he was good and faithful at what he did as we read on to find, but I have the distinct feeling that everything in his past had led him up to this point in time.

I say this to say, that the pieces are already in place. Nehemiah was positioned by God specifically for this purpose.

And the same is true for you.

Things may look like they are in ruins around you but the ‘cupbearer is in the palace’ so to speak.

God is good. And he is faithful, even when we aren’t. So when you look around know that he has carefully planned your future and got everything in order for what you’re about to step into.

The pieces are already in place.

[josephmwillis]

Crazy stupid love

So the World Cup is over and I don’t know about you but I’m on the 26 day countdown to the Prem starting now... Woohoo!!

So John 20 is amazing, something that really has got me thinking.

The chapter (which starts with the title The empty tomb...!!! Come on, how cool is that), in verse 24, tells of this guy called Thomas who had heard the stories of Jesus no longer being dead, but just couldn’t get his head around it. Fair enough right?!

It describes the disciples telling him - “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

So as is so often the case, Jesus rocks up to where he is and says these words - ‘“Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

What’s amazing about this act is that it’s not the ‘glamorous’ things that Jesus puts on display, but the vulnerability of what he went through.

The penny drops for Thomas and his response? “My Lord and my God!”

I think often what we qualify as the most likely to get a response from people is our ‘success’ or our ‘achievements’ but Jesus here does quite the opposite. 

What others perceive as his ‘failure’ to get himself down from the cross is actually the very thing that has changed the lives of billions of people over the ages and continues to do so at a colossal rate!

The ‘penny drop’ moments could well be the times we got knocked down but refused to stay there.

The very men with him would have naturally wanted to forget what happened to Jesus, the pain and the hurt, but his vulnerability caused them to remember the crazy stupid love that it took to do what he did.

And that crazy stupid love is directed at you and I and is available right now. It’s free but it wasn’t cheap. Why not give it a go?

[josephmwillis]

All in changes everything

So I’ve been fascinated this week with a few verses from John 20 which I have overlooked so many times before.

The scene; Jesus’ would be resting place. The characters; John and Peter. The context; Mary arriving at the tomb only to find it empty, so in desperation looks to the disciples for help.

On hearing the news, John and Peter run to the tomb, with John writing how much quicker he got there. Had Peter been comfort eating in the wake of what had happened a few days earlier? I guess we’ll never know.

Irrespective of this, when John arrives at the tomb, he waits outside, whilst Peter bombs in to see what the deal is.

Back in those days, it was customary for the Jewish people to steer clear from death due to it rendering them ‘unclean’ for 7 days, so understandably John was cautious.

But I love Peter, the guy who didn’t comply to social norms or the status quo, but lived a life that was ‘all in.’

This is where it get’s interesting.

Verse 8 says ‘finally the other disciple... also went inside. He saw and believed.’

It’s amazing how it took John to break social conformity to move into belief.

It took breaking the mould and stepping out of what was expected to change his paradigm.

For John it was the start of something extraordinary and would go on to shape life as he knew it.

Going all in isn’t easy, isn’t normal and sometimes isn’t nice. But going all in changes everything.

Are you all in? If not, what would it take? I encourage you to take that step. It’ll change everything

[josephmwillis]

Check your sources

Isn’t some of the stuff we read amazing?! We read articles on twitter, opinion on instagram or stories from our favourite tabloid paper, and take what’s written as gospel truth, without taking a second thought to check if the source is in any way credible.

I recently discovered that a great inspirational speaker I closely follow, who I had heard was Danish from I forget who now, is actually English, and has never even had any connection with the Danes!

Trivial I know, but it got me thinking, who’s voice do we listen to and regard as truth and who’s do we dismiss?

It’s amazing that often we go through life living through the filter of our past experiences of current circumstances, believing what people have said over us rather than listening to the one who created us in the first place.

If you are believing that you are anything other than exclusively picked, unconditionally loved and undeniably talented then you need to check your sources.

Check out these God inspired words about yourself for more info...!

Ephesians 2:10 : For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

John 15:15 : I no longer call you slaves, because the slave does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything I heard from my Father.

1 Thessalonians 1:4 : We know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you.

And this source? It’s a credible one