Episode #399
Running Into Healing: The Story Behind Willow Weston’s Book
What if the parts of your story you’d rather hide are the very places where Jesus wants to meet you, heal you, and bring hope to someone else? The tables are turned on this special episode of The Collide Podcast! Former and current Collide staff members Kenna Warren, Kristen Behrends, and Michelle Holladay take over the microphones to interview Willow Weston about the deeply personal story behind her book, Collide: Running Into Healing When Life Hands You Hurt . Willow shares how hiding in a closet from her mom became a pivotal moment that exposed wounds she still needed to heal, how God gave her the words “wounded collision,” and why she believes He asked her to live this message for years before finally writing it. Together, they talk about the courage required to tell the truth about our stories, why healing requires naming our pain, taking small steps of obedience toward a God-given dream, and what Willow has learned after years of watching Jesus meet women in the messiest parts of their lives. Ultimately, Willow wants every woman to know this: you are worthy of healing, Jesus can meet you in your pain, and He can even purpose your story to bring healing and hope to others. Meet Willow Weston Willow Weston is the founder and executive director of Collide, host of The Collide Podcast, and author of Collide . For years, Willow has invited women to get honest about their pain, collide with Jesus in the midst of it, and experience the healing and transformation only He can bring. Her own story is at the heart of that message. What began as a deeply personal journey toward healing eventually grew into a ministry where Willow has watched women bring everything from broken relationships and self-harm to grief and feelings of worthlessness into the light and encounter Jesus there. Her book brings together Willow’s childhood experiences, stories of Jesus, and years of witnessing God bring transformation to women’s real lives. Key Takeaways When you’re tempted to minimize your pain: Give yourself permission to be honest about it. Pain doesn’t have to be catastrophic to need healing; even small hurts can accumulate when they’re continually ignored. When telling your story feels scary: Remember that honesty can open the door for someone else to be honest too. Willow wrestled for years with how to tell the truth about her childhood without dishonoring the people she loved, but ultimately chose to share because she believes God can use her story to help others find healing. When you want to avoid the hardest parts of your story: Healing requires naming the pain. Writing and repeatedly editing painful memories was exhausting for Willow, but revisiting those places also brought new healing. When God’s timing feels incredibly slow: He may be asking you to live the story before you tell it. Willow originally thought she would write this book years ago, but now recognizes that the years of ministry gave her stories and experiences she never could have written about otherwise. When you feel too messy for God: Invite Him into the mess. Willow says the Jesus she has come to know doesn’t wait for us to get everything together—He meets us in our pain, wounds, and the chapters we never wanted in our stories. When your pain tells you something is wrong with you: Let Jesus tell you what is true. Pain may whisper that you aren’t loved, chosen, or worthy, but Jesus wants to set the record straight. When you wonder if your healing matters to anyone but you: It does. Willow believes that as we allow Jesus to heal our wounds, He can purpose those very stories to help bring hope and healing to others. How This Episode Will Encourage You Jesus wants to collide with the real places of pain in your story and bring the healing, hope, and wholeness you may have thought were impossible. Your healing matters - and as Jesus restores your story, He can use it to bring hope and healing to the people around you too. Mentioned in this episode: Collide Bible Study | A Six Week Journey Toward Healing What if your pain is the very place where Jesus wants to meet you? In this six-session companion to the book Collide, Willow Weston invites you on a journey to experience powerful moments in the Bible when Jesus collided with people that were wounded, outcast, and broken - and to discover how He wants to meet with you, too. Includes video access to 6 teaching sessions from Willow. Collide Bible Study | A Six Week Journey Toward Healing Book | Collide: Running Into Healing When Life Hands You Hurt National Bestseller ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Life hands us hurt we never asked for—leaving us anxious, insecure, and stuck. In Collide, Willow invites you to stop numbing and running, and start bravely stepping into the places you’ve avoided—because Jesus meets us in our mess, and healing starts there.
