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Matthew Willingham

@matt.willingham

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Learning to America after 10 yrs abroad. Loving beyond bubbles & borders.
Hoping to understand.

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168

5

a year ago

I don’t usually talk about my faith here, but I’m going to now.
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To my fellow Christians now emphasizing the ‘end times’ eager belief that the chaos in our world is evidence of Jesus’s return, have you considered that he’s already here and you’re just missing him?
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He said where you could find him: with the orphan, the widow, the imprisoned—in other words, with people on the underside of power.
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He’s with the homeless, unjustly evicted.
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He’s with the migrant, dragged from their family.
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He’s with the single mother, battling alone.
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He’s with the unborn person, killed before their first gasp—and he’s with the many shunned and shamed mothers, left without options.
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He’s with the convicts, racially profiled and locked up for decades.
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He’s with the beat down, the ignored, the ‘least of these,’ and he’s with this little girl, Maria, whose mama carried her out of certain death toward a country she’d heard would accept immigrants looking for a fresh start (that’s what they’re famous for, after all).
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For now, they wait in the grimy little shelter on the US-Mexico border that took them in. All they do is wait. Her mother despairs behind a mask of calm. Yet another Christmas spent in the purgatory of not-quite-home, now during a pandemic. And Christ is near, sharing in her despair.
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Brothers and Sisters, if you’re looking for the King, he’s exactly where you’d expect. He lives alongside those on the underside of power. He weeps and hurts and suffers with them, and his calling is clear: join him.
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Our place has always been alongside those on the bleeding edges. You might find Jesus in the suburbs, I don’t know, but I guarantee you’ll find him in the slums.
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I used to wonder why Christianity in my country is dying. As a younger man, I nearly walked away from this faith because I saw few examples of the extreme love God requires, but I know some of you are out there—not just Christian in name but Christian in loving pain, too.
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Don’t give up. Don’t settle in. The easy, feel-good-fire-insurance way was never The Way.
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The King is coming, I still believe, but he’s also come. He lives alongside the most vulnerable among us.
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Will we join him? taken in Tijuana, Baja California by @matt.willingham

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59

6 years ago

Before moving to Iraq, we got all the little well-intended warnings…

Then we got to Iraq and our Kurdish neighbors assured us they were safe and friendly, but those Arabs down south? Be warned.

Then we befriended Shia Arabs, who assured us they were quite safe and friendly, but those other Arabs, the Sunnis? Danger, bad people alert.

Then we befriended Arab Sunnis, and they assured us they were our friends, but those Iranians? Terrorists, avoid them.

And we sat at meals with Iranians, who assured us they were our friends, but those other kinds of Americans—“Not you, Matthew, of course!”—be careful.

Israeli and Palestinian friends both warned of each other and, before moving back to the States, Iraqi friends warned us about mass shootings and the dangers of living in the United States. Then when we got to the US, warnings hit like a hurricane: beware the Trumpers and the pro-lifers, people from the ‘wrong’ political group, the ‘wrong’ state, city, or neighborhood. A sexist group we should avoid over here, a racist group over there, and of course the endless warnings about Mexico.

The warnings are tossed out like seeds-become-weeds, and we try to yank them from our hearts before they take root, but the work is exhausting.

So thanks and thanks again to those of you who live and love in a better way, reminding us that the mature person works to forge unlikely friendships, refuses to judge people or places by reputation and warnings alone, who rejects simple stories and commits to doing the empathetic work of staying open, relentlessly believing the best of people, and widening our circles whenever possible.

Most of these warning seeds people toss at us grow into weeds that will choke us, suffocating our love and growth—often without us even knowing!

How poor in friends I’d be if I’d listened to the warnings. I’d be more afraid, in a smaller world, but most importantly: I would’ve missed out on stereotype-destroying love and a bigger, deeper belonging that I experience because of so many of you now reading this.

Thank you.

And may all the little warning weeds now taking root in us be ripped away, and may we find freedom.
🕊️🤟

Pic #10 by @life48_ ❤️ by @matt.willingham

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55

3 years ago

Geese appear high over us,
pass, and the sky closes. Abandon,
as in love or sleep, holds
them to their way, clear
in the ancient faith: what we need
is here. And we pray, not
for new earth or heaven, but to be
quiet in heart, and in eye,
clear. What we need is here.
—Wendell Berry

—

I’m not a natural-born nature-lover, but better late than never, I s’pose. RIP to the late great Wendell Berry, whose words helped me often.

“What We Need is Here” is my favorite of his, along with “The Peace of Wild Things.” Cayla I got the travel bug again a few years ago and, after a decade of mostly city-focused travel, we set our sights on national parks, forests, coastlines, and rural places.

Even my work travel is mostly to farms and fields, something I’ve come to love.

Thanks to all y’all who, like Wendell, helped this city boy appreciate the natural world. I’m looking at you, @d.scott.willingham , @hiwasherzad, @justinnpi, @thejohnhall, @timothykbuxton, @outtherewithgary.

Photos in order:
1. Yosemite Valley in fog
2. Baleal, Portugal (long exposure)
3. Joshua Tree Jack
4. Victoria Falls, Zambia side
5. Rawanduz Gorge, Iraqi Rivendell
6. Great Rift Valley, Kenya
7. Purple skies over Fiji
8. Spring melt in Kyrgyz mountains
9. Sunrise surf in San Diego

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“Love is what carries you, for it’s always there, even in the dark, or most in the dark, but shining out like gold stitches in a piece of embroidery.”
—Wendell Berry by @matt.willingham

119

18

a month ago

As a kid, friendship meant having practically anything in common.

As a teen, friendship grew from laughing at the same Adam Sandler nonsense.

In my 20s, friendship became about answers; holding the same certainty about life’s big questions.

But in my 30s, friendship grew from questioning that certainty; a common desire to grow, be more curious, to share in co-suffering together, and to confront what would be easier, simpler to avoid.

Turns out, it’s easy to be friends with people who think and look and act and believe like me, but those friendships were cheap and shallow when compared to what we’ve found: people unafraid to walk boldly with a limp; who delight in differences and debates, who are unafraid to be wrong, slow to certainty, who refuse to use each other to build platforms or for selfish gain, and who work out Truth with a healthy fear and trembling.

These are those friends.

Stage-based, performative church is fine, I guess…until you encounter Church like this. What an unbelievable gift, to be so known and so loved and so totally unafraid because we know, sans doubt, that we’ve found our people.

So, as I step into my 40s, I’m thankful to this crew and to so many of you for practicing this kind of friendship.

I’m over the hill. The view from up here is better than I could have imagined. taken in Kentucky Bourbon Trail by @matt.willingham

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15

6 months ago

She’s glam and knows it.

This was a pre-COVID afterschool dance practice in Merced, CA, and it’s one of countless simple, critical community moments made possible by the organization Restore Merced.

Thanks to Matt and the team for having us out to document their work, it was truly beautiful to see your love for your neighbors.

Photo taken for @restoremerced, alongside the absolute stallion @halleproject. taken in Merced, California by @matt.willingham

22

0

8 months ago

141

7

a year ago

104

6

a year ago

Meet the Crew | IRAQ100
Matt Willingham – Writer & Photographer 📸✍️

Matt was the first person I called when this wild idea came up. He didn’t just say “yes”—he said, “this story needs to be told.” After spending eight years in Iraq, Matt carries deep love and understanding for this land and its people. To go back with him—capturing the words, images, and heart of this adventure—is priceless. His belief from the very beginning has given me the courage to move forward.

Matt now lives in San Diego with his wife and three kids, and continues to travel the world using his photographic and storytelling craft.

He’s already raised over 50% of his Move2Belong fundraising goal. Come on and show Matt some support and donate to help him reach his target.

Don’t wait— he’s only got a little over 3 weeks before we fly out to Iraq.

💙 Donate to Matt at https://move2belong.com/matt-willingham

#IRAQ100 #TheReturn #move2belong by @matt.willingham

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4

a year ago

🇮🇶 IRAQ100 is getting real. @timothykbuxton returns to Iraq where he spent years helping others. Now the odyssey consists of 4 marathons in 4 days! 100miles, 180’000 steps retracing the steps of those displaced by war. This journey will be captured as a short documentary with global media reach — and we’re inviting brands, companies or individuals to help us care for every step.

The runners and crew are preparing to embark on a truly special mission — a 100-mile journey across the heart of Iraq to raise awareness, funds, and hope.

I’m proud to be part of this as the ultrarunning coach, helping guide this incredible group through the mental and physical demands of what lies ahead.

Every step counts — and you can be part of it.

🙏 Support the cause by donating at https://move2belong.com/mario-buchs
(Link in bio)

#IRAQ100 #Ultrarunning #EveryStepCounts #EnduranceWithPurpose #RunForChange #Ultracoach #RunningCommunity #SupportTheMission by @matt.willingham

47

1

a year ago

I’m fascinated by the connection between movement and change.

They seem pretty inseparable. Staying in place may be great in the short term, but if we want to thrive, the only choice is to move—be that moving your body, your heart, or your mind in a new direction.

And when whole groups of us choose to move together, transformation becomes almost inevitable!
Every major world religion began w/ founders + followers who were mobile. Abram to Canaan, Jesus roamed Palestine, the Buddha wandered, Mohammed migrated, and on and on.

Or how bout political revolutions: Gandhi, British suffragettes, MLK+civil rights–they all marched because they understood that lasting change happens when people choose to MOVE.

But what about people who didn’t move by choice? When we CHOOSE to move, growth can happen, but when we are FORCED to move, it’s the exact opposite. Being forced out can be traumatic.

Movement chosen vs movement forced.

This fall, our team will return to Iraq to honor BOTH kinds of movement. My friend Tim will run 100 miles across northern Iraq, a small part of a global movement alongside other runners who’ll CHOOSE to run for their own growth and to raise money and spotlight people who were violently FORCED to run.

The runners will take the same path that our friends were forced down 10 years ago when they fled ISIS militants who ultimately captured around 1/3 of the country.

“We choose to run in honor of those who had no choice but to run.”

Both Tim and I were in-country w/ our families when ISIS was finally stopped about a 20 min drive from my home, and the flood of refugees was heartbreaking. So in honor of those friends, whether still in camps, seeking asylum abroad, or doggedly returning home to rebuild and plant crops, we’re honored to #RunTheirRun.

For this, I’m raising $5k to support our trip and Tim’s resettlement work w/ YouBelong. Your donation could help us reach the $2500 halfway point, plz consider giving and thx to all who already have!! (link in bio)

#Iraq100
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Pictured: Iraqis who fled the Mosul area along the same corridor Tim and our team will run. Pics made for Preemptive Love. taken in Iraq by @matt.willingham

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5

a year ago

God forgive our return to the greatest lie, the false peace.

Hellfire misguided shortcuts we know only put more seeds of generational hate into the ground and for what?

For a fearful, false peace that actually, ironically, ultimately makes the world less safe. by @matt.willingham

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0

a year ago