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Unorthodox Warrior: An Interview with JJ Hewlett

Joining us all the way from the Land Down Under – Perth, specifically – is my buddy JJ Hewlett. JJ’s story is a long and winding road full of ups, downs, sideways, benefits and forfeits. As JJ said:

“I’ve given up a lot of authority and I cant get that back, but I want to get back what I can and start doing it right.”

Here are just a few of the topics JJ and I discuss this week:

  • Church experience & Growing Up
    • Grew up as a Catholic alter boy
  • Parents married, kids, divorce… all before they were 22
    • Had weekend visits with his dad until JJ turned eight
  • Dad wound
    • Dad’s new mother-in-law fell ill, so he moved to Tasmania
    • That was JJ’s mom’s opportunity to cut him out of their lives permanently
  • Mom remarried a violent man
    • Step-dad provided for the family, but he had a terrible temper
  • Mom divorced again & JJ reconnected with his bio dad
  • How JJ “became a man”
    • Went along with the crowd
    • Became a chef & lived a “very non-pious” lifestyle
  • Became a professional wrestler!
    • Grew up a fan of wrestling
    • Was already athletic and was able to learn the moves and beat pretty much all his competition within a year
    • His addictive personality helped him pour himself into learning how to lift and wrestle
  • Went into the business side of professional wrestling
    • Business became all-consuming… and all tempting!
  • Sin was crushing him but he loved it!
    • Desperately sought validation
    • Needed others to affirm him
    • Wasn’t drawn to drugs, not even huge problems with alcohol but…
    • Couldn’t keep away from women!
  • All this led to ten years of affairs
  • Tracy got pregnant with their son
  • JJ felt a “tap on the shoulder” to move back towards God
  • He and his wife separated for 14 months. He told her “Move to me or we are divorcing”
  • Still cheating but considered himself Christian
  • “If you’re a crap husband, you’re a crap dad”
  • JJ confessed to his wife over the phone about his affairs expecting to lose his family, but his wife chose to work with him and save the marriage
  • His infidelity caused him to lose his job… nearly everything!
  • Real momentum ministry – convicted him
  • “I can destroy a testimony with just five minutes of reckless behavior!”
  • How do you start taking the right steps?
  • Holding onto promises, focus on Jesus… or we can focus on our storms (the choice is ours)
  • If we call ourselves leaders, but no one sees us worthy of following, we are just fooling ourselves
  • Favorite Bible Verses:
    • In this world you will have trouble.But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
    • Be alert and of sober mind.Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

This is just part of JJ’s story. You’ve got to hear what God has done throughout his life to mold him into the spiritual warrior he is today. As JJ says, “Find your pack and fight!” You can learn so much more by checking out JJ’s podcast: Warrior Rise ministry