About The Book

If you have never heard the story of the caterpillar and the butterfly, I will share it with you because it is a perfect depiction of the importance of growth and change. This story is so popular because it directly parallels the caterpillar’s maturation process of life (caterpillar, pupa/cocoon, butterfly) to the human maturation process. This story describes how a caterpillar lacks the confidence to live its life to the fullest because it is captivated by fear. The caterpillar meets a butterfly that encourages the caterpillar to expand its thinking about its current environmental circumstances and live without fear. What the caterpillar did not conceive at that time was that eventually, it would develop into a butterfly if it would only allow itself to break away from the fear and simply grow. This story directly applies to how we choose to live our lives. Will we choose to bombard ourselves with the fears of our past, or will we stretch our thinking and step out of our comfort zone to grow? I pray your answer will be the latter. Like the butterfly, we have to trust the process though sometimes painful, lonely and uncomfortable. 

Based on the majority of the world, unfortunately, most people never choose the latter  because they get trapped in the cocoon of fear and abort their opportunity to manifest the wondrous beauty of their God-given purpose--becoming a butterfly. Growth requires that you press through the feelings of uncertainty, discomfort, loneliness, lack, guilt, being misunderstood, fatigue, separation, and rejection, which all place you in a state of vulnerability. Emotional nakedness. That, however, does not have to be you. I am a living witness that God will give you beauty for your ashes, as stated in Isaiah 61:3. Those hopes, dreams, betrayals and disappointments that you had written off as total losses, God has a way of using those very things to beautify your life. You have to trust that through every struggle in your life, God’s desired plan is for you to mature into that glorious butterfly He created. 

Welcoming growth is not an easy feat. One must be willing to lay aside self-comfort and admit your ugly. Yes, YOUR ugly! All of the unaddressed insecurities that have been suppressed and repressed with designer clothes and bags, money, status, college degrees, Greek-life, career, sex, gossip, blaming others and unforgiveness (just to name a few), have grossly blinded you to facing the truth of your ugly. Whether you suppressed or repressed your true emotions, each of those materialistic possessions and self-centered qualities named above gave a false sense of security, halting personal growth. The beauty of this is, we all have our ugly to confront. No one is exempt from this process if the ultimate goal is to be W.H.O.L.E. 

I like to compare the post utero growth process to that of an in utero pregnancy. When a woman is impregnated, many times that woman suffers with countless nauseating, and even painful, physical and emotional discomfort. For 40 weeks, her body (internally and externally) goes through many changes to ensure that her seed is growing healthily and safely in her womb. Though she may be encountering all of these unpleasant pains and emotions, she knows soon, the “purpose” will arrive. Even on the day of the delivery, all of the agony and strain of hours of labor are forgiven and forgotten because her life’s journey has been augmented forever. That is exactly what growth looks like. You must “endure hardness as a good soldier”  to attain the prize of your pursuit. Like an athlete, in order to become a winner, there is a grueling training process that must be adhered to. There is a level of commitment, endurance and confidence that resides inwardly that projects outwardly. No consistent winner has ever given a half-hearted effort towards their goal. That same drive and focus are required when you are striving to grow...to be a winner...to be W.H.O.L.E. Welcoming growth is not for the faint of heart. It is for those who have purposed in their body, mind and soul that change is an essential component to becoming W.H.O.L.E. and walking in their divine purpose.

You also welcome growth by renewing your mind daily (Romans 12:2, KJV). It has to be daily. In like manner with your daily food intake, you cannot expect to grow off of last week’s meal, not even yesterday’s meal. You have to refuel and recalibrate your mind daily with healthy informational resources, such as faith-based books and literature, motivational YouTube channels, uplifting podcasts, and wise counsel. Over the years, for me, that has been daily reading of devotionals, the Bible and a time of prayer and meditation. It is a part of my daily routine because I realize that with it, I grow in love, joy, peace, patience, strength and character. You must understand that perpetual learning with consistent action and exposure to new positive content is what catapults your growth. How do you expect to think, respond and behave differently unless you begin to inundate yourself with positive images and material that challenges your current outlook on life? It is impossible.