In Gratitude Provides Abundance, Dr. Colecia Williams Shares How Gratitude Sustained Her Through Loss
Dr. Colecia Williams is an educational leader with more than 20 years of experience serving Texas schools and the founder of Commit to Elevate, a leadership development and consulting business. As a contributing author in Gratitude Provides Abundance, she shares her chapter, A Broken Hearted Daddy’s Girl: Two Daughters, One Father, Different Stories.
In this Q&A with Today’s Purpose Woman, Dr. Williams reflects on faith, gratitude, and the inspiration behind sharing her story.
What made this anthology feel like the right time to share your story?
When I was invited to be a contributing author, I knew this was about more than writing a chapter. It was an opportunity to share a piece of my heart. My life has been filled with incredible blessings, unexpected challenges, and countless moments where I have seen God’s hand at work. Gratitude has become the foundation of how I choose to live, even when life doesn’t go as planned. If my story encourages just one person to trust God a little more and see His goodness in the middle of life’s hardest moments, then sharing it was absolutely worth it.
Your chapter is titled A Broken Hearted Daddy’s Girl: Two Daughters, One Father, Different Stories. What do you hope readers discover when they read it?
My chapter, A Broken Hearted Daddy’s Girl: Two Daughters, One Father, Different Stories, is a story about love, loss, healing, and perspective. It explores how two people can experience the same father in completely different ways, yet both stories can be true.
Writing this chapter required me to be vulnerable because it centers on one of the most meaningful relationships in my life. My father shaped so much of who I am, and after his passing, God took me on a journey of healing that I never expected. I wanted readers to know that healing is possible when we choose grace over bitterness and gratitude over resentment.
Looking back now, what has gratitude taught you that you didn’t understand before?
God showed me that gratitude isn’t something we practice only when life is good. Real gratitude is choosing to trust Him when life is difficult. As I reflected on my journey, I realized I wasn’t just thankful for the victories. I became grateful for the heartbreak, the waiting, the stretching, and even the unanswered questions because those moments developed my faith and prepared me for where He was taking me.
Looking back, I can clearly see that God’s grace was present in every chapter, even the ones I didn’t understand at the time.
Gratitude Provides Abundance
Was there a Scripture or a moment with God that became your anchor during that season?
Romans 8:28 became my anchor. It reminds us that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.
After losing my father, there were days when I had more questions than answers. During those quiet moments with God, He reminded me that I didn’t have to understand everything to trust Him. Prayer became my place of peace, and His Word reminded me that He was carrying me, even when I didn’t feel strong enough to keep going.
What would you say to the woman who feels like she’s in the middle of a story she doesn’t understand yet?
I would tell her not to give up. This season is not the end of your story. God has not forgotten you, and He is still working, even when you cannot see it. Give yourself permission to feel, to grieve, to heal, and to grow. You don’t have to pretend to be strong every day because God’s strength is made perfect in our weakest moments.
One day you will look back and realize that what almost broke you actually became the foundation of your testimony.
When readers close the book, what’s one truth you hope stays with them?
More than anything, I hope readers walk away believing that gratitude is a lifestyle, not just a feeling.
I hope they see that God’s grace has a way of meeting us right where we are. I also hope they leave with a greater appreciation for extending grace to others because we never truly know what someone has experienced. If my story inspires someone to forgive, to heal, to trust God more deeply, or simply to be thankful for where they are today, then I know sharing my story made a difference.
Connect with Dr. Colecia Williams
Website: www.commit2elevate.com
Book: Gratitude Provides Abundance
Facebook & LinkedIn: Dr. Colecia Williams
