Author of Born Royal Oneka McClellan Is Helping Women Rediscover Their God-Given Identity and Confidence

Oneka McClellan: I was in a conversation with some girls who were in college, and they were talking to me about all the pressures that they were facing in college and just the peer pressure, the lack of confidence that girls of all ages, backgrounds, and stages have, and lots of settling uncertainty and just falling into situations that normally they would not fall into. All roads led back to insecurity, and so it started there; that was the seed, but then it continued. 

The thread continued when I talked to a new mom who was comparing her journey to another mom's journey, and then the thread continued when I talked to another woman who was older and felt like her voice was not needed. I just followed that thread and realized that there was a need for women to come together to support one another, to pray for each other, but also for our identity to be found in Christ and not in our own works or seasons of life that we're in. It was a string of conversations that brought the book into reality.

CWH: Why do you think women suffer from insecurities? 

OM: I think girls and guys both have the problem. I think that girls talk about it more because we're just perfectionists sometimes. Not every girl, but many of us want to just get it right in every single area. When we compare our lives to those of someone else we see on social media, we feel like we're failures instead of realizing we won because we fed our family and got through the daily things of life. Guys have some of the same pressures; they just don't talk about it as much as girls. 

CWH: What did this book do for you as you were writing it? 

OM: I have two sons and a little girl, and I want my boys to grow up knowing how to see value and honor God's daughters. I think it's important for men to know how to value and see God's girls. I also wrote it so my daughter would have a roadmap to follow as she deals with the different things that come her way as she continues to grow up. I started this conversation with the common thread that I was seeing the discontent in people; I was just seeing lots of comparisons, discontent, and settling and forgetting who God called us to be. I felt like this book could be a reminder of a love letter from heaven and an anthem over God's daughter.

CWH: God seems to have blessed you with the gift of Vision casting. Is that true? 

OM: Yes. I think asking him for a heart to see other people I love. I love Jesus, and I love people really hard. I love to honor the person who helped me on the plane. If I'm meeting a new person in the hallway at the church, I love to ask God to show me something about this person to make them smile. If I'm at a restaurant and the person serving me or at a doctor's office, I make it my mission to win them over and to help pull down whatever's causing them to have that wall up. I make it a challenge. 

CWH: Where does this come from? 

OM: Someone taught me a long time ago that there are two ways to approach people. There's, here I am, so walking into every space, like, here I am, I'm here, look at me, check me out, look how great I am. Or you can approach every space with there you are. And that has framed my life and my husband's life. I love walking into any space thinking, there you are, God, show me what's special about that person.  I feel like when you ask him for his heart, for his kids, he shows you things.

CWH: Who is the book truly for? 

OM:  I feel like it's truly for every girl and every woman because I feel like I step into all the seasons of being a woman of God.  

Photo Credit: ©Facebook/Shoreline City

MAINA MWAURA is a freelance writer and journalist who has interviewed over 800 influential leaders, including two US Presidents, three Vice-Presidents, and a variety of others. Maina, is also the author of the Influential Mentor, How the life and legacy of Howard Hendricks Equipped and Inspired a Generation of Leaders. Maina and his family reside in the Kennesaw, Georgia area.