“You cannot have development if you don’t become disciplined….”
– Baywatch
Small Business Owner.
Married.
WPD meant a lot to me through college. It was a safe place for me to relax, to be myself, to be real, open, and transparent. A place that made me think deeper, opened my mind wide with ideas, and helped me grow as an individual. The acronym WPD is short for whole person development which seems broad, but was meaningful to each group member in a specific way. Each guy in the group would show up with something new on his mind. Everyone brought something different to the table, but deep down I believe all of us sought discovery of something new and growth. WPD was where we could hash it out, be vulnerable if we wanted to, and talk to others who were in the same season of life. Some of my big takeaways from WPD had to be community and discipline.
The four wheels, or aspects of life we talked about were athletics, academics, relationships, and God. The four things that were the biggest in our lives in that season of life. Through this group I found growth in all four categories, which a lot of the growth stemmed from the discovery of discipline. You cannot have development if you don’t become disciplined, and our group was filled with several very disciplined young men. Although we had our slip ups and our lazy times, we kept each other in check. We were accountable for one another. When one started to slip, we were there as a brother to pick him back up, pray for him, and direct him on the right path. WPD showed me the athletic, academic, relational, and Godly discipline I needed to shape me and my future.
The guys I was with in the group were closer than just Thursday nights. I lived with them, ran with them, ate, competed, and lived life with them. We were close. And it was good. We knew what was going on in each others’ lives, and we could tell when something was wrong. We were there for each other outside of the group. When someone was going through relationship problems, school stress, athletic highs and lows. We were there. It made me see just how important having a good community really was and is. WPD may have ended Thursday night groups, but it has not ended the relationships made in the group. It was a start to some of the best lifelong friendships that I will forever cherish.
Daniel “Baywatch” Frazee. May 2020 Graduate.