How to Stop Doing Love Wrong

FAILING FORWARD 

After almost ten years of marriage, Laterras R. Whitfield cheated on his wife. They both wanted different things, but didn’t know how to communicate their needs to one another in a healthy way. 

After their divorce in 2015, Laterras felt like a failure. He knew that to be the man God wanted him to be, he needed to not only take ownership of his mistakes but also learn from them. 

With God’s help, Laterras began doing the hard work to become a better person, strengthen his relationship with God, and learn what makes healthy relationships last. He was also on a mission to find out what makes love and marriage last. 

Five years later, he began the faith-based “Dear Future Wifey,” podcast that resonated with people also trying to navigate relationships, making mistakes along the way, but desperately wanting to do things right. 
Today, “Dear Future Wifey” has over 70 million channel views. 

BECOMING A STUDENT

In his latest book, “Student of Love,” Laterras candidly shares what he’s learned from his journey—failures and victories included. 

He explains, “People like to say they’re ‘looking for love’ or searching for their ‘soulmate,’ but seldom do they realize that looking also requires deep self-knowledge and self-evaluation. Inviting readers into the classroom to learn some relationship lessons. 

“The core theme is not about finding the right person but about becoming the right person,” he shares. 

Topics include: 

• Advice on various stages of life, including dating, long-term relationships, marriage, singleness, divorce recovery, and healing from loss.

• Practical lessons on boundaries, communication, self-love, and recognizing different types of love, emphasizing courageous and honest conversations.

FINDING HIS FOREVER BRIDE

Laterras met Ashley Woods (now Ashley R. Whitfield) while speaking at California Worship Center in Los Angeles. What started out as a friendship turned into love. Two years later, on November 22, 2025, they married at the church where they met. Laterras documented his romance journey on the “Dear Future Wifey” podcast, but didn’t reveal his upcoming bride until the live stream on their wedding day.

STEPPING UP

When Laterras learned that his nephew, LaDarrion, entered foster care in 2015 due to his sister’s drug addiction, he knew he had to do something. He took LaDarrion in, and when his sister continued using, Laterras decided to adopt him. 

Later, he adopted Armani, a teen who had spent over five years in foster care, experienced homelessness, and lived with bipolar disorder, finalizing the adoption on National Adoption Day in 2019.

He actively promotes fostering, adoption, and even respite care (short-term care to support foster parents) as ways people can step in at different levels of commitment. He is leading a campaign for Kingdom Royale, a planned “luxury,” state-of-the-art foster home for boys in the Dallas–Fort Worth area, designed to give foster youth identity, dignity, and whole-person support.

To learn more about Laterras R. Whitfield, check out his podcast, Dear Future Wifey, available on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and X.

CREDITS

NY Times best-selling author, Student of Love (Harper Collins/W Publishing Group, 2026); Founder 
& host of podcast, “Dear Future Wifey” (70 million channel views); 3X Emmy-nominated producer; Foster & Adoption advocate raising money for “Kingdom Royale,” a state-of-the-art foster home for boys in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.