My name is Sipokazi Somzana, a born-again Christian. I work as a child protection social worker and social work healthcare specialist. I am also a mentor, a coach, trainer, facilitator, and an award-winning author of the 2023 ACABA Christian Living Category for my book Young and Crazy in Love with Jesus. The founder and director of Asta Social Work Services, a private practice with a philanthropic aspect at its roots, and the face behind Sipokazi Writes, an online platform dedicated to the empowerment and transformation of people through the written and spoken word. My life is centered around revealing Christ to people and nations to glorify Him.
My journey began at a young age with my interest in reading and writing poems and short stories. Despite never seeing myself as a writer, I had an encounter with the Holy Spirit after graduating, leading me to write my first book, which won an award last year under the Christian Living Category, “Young and Crazy in Love with Jesus.”.
The journey of my second book, for which I have been nominated this year, took a different path. A desire for women’s issues emerged, and I got intrigued by women preachers. God led me on a journey of self-reflection, challenging me to examine why I lacked a female mentor and questioning my attitudes toward women’s leadership.
He started leading me towards following women preachers, women gospel singers, and buying women’s books; it was like God was leading me towards a journey of self-discovery and appreciation for women. As the time passed, my passion and desire to see women become great grew in such a way that every woman’s issue hit home, and I found myself having discussions around it with God in my war room.
The one day on my way to work, the Holy Spirit kept whispering, “Standing With Her.” At first, I thought nothing of it, but the second time around, his whisper was so clear as to what the assignment was. I would be lying if I said that at first, I didn’t get nervous about it. A simple brainstorming page was what started the project God laid in me; however, I was interrupted by a sickness that took me out of work for a period longer than 6 months and caused havoc in my life for over a year. Yet, at that time, in my pain and anguish, God kept prompting me to write, in my medically intoxicated self.
As I progressed with my writing, God introduced the second part of the book, “You Are Enough.”
Towards the end of my writing, God revealed that the phrase “You Are Enough” is not a new phrase; in fact, it is one that has been used for decades to try and empower people, with its own basis and belief at its core. The Holy Spirit said He was changing things, bringing a new meaning to the phrase, the meaning that women are enough not based on what they have or can do but because of who has their backing, that we are enough because He as God, stands with us.
In “Standing With Her: You Are Enough,” I share personal experiences and reflections, highlighting the importance of female empowerment and celebrating the greatness of women as God’s creation. The book seeks to address the misconceptions and challenges facing womanhood, affirming the inherent value and worth of women.
