Article written by Guest Author Sonika Kruger
Now Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro (Reuel) his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb (Sinai), the mountain of God. The Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing flame of fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was on fire, yet it was not consumed. So Moses said, “I must turn away [from the flock] and see this great sight—why the bush is not burned up. ”When the Lord saw that he turned away [from the flock] to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then God said, “Do not come near; take your shoes off your feet [out of respect], because the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” Then He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Then Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
Exodus 3:1-6 AMP
God is Holy, Love and Grace
When I was in my early twenties, like many young women, I didn’t like myself much. I had a low self-esteem and about zero confidence. Yet I decided to study Theology and become a Reverend. That meant preparing sermons and preaching, teaching and showing up as a leader for the congregation.
Just like Moses, I had excuses.
And just like Moses, God used me.
It is human to think in humanly terms of God. However, He is just too big to fully understand. And yet, He still chooses to use us as His servants, changemakers and leaders in this world. Whether you are a mom, an entrepreneur, a CEO or a toilet cleaner, when He calls us, we just have to choose to answer “Here, I am, Lord.” The rest will be supplied by Him.
In His majesty, He is calling us.
He will equip us.
Moses didn’t go alone to the Pharaoh. Moses had a staff. And he had a friend, Aaron.
What has God given to you that you can use?
God has equipped me with resilience and the ability to always bounce back. He has made me a woman and a mom who is always willing to learn and then share this wisdom with others through written and spoken word. He has guided me, through all my trails and tribulations to a place where I am living in
Holiness and Love.
Read more: How to Know and Hear God’s Voice
Living in His Holiness and Love
During this time, when I wasn’t feeling the greatest love for myself, I heard a talk from Rob Bell. During this talk he referenced Moses and the burning bush. He shared that as people, we are holy, just like the burning bush. Moses had to take off his shoes, out of respect, when he approached the burning bush. Out of respect for others, we have to see them as a burning bush and take off our shoes when we are in the holy presence.
When I heard that talk, something in my mind began to click that day.
I realised, that through Christ, I too am made holy and am deserving of respect. First I had to learn to love and respect myself. God created me in love, He called me in love and I am holy.
I began to study Psalm 139. While reading this Psalm, I stood in awe of who I am and how wonderfully God created me. In this psalm, we read that God’s DNA is woven into ours. He is holy and love, and therefore we can live in holiness and love.
He has woven His DNA into mine.
I came to the awareness that I am truly worthy and valuable.
That is how God created me.
That is how God created YOU.
Learn more about your Identity in Christ.
I am Choosing to Take off My Shoes
My friend, you are valuable and worthy of respect and acceptance.
You are worthy enough that others take off their shoes in your presence.
When we recognize the value of our own healed, unhealed and healing parts, we can cultivate greater empathy, understanding and acceptance of ourselves and others.
Just like Moses, I am choosing to take off my shoes and stand on holy ground.
Standing on the Mountain
Moses led his father-in-law’s flock to Horeb – the mountain of God.
And today I am standing on Horeb – the mountain of God.
A light shines brightly when it is lit and put up high. That is the purpose and value of a lamp, it illuminates the darkness.
As I journeyed through my life and my healing, I realised that just like a lamp, I can be used to illuminate the darkness by allowing God to shine through my healed parts.
I am 37 year old, mama of three, wife to a wonderful husband and managing director of a private school, I am celebrating the process of stepping into my “holiness”, because I allowed God grace to heal me.
This process wasn’t always easy, especially when I was finding myself in the wilderness.
Find out what happened when I took a year off ministry.
In the Wilderness
Life happens to all of us.
We all have stories of trauma.
I have two stories which had left gaping wounds.
- When I was 19 years old I was in an armed robbery.
- After 10 years in ministry, I was retrenched and I lost a part of myself.
I had to do the hard work. I prayed many prayers. I cried. I screamed.
Both of these stories have molded and shaped me.
It was an opportunity to seek God and tap deeper into myself.
Healing of the self is a process of addressing and resolving past traumas, emotional wounds and negative patterns of thought and behaviour that may be preventing you from living a fulfilling and happy life.
Healing yourself involves taking steps to improve your mental, physical and emotional health. As well as developing self-awareness, self-compassion and self-love, along the way.
Helpful Steps to Help You Heal
Here are some of the activities that I do in my healing process:
- Acknowledge and accept the existence of pain and past traumas.
- Seek support from God and loved ones. A therapist helped me process it and work through difficult emotions and experiences.
- Creating habits and routines that assisted me to be more mindful and manage stress and anxiety, such as prayer, being still in the presence of God, movement.
- Identify patterns of thoughts and behaviours that aren’t serving me and replace it with empowering ones.
- Cultivate self-compassion and self-love by treating myself with kindness, forgiveness and understanding.
- Engage in activities that bring you me and fulfillment such as spending time with my family, painting and writing.
Each one of us has stories to share about our past. We can choose to stay stuck in the past and find excuses to stay in the wilderness, or we can choose to deal with the past and let it empower us to be a servant, changemaker and leader for the Lord.
Read Amy’s story about Living in the Freedom of Christ
Don’t Rush the Healing
Healing is a journey.
A journey that is never fully complete.
Don’t be discouraged when unhealed part of yourself come up. Instead, use it as a learning opportunity.
The unhealed parts of the self refer to the aspects of a person that have not fully been processed or resolved, often stemming from past traumas or emotional wounds. These unhealed parts can show up in different ways, such as negative self-talk, self-sabotage, emotional instability or difficulties in forming and maintaining relationships.
It is important to recognize and acknowledge these unhealed parts of the self, as ignoring or denying them can lead to further pain and dysfunction.
Don’t rush.
Don’t hasten.
If the unhealed traumas are ready to surface, just sit with it.
It might be uncomfortable.
It might hurt.
And then sit a little while longer.
Take off your shoes and remember that you are holy.
Read More Stories: How Is God Multiplying Your Impact?
You are Holy, in your Healed, Healing and Unhealed Parts
God called each one of us to stand on His mountain. He didn’t create us to live in the wilderness or hide away. Because God is holy, and He has made us holy.
Therefore, I would like to encourage you to take off your shoes, out of respect, and remember that you have been made holy in your healed, healing and unhealed parts.
Read Joni’s Story – From Darkness to Light.
Meet Sonika Kruger
Sonika helps mamas navigate life (from herself to family to work to love to home life and everything in between) with her ministry for mamas so that they can live a life filled with joy, abundance and fulfilment. You can find her at sonikakruger.com
