✨Part 2 - The Bridge Between Believing & Becoming: The Shift, The Circle & The Wilderness

🔥 Welcome Back! Let’s Keep Building the Bridge…

In Part 1, we talked about what happens after you give your life to Christ—because salvation isn’t the finish line, it’s the starting point. We unpacked the sacred (and often skipped) steps of sanctification and discipleship. We also hit on two essentials that can’t be treated like options: prayer and Bible study

Now in Part 2, we’re going deeper. It’s time to talk about the real-life shifts that start happening as you walk with Christ—

➡️ Your habits

➡️ Your friendships

➡️ Your desires

➡️ And yes… your wilderness season 🔥

Get ready. Because this is where the transformation gets personal

Habits & Desires: The Shift You Can’t Ignore

One of the biggest signs that you’re truly growing in Christ is your convictions start changing. Worldly things you once enjoyed? They don’t hit the same anymore. The sin you used to tolerate? You can’t stomach them now.

MUST CHANGE

1. Lifestyle Choices: The Holy Spirit Will Change Your Appetite

Before I fully surrendered to God, I didn’t see anything wrong with certain things.

• Clubbing? No problem.

• Fornication? Normal.

• Secular music with explicit lyrics? Just a vibe.

But the deeper I went with Christ, the more my appetite changed.

Suddenly, the things I used to enjoy started feeling off. It wasn’t because someone gave me a list of “Christian rules”—it was because the Holy Spirit was rewiring my desires.

• The club didn’t excite me anymore.

• Fornication wasn’t an option—I wanted to honor God with my body.

• My speech cleaned up without me forcing it.

• The music I used to love started to sound like noise.

• The UNGODLY TV shows I binged before? Couldn’t watch them anymore.

  
  

🕊️ This is what sanctification does. It’s not about following religious rules—it’s about God changing your heart from the inside out.

2. Habits: You Will Develop New Rhythms

As my desires changed, my daily habits followed:

✅ Serving Others – I felt led to give to the poor, help those in need

✅ Edifying Content – I replaced empty entertainment with sermons, books, CLEAN entertainment and teachings that strengthened my faith

✅ Fellowship & Accountability – I made time for Bible studies, discipleship, and godly conversations

This shift didn’t happen overnight, but as I stayed in prayer and the Word, I saw real change.

WE NEED IT IN THIS PROCESS

3. Desires: You Will Crave Holiness

Holiness isn’t just about what you stop doing; it’s about what you start craving.

I didn’t just lose interest in sin—I developed a deep desire to please God. My anthem became:

“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.” (Philippians 2:13)

It wasn’t about me trying to be “better”—it was about God literally giving me new desires.

I didn’t want to just “be a Christian.” I wanted to live holy. I wanted to be set apart (2 Corinthians 6:17).

If your life still looks exactly like the world, something is off. People should see the fruit of Christ in you. Not perfection, but evidence of transformation.

📍If the things of this world still excite you more than the things of God, it’s time for a heart check.

Friendships: Who You Walk With Determines Where You Go

This one is heavy. It’s also one of the hardest shifts in your walk with God.

When you start walking in sanctification, your friendships will change. Not because you suddenly think you’re better than anyone, but because who you surround yourself with will either fuel your fire for God—or put it out.

1. Your Friends Might Not Be Bad—But Are They Good for You?

Let’s be real—many of us still have worldly friends. And just because they’re worldly doesn’t mean they’re bad people. We were once in their shoes too. But here’s the reality check:

If you’re trying to walk in purity, but your friends are always talking about who they’re messing around with, getting drunk, and using foul language—how long before it starts influencing you?

Even if they’re not doing the obvious sins, they might have mindsets and beliefs that contradict God’s Word. That’s just as dangerous! (REMEBER AN UNSURRENDERED FRIEND IS AS DANGEROUS AS AN OUTRIGHT ENEMY)

If they constantly give you advice that pulls you away from biblical truth, they’re affecting you more than you think.

2. The Power of Influence—You’re Not as Strong as You Think

I used to believe I was strong enough to stay around certain people and not be affected.

But when I look back, I realize my biggest spiritual growth happened when I separated from certain connections.

Whether we like it or not, we are influenced by the people we talk to, listen to, and spend time with.

Even a little exposure can plant the wrong seeds. And those seeds grow.

🚫 You cannot deceive yourself into thinking you can be around just anybody in this season.

If they aren’t walking in the same direction, you will fall or drift fast.

3. Think of This Like Surgery—You Need a Consecration Season

If you had major surgery, would you just go anywhere and be around anyone? No!

You’d protect your healing process, follow doctor’s instructions, and only allow people around you who are helping your recovery. Your sanctification season is the same. It’s not about isolating yourself, but about protecting your spiritual growth. Anyone who isn’t drawing you closer to God needs to go—at least for this season.

And yes, it will be hard. You’ll miss them. You’ll feel alone. But let me tell you something…

When You Get Serious, God Sends Destiny Connections

When I showed God that I was serious about following Him, He started connecting me with people who were aligned with my purpose. People who were hungry for God, disciplined in their walk, and committed to holiness. They became iron sharpening iron (Proverbs 27:17).

We might have been at different stages in our walk, but we pushed each other toward Christ.

Some of you are waiting for your destiny connections, but they haven’t found you yet because you’re still tied to the wrong crowd. God is waiting for you to let go of what’s holding you back so He can position you where you belong.

4. Your Transformation Can Be Someone’s Testimony

Here’s the beautiful part: when you fully surrender to God, your life becomes a testimony.

I’ve seen people separate from their old circles, grow in Christ, and later bring some of their old friends to Jesus—not by force, but by the undeniable change in their life.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

People are watching you. Some of them don’t need a sermon—they need to see proof that God is real.

And your transformation might be what makes them believe.

This is a tough area. We love our friends.

But Jesus said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).

📌 If someone isn’t helping you bear good fruit in this season, they can’t go with you.

The Wilderness Season: When God Pulls You Aside to Transform You

Every believer, at some point, MUST go through a wilderness season—a time of pruning ✂️, refining 🔥, and transformation. It’s that awkward in-between stage where you feel like God has separated you from everything you once knew.

It’s not isolation—it’s separation.

God isn’t punishing you; He’s preparing you.

You’ve been in the world for a while, soaking in its ways, its mindset, its desires. Now, the Lord is taking His time to undo, unlearn, and rebuild you in His image 🕊️.

⏳ How Long Will It Take?

I get this question a lot.

“How long does the sanctification and discipleship process take?”

• For some, it takes six months 📅.

• For others, a year or two ⏳.

Honestly? It depends on how much of the world is still in you that God needs to strip away.

The more you surrender, the faster He can work. But don’t rush the process—if you step out of it too soon, you’ll be half-baked , lacking power ⚡, wisdom 📖, and true transformation.

And when the enemy comes, you’ll be easily shaken .

🚀 This is a Lifetime Journey

Sanctification and discipleship never truly end—they just evolve. Yes, the beginning season is intense, but growth in Christ is lifelong. You will always be learning, refining, and being transformed by the HOLY SPIRIT.

Don’t Forget:

✔ Moses had 40 years in the desert

✔ Joseph had years in prison before promotion

✔ Jesus spent time alone before starting His ministry

💡 Be Intentional—This is Not a Freestyle Walk

You don’t just wing it when it comes to marriage 💍, career 💼, or school 🎓.

You make intentional efforts to succeed in those areas.

Why should your walk with God be any different? 🤔

If you approach your spiritual growth casually, you’ll stay stuck, get stagnant, or fall back.

Final Thought: Be Patient with the Process

“If God was patient with us during our rebellion, why can’t we be patient with Him during our renewal?”

• Trust the process .

• Stay in the fire 🔥 until God fully refines you.

• When you finally step out of the wilderness, you won’t just be changed—you will be the message you preach!

🎶 MUSIC TIME🎶

• “Gang Worship” – A bold declaration that worship is a lifestyle, not just a Sunday routine!

  
  

• “Thank You” – A reminder to pause and give God the praise He deserves! 🙏🏽