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“I used to love dropping it low. Now I have a desire to go low in prayer.”
When I gave my life to Christ, some of the most unexpected changes happened, over time of course. I was so confused. Like, what is happening to me?
Let me give you some back story. I was a music girly. I had two left feet might I add , but that never stopped me from dancing (I even wrote about my whole complicated relationship with music as a believer here).
At first, that felt strange. I wanted to have a good time. I wanted to do all the things. Then I gave my life to Jesus and my whole world got flipped upside down. I was caught off guard, and I didn’t know what to expect.
So if you caught last week’s post on doubting your salvation, this one picks up right where that left off. Today I want to walk you through three things to expect as a new believer, so you don’t get blindsided the way I was.
You Are a New Creation
Before we get to the three things, I need to paint a picture of what’s actually happening when you become a believer.
“This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”
-2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT)
Now, I know you look the same and feel the same, but you are, in fact, a new creation. You have been reborn spiritually.
“The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.”
—Romans 8:11 (NLT)
When the Holy Spirit comes in, He doesn’t just come inside and cross His legs. He comes to do a work. A transformative work, to be exact.
In plant terms, a seed was planted. (Chuckle—sorry if I lean on a lot of seed references. I just wrote a whole book, Deep Roots, for new believers and those starting over who feel stuck. Writing it gave me a lot of plant analogies, so bear with me if they spill over.) A seed of salvation is planted in you, and it’s going to bear fruit…. eventually.
Another example may be when someone moves into your house, only they do not simply move in, but there is a desire to make your house better. In their mission to create a better house chances are they are coming to clean up, honey! This means sweep the floor, wash the dishes, and declutter.
That’s what the Holy Spirit does when He moves in into your heart. He comes to clean your whole life up. full on spring cleaning. In doing these there are some changes you can expect.
3 Things To Expect After You Get Saved
1. A Change In Conviction.
As a new believer, you’re going to feel convicted. Things you used to be okay with all of a sudden will start to bother you. You used to be okay with dropping it low, now you want to get low in prayer. You used to have a desire to talk to certain people, talk a certain way, or go to certain places. Now, not so much. Whenever you decide to partake in anything which goes against your belief, you will start to feel guilty when you do.
That’s not just guilt. That’s the the Holy Spirit, honey. That’s conviction. He’s letting you know when you sin (or miss the mark) so that you can avoid it the next time around. So expect that, and don’t feel guilty about this conviction. This happens to every single new believer.
2. A Change In Connection.
Say you were a commoner and a king asks for yur hand in marriage. Now that you are officially a part of the royal family, one can only imagine that with such a prestige role there would be a change in connection. You just can’t hang with the commoners the same way anymore. That doesn’t mean you look down on them or stop loving them. You’re just not part of that world in the same way. Your connections will be that of the royal family in every way. It’s similar when you give your life to Christ. We even see it in Scripture :that even Jesus experienced thus transition.
“Jesus asked, ‘Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?’ Then he pointed to his disciples and said, ‘Look, these are my mother and brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!'”
—Matthew 12:48–50
Jesus wasn’t being cold. He was making a point about the natural change in connection thhat happens when you’re walking in God’s will. Since his values aligned with those who were walking in Gods will, He spent more time with them. More time naturally led to a strong connection with those who He was aligned with.
I’m not telling you to ex communicate your family and friends. I’m just saying, expect that desire to connect to shift toward people walking in the same direction you’re going now.
3. A Change In Culture.
Remember the commoner who married into a royal family. Well this type of union also causes a change in culture. The commoner is now marrying into a new culture.
Likewise, when you become a new believer, there is a change in culture. You are moving from the worlds culture to Kingdom culture. The culture of the world says a white lie is no big deal, deception is fine, don’t forgive, get angry, don’t let anybody play you. The culture of the Kingdom says forgive. Love your neighbor. Turn the other cheek.
As you walk with God, praying, reading your Bible, practicing spiritual disciplines, you’re going to feel a desire to walk in His ways instead meaning you’ll adopt Kingdom culture. Expect that as a new believer.
Some people may not understand your change in conviction, connection, or culture. They may not get it. But that doesn’t change the fact that this is part of your new life in Christ, and there’s fruit in all of it. Transformative fruit. For right now, I just want you to manage your expectations so you know what to look out for.
You Have The Power To Do This
Let’s not gloss over the opening of this blog on what happens when you give your life to Christ. Remember the Holy Spirit is living on the inside of you. Because He lives inside you, you have the power to overcome sin through His Spirit. You have the power to make the right decisions, to trust God completely, to honor Him with your body, to say no to temptation, and to live a life that’s pleasing to Him.
I’m not saying it’s going to be easy. It’s probably the hardest journey of your life. Yet I can tell you through experience, it is possible! But only through the power of the Holy Spirit living inside of us.
For those of you on this journey, what’s one thing you wish someone had told you right after you got saved? Drop it in the comments below.
Until next time,
Be strong. Be Courageous. Serve God Wholeheartedly.
P.S. If any of this is resonating with you, I put everything I know about this journey into Deep Roots – a practical guide for new believers and for those starting over who feel stuck.
