Latest / HAVE FAITH LET IT BEGIN® / Who You Walk With Matters: Faith, Influence & Spiritual Growth

Transcript

Who You Walk With Matters: Faith, Influence & Spiritual Growth · HAVE FAITH LET IT BEGIN®

• 0:00
  Welcome to Have Faith, Let It Begin. This is Ariel Santana.
• 0:04
  Can you believe I'm seven years old already? I'm old enough now to introduce my dad.
• 0:10
  Ladies and gentlemen, your host, my dad, Angel Santana.
• 0:15
  Hello, everyone, and welcome to
• 0:16
  Have Faith, Let It Begin on this Wednesday edition of our weekly podcast.
• 0:21
  I tell you right now, it's interesting because as you're listening to it now
• 0:25
  in the podcasting industry, Well, everybody on TikTok has already heard it.
• 0:30
  So they're getting a little bit of a sneak peek. We're calling this the half-faith,
• 0:34
  let it begin behind the scenes.
• 0:35
  So I'm welcoming in a lot of my good friends like Nikki and Tasha who are listening.
• 0:40
  And we're hoping that each and every one of you will enjoy what we're doing
• 0:43
  right here and right now.
• 0:44
  So with that being said, let us enjoy today's episode, which is entitled,
• 0:48
  Who You Walk With Matters, Faith, Influence, and Spiritual Growth. And it starts like this.
• 0:54
  Have you ever walked away from a conversation feeling drained instead of encouraged?
• 0:58
  Not because anyone said something terrible, but because something just felt off.
• 1:05
  The truth is, the people we walk with shape how we think, how we grow, and even how we see God.
• 1:13
  Today, we're talking about who you walk with, why it matters spiritually,
• 1:17
  and how God uses community, not isolation, to help us grow.
• 1:22
  We're going to take a scripture from Proverbs chapter 13, verse 20.
• 1:25
  It says, walk with the wise and become wise for a companion of fools suffers harm.
• 1:33
  Trust me, when I first read it, didn't understand it. So let me break it down
• 1:36
  for you. That verse isn't just about judging people. It's about influence.
• 1:41
  And for the TikTokers out there, you're influencers.
• 1:45
  It goes further. Then you go into Hebrews chapter 10, verse 24.
• 1:49
  Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good.
• 1:57
  Deeds encouraging one another. Again, didn't get it when I first read it.
• 2:01
  Faith was never meant to be lived alone.
• 2:05
  God designed growth to happen in a relationship with people who challenge us,
• 2:11
  support us, and remind us who we are when we forget.
• 2:16
  Here's something we don't talk about enough in faith spaces.
• 2:20
  Not everyone who walks with you is meant to walk with you forever.
• 2:24
  Some people are seasonal. Some people are formative.
• 2:31
  Some people are meant to help you grow, not stay comfortable.
• 2:35
  And then here's the hard truth. If your circle normalizes and it gives you confusion,
• 2:43
  disrespect, gossip, or spiritual apathy, it will quietly pull you down.
• 2:49
  But the right circle, they don't just hype you up.
• 2:53
  They tell you the truth with love. They call you higher, not just louder.
• 2:59
  Pray for you when you're weak.
• 3:02
  Celebrate growth, not drama. Jesus himself chose 12. 12.
• 3:08
  And even with that group, He was intentionally about closeness.
• 3:12
  And they weren't perfect either. They had their own demons. Community Matters.
• 3:18
  Right now I go in the TikTok world and I have these really cool people that I hang out with.
• 3:22
  People like Tasha, Nikki, Ariel. We have Ali. We have Boudreaux.
• 3:29
  We just have so many of these amazing group of people. We all have different backgrounds.
• 3:34
  We all aren't perfect, but you know what? They welcome me just as much as I
• 3:39
  welcome them. And we have fun.
• 3:41
  Right now, many people are navigating. and church hurt, broken trust,
• 3:46
  toxic faith environments.
• 3:49
  We don't have that in that live.
• 3:51
  Fear of being vulnerable again, that's something I've had.
• 3:54
  And because of that, some people have chosen isolation instead of healing. But hear this clearly.
• 4:01
  Protecting your peace doesn't mean rejecting your community.
• 4:05
  It means choosing healthy community. That live is my healthy community.
• 4:10
  Boundaries are not a lack of love. Boundaries are wisdom. You can love people
• 4:15
  and still choose distance.
• 4:17
  You can forgive and still guard your heart. You can grow without carrying everyone with you.
• 4:23
  Here's a gentle check-in for each of you this week. Ask yourself this question.
• 4:27
  Who encourages my faith? Who challenges me to grow?
• 4:31
  Who do I feel closer to God around? And then ask yourself, who consistently drains me?
• 4:38
  Who keeps me stuck in old patterns?
• 4:41
  Who pulls me away from peace? This isn't about cutting people off harshly.
• 4:47
  That's not what I'm talking about.
• 4:48
  It's about walking intentionally.
• 4:51
  Choose relationships that reflect the future God is calling you into.
• 4:57
  Not the past. He's already redeemed that.
• 5:00
  So as you go out into the world today, welcome everyone to the table. Listen to everyone.
• 5:07
  Laugh with everyone. Enjoy their company. I do. They make me laugh.
• 5:14
  Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for another episode.
• 5:17
  Thank you for the people that you have put in place of our lives,
• 5:20
  in my life, as well as your own.
• 5:23
  Give us wisdom to know who to walk with and courage to set healthy boundaries.
• 5:28
  Surround us with voices that speak truth, grace, encouragement.
• 5:32
  Help us grow into you and into who you are shaping us to be.
• 5:37
  And may you remember this today.
• 5:39
  You're not meant to walk alone, but you are meant to walk wisely.
• 5:45
  We pray this morning and we pray this evening for people like Tasha,
• 5:51
  who has strength to overcome so many obstacles.
• 5:54
  We pray for her aunt who is watching from heaven.
• 5:58
  We lift up in prayer, Mickey, to have more patience with her colleagues.
• 6:03
  Is it there? Okay, I can't believe I said that on my podcast.
• 6:06
  Do we need to pray for people that have been sick, those that have lost a child,
• 6:12
  people like HD, who are dealing with so much, give him a little bit of faith.
• 6:17
  Give him a little bit of peace.
• 6:19
  Allow him to just understand that he's not doing this alone. And you know what?
• 6:24
  Remember one thing. Each and every one of you matter. And never forget. Have faith.
• 6:30
  Let it begin. Here is a brand new single that just dropped on January 1st,
• 6:34
  produced by my brother, DJ Eric Santana and Riding Q Productions.
• 6:37
  It is a story about my life and it's called remember the name see you guys tomorrow
• 6:44
  we're still live on tiktok half 8th let it begin.
• 7:26
  He walks the road with a humble heart. Each step forward's a work of art, a mission born.