Summer Message | An Integrated Faith

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Now let's jump into this week's teaching.

If you don't know me, my name is Danny, and I get the pleasure of serving as one of the youth ministers here at C3.

And I'm excited this morning because I get to talk about one of the main ideas that we've been talking about as a youth ministry all summer.

And if you don't know how summers um with our youth ministry go, every single year, we just like this year, we spent the first two weeks of June out at Camp Sayokomo, where the theme this year was the adventure project.

And it was about how Jesus has the adventure of a lifetime waiting for you, which is being on mission with him.

And that may look different for all of us, but it's up to us to accept that adventure, to accept that mission and go do that with him.

And then a few weeks later, on Monday, June 29th, we loaded up at 5 a.m.

and made our way to Cleveland, Tennessee for CIY Move.

And after a couple of bathroom breaks and lunch and a blowout tire, we finally made it to our destination right on time.

And the theme this year at CIY was simply Kingdom Worker.

And that's usually something they hit pretty hard every single year is this idea of Kingdom Worker.

But this year that was the entire theme.

And it's pretty self-explanatory what Kingdom Worker is.

It's someone who does work for God's kingdom.

It's self-explanatory.

But it was really awesome.

Something that stood out to me from this summer was actually kind of how camp and move, those things kind of went together.

They were kind of similar.

We learned all about how we should allow what Jesus does in here to impact the world around us.

And it was really cool to see our students stepping up to that challenge all summer long.

At both CAMP and CIY, we had the opportunity to, students had the opportunity to get cards that would give them specific challenges to take home and accomplish.

And it was really cool to see the amount of students that accepted that challenge, and even some who have completed them already, whether that be raising money for a specific organization or memorizing scripture or praying, preparing a meal for your family.

It's been so cool to see them accept just that simple challenge of doing the things that were on those cards.

But also, something else that was obviously really exciting is we had quite a few of our students say that they wanted to make a first-time decision to follow Jesus with their life.

We had one of our sophomore boys, Kyler, who decided he wanted to get baptized last week, and that was really amazing.

And second service, we'll have a young lady who's gonna be a sophomore girl named Emily, who's gonna get baptized as well.

And we've just been so excited, that's been so amazing that they've wanted to make that decision.

But we also had a lot, a lot of students just say that they wanted to recommit their lives to following Jesus, that they got off the track a little bit and they want to recommit to being that kingdom worker, to following that adventure that God has for them.

And that was really awesome to see as well.

Something else that really stood out to me from this summer with our students is the older students decided that they not only wanted to pour into each other, but they also wanted to pour into a lot of the kids that the students that were younger than them as well.

And that's always really awesome for us as a youth ministry because it helps us for years, for years to come and it starts a good trend, but also it helps those graduates get to leave a legacy behind them as they get ready to head into the real the real world after this.

Um and speaking of graduates, something exciting that that's getting ready to happen is we're actually getting ready to send eight of our graduates to Ozark Christian College because they've decided that they want to study ministry for their lives, and we are really excited for that.

That's actually gonna make 15 total C3 former C3 students who are at OCC right now, and we're just we're really excited for them and proud of them for that decision that they've made.

Um, but we're also really proud and excited for the the rest of our grads as well, who aren't necessarily going to study ministry at a church, but they're getting ready to go to the mission field of their college campuses and their new careers that they're getting ready to study for, and we can't wait to see that the impact that they're gonna have in those situations as well.

Um and I don't know if the rest of the students know this, but they're only like a month away from going back to school, um, and they're getting ready to go back to their junior highs and high schools, um, and we're excited to see the impact that they're gonna have on those communities as well.

Hopefully, knowing too that they have a community here that has their back, is excited for them, is rooting them on, um, and loves them very much.

And so it has just been a really amazing summer, and I wanted to share a little bit with you this morning about that.

Um, and it has just been really cool to see.

I don't know if you know, but we have some really amazing students in our church who have really been stepping up all summer and accepting the challenge of letting what God has done in their hearts consume their lives.

And that's kind of what I want to hit home this morning because that's not just a challenge for our students, but that is a challenge for all of us as well, to let what Jesus has done in here affect and impact and consume what we do out here.

And because if I could summarize what we learned this summer into one sentence, it would be followers of Jesus allow what he has done in their hearts to consume their lives.

Last year on October 18th, 2025, I got the special privilege of being ordained as a minister right here in this room.

And that was that was really special, and that's really cool.

If you don't know what being ordained means, you basically I got a fancy piece of paper that says ordained on it that got signed by the one and only Austin Weiss.

Um, but also in 30 to 40 years, parents, when you allow your students to get married, I will legally be allowed to do their weddings if if you so choose.

So that's pretty cool.

A long ways from now.

But something else that was that was pretty cool about that is that I got to have my dad speak at that.

And dad's just a hint.

When you say nice things to your kids, it really means a lot.

I know it did for me.

And he was kind enough to say a lot of a lot of nice things, a lot of encouraging things for me as I was getting ready to be to go into ministry.

But something that he was also kind enough to include was what a life-changing God that we serve, and how that was evident to him by watching his oldest child go from his problem child to where I am today, still causing the occasional problem, but not as bad as I used to be.

Um, because I I do remember when I was a kid being pretty rebellious against my parents and against other adults sometimes.

Um, I loved, like whenever I was getting in trouble, I always had to say something back.

I always had to get the last word in.

I always had to get my two cents in there.

And that never ended well.

I always got punished way worse than my middle brother.

And I would get so mad with my dad, I'd be like, it's not fair, you just like him better.

He's just sucking up because he knows what to say.

And my dad's like, yeah, because he's smart.

All right?

I could never understand that for so long.

Um, but I also like all I cared about was really looking good for others, being cool, and I had a hard time respecting um authority if I felt like they were treating me unfairly, if if if they were making me look bad.

Um I specifically remember one time my dad telling me to do something one evening, and I was probably like 10 years old, and I looked at him straight in the face and I said, Dad, you know I'm not afraid of you, right?

Let's just say that's stupid.

Kids, that that's what we call being an idiot, right?

And I got a little help going up, a little extra help going up the stairs that night, as I should have.

Um I also remember plenty of times in school, in junior high and high school, being being perfectly fine, sacrificing my character, what I should have stood for, if it meant, you know, looking good, fitting in, climbing that social ladder a little bit.

Um But when I was about 15 or 16 years old, long story short, God really started to get a hold of my heart.

And I started to recognize like all this meaning and purpose that I'm finding and trying to look good in the eyes of others, um, trying to appease them and rise the social ladder, um, all that stuff, like, that wasn't providing very much meaning.

That wasn't providing very much purpose.

And and if it did, it wasn't lasting very long.

And so I started to try to find meaning and purpose and value and other things.

And I eventually came to the most important, most meaningful place I can ever put my identity, my value, was in my relationship with Jesus Christ.

All right, and it was around that time that he really did a work in my heart.

And I think as followers of Jesus, we all have experienced that that some at that, we all have experienced that at some point, where he has done something in our hearts.

And it's so amazing that it gets to be my job to get to walk students to that point and get to experience them, come to that realization for themselves.

But when they do, that's for sure not when my job with them ends, it's not when our leaders' jobs with them ends, because followers of Jesus allow what he's done in their heart to then consume their lives.

And this morning, I want to point out that when we are consumed by a relationship with Jesus, we need to be consumed so much that we do two things.

I think the Bible says we should be completely changed and he should be completely integrated.

Those are the two things that should happen to us if we are consumed by Jesus.

One of the funnest things about junior high camp is that we will do, I don't know if you've been there before, but we will do the most like grossest random challenges.

Like we'll have raft races on an algae-covered pond where the water's just splashing everywhere.

We'll have, there was a challenge this year where you had to dig in buckets with your bare feet for worms.

You'll have to do a food relay race, uh, a color war.

That's just a part of junior high camp.

Um, but then like you, the day goes on, you go to sleep, you wake up the next morning.

But it's the next morning that I always see something that amazes me every single time I see it.

You'll always wake up the next day and there'll be a junior hire wearing the same exact clothes that we just did the this nasty thing in the day before, all right?

They did not think it necessary to change it up.

We could have done a mud slip and slide and they'll be wearing the same outfit.

Um, and it's not because they didn't pack a bunch of extra clothes, it's because they can't waste that.

That's not priority for them, all right?

They can't waste that valuable camp time to go change clothes.

Um, but I don't know how many times at camp we've had to say, like, dude.

Or we've had to, we've also had to say, girl, you have got to go change.

And in the book of Ephesians, that's what Paul says, we are called to do as followers of Jesus.

When we accept him, we are called to then go change, to take off those old dirty clothes they used to live in and put on the new self.

In Ephesians 4, 17, Paul tells the Gentiles in the church who have turned from that old way of life and accepted Jesus, he says, You must no longer live as the old Gentiles do.

You have to abandon that way of lifestyle, which he says was ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.

Having lost all sensitivity, they've given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they're full of greed.

Paul tells them, he's saying, You are not like that anymore.

That is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.

You were taught with regard to your former life to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, and to be made new in the attitude of your minds, and put on this new self created to be like God and true righteousness and holiness.

So if we are consumed by what Jesus has done for us, then we have to go change.

We are called to change.

We cannot just stay in our old ways, stay in our nasty clothes.

We have to take it off and throw it away.

But in doing that, please remember this is not the final step.

It would be a very troublesome experience if when we told a junior hire to change, they thought taking off their clothes was the final step.

All right?

We'd have some issues.

But after you take the nasty clothes off, you have to put the new on.

All right?

And God offers us an amazing one, what Paul describes as the new self created to be like God.

And he gives us a glimpse of what that should look like starting in Ephesians 4.25.

He starts to list some things, saying, with this new self, you need to put off falsehood and speak truthfully.

I don't know how easy that is for some of us.

In your anger, he says, do not sin.

Stop it.

Stop stealing.

Work instead so you can bless others.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth, but only what is benefiting those who listen.

He says, Be kind, compassionate, be forgiving.

Get rid of that bitterness that is not a slippery slope, but bitterness is a cliff that Paul says will quickly, quickly lead to rage, anger, brawling, and slander.

He says, there must not be a hint of sexual immorality in your life.

Whatever is tempting you in that way, it needs to be cut off.

And he says, finally, there should be thanksgiving instead of any obscenity, foolish talking, or coarse joking that has no place in the new you.

Are there any of you guys in this room who have someone in their family who is a picky eater?

Per se.

Anyone?

Would anybody say that that you are that person?

Alright?

I would say the immediate men in my family growing up, we were a little bit of picky eaters, alright?

I would like to say that now that I've moved out of the house and grown up a little bit, I have grown from them a little bit in my the things I will eat.

But one thing that we still mostly agree on is no veggies, really.

Alright?

Besides the green beans, corn, and the occasional Caesar salad, um, I'm not really into veggies.

I don't know if anyone's with me on that.

Alright, no veggies.

But something in marriage that I've experienced after almost being married a full year, and I don't know if anyone can relate to me on this, but my wife really believes I will like a lot of foods that I've sworn off since childhood, if I simply just give them another try.

She uses the phrase a lot, well, when's the last time you've tried it?

And I often try to avoid answering that question because the answer is usually when I was six years old, I don't know, somewhere around there.

But I know I've changed a lot since I was six years old, but something that has not changed is broccoli.

And so I really, in those instances, don't see the point in going back to something that I know is bad.

And those of you who would agree with me on this veggie thing, all right, here's what I would have to say to that.

I would say, that's good.

That's good that you agree with me on that because you have a head start.

Because Paul says that's how we should feel towards our sin.

Putting off the old self and throwing it away means leave it there.

You don't go back when you're when you're tempted or when it's convenient, when something's bad, all right?

You don't go back.

You know better.

All right?

There's no need to go back and try, like for me, the carrots.

I know they're not good, all right?

But with our new self and with sin, Paul is saying, you know those things are bad too.

There's no point in going back to things like dishonesty and rage and unwholesome talk and coarse joking, bitterness, sexual immorality, those deceitful desires.

Stop going back to it.

When you take the old off, leave it off and don't go back.

Because these things they'll ruin your life and the people's lives around you as well.

So Paul says, stop going back.

But I'll be honest with you, you know, getting rid of all that and being perfect is very hard, and it's going to be hard.

It's going to be impossible.

But it is a choice.

And when we realize living up to God's standard is impossible, we can stop relying on ourselves and recognize we have an actual need for Him.

And we need, we can put on the new way of life, and we can be confident that the God of heaven and his Spirit is on our team, and we are not alone in that journey of putting the old off.

And with God, we can start to make the right choices.

All right?

The choices that will lead us towards the way of life which is full of peace, full of contentment, joy, a life that's not controlled by guilt or shame, but one that is full of hope in what Christ has done for us.

Paul says in Ephesians 5:8, For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.

Ephesians 5:8

So now live as children of light.

And we know we are to let our light shine before others so they may see our good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven.

Jesus says that.

And so one more thing I want to add to being consumed by Jesus is that being consumed by him means not only do we change, but it means that we also let our life be a light that shines to the rest of the world.

And this summer, especially at high school camp, we really dove into what I think is the most impactful way to shine our light, that maybe for a lot of us we fall short in.

And it's called an integrated life.

Because being consumed by Jesus will lead us to being completely changed, but it should also lead us to completely integrating him into our life.

In Colossians 3, Paul is writing to the church in Colossae and is telling them to live as those made alive in Christ.

Let his peace rule your heart, let his message dwell among you.

And he says, Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

And what having Jesus be integrated into your life means is you don't just let that be known on Sundays, or that's not just apparent in church, in his house, but it is known in every part of our lives.

If my relationship with Jesus consumes me, then it'll be integrated into my life at work, my life at school, my life at my kids' events, my life with my friends, my life with my family.

It should be integrated into my entire life.

And so when I'm at these places, I'm committed to having on the new self and keeping it on and letting it shine.

So when I'm at work, I've got a new way of life.

I've let the old behind.

So I'm not going around being obscene.

I'm not doing whatever it takes for a laugh.

And when gossip time rolls around, I'm going to keep my mouth shut.

That's the same for those who go to school still.

And maybe when you're at school too, you know, maybe when you wear a shirt that says Jesus on it, or you wear a necklace that represents him, maybe we take that as a responsibility to show that we are consumed by Jesus.

It means at sporting events, both competitors and spectators.

Um those aren't an excuse to be a jerk, and neither is saying that you're just a competitive person, but let your light shine at events like that too.

And with your friends, are you a light or is your idol trying to just fit in?

When you're with your family, what kind of example are you setting?

Are you setting them up to walk in your footsteps of keeping God separate from the rest of your life?

Are you showing them what an integrated life looks like and how your relationship with Jesus is real?

And what about on places like social media?

Does Christ bleed through on there more than just the verse in our bios?

Or do we use it sometimes as a pass to be ugly with people?

Because followers allow what Jesus has done in them to consume their lives.

And that means he is integrated into every single part of it.

I love my job.

I think I have a really amazing job, one of the best in the world, and it has so many great moments, but not all moments are great.

There's some moments that can be hard.

And one of those moments I've run into before on a Wednesday night, or maybe one of our summer trips, is a student that looks like.

Like they are so involved.

They are so involved in worship.

They got their hands up, they're praising, they're singing for the message.

They're locked in.

They're scribbling down notes in small group.

They've got such good insights.

It feels like, all right, they've got it.

All right.

To me, to the leaders, they're so cool.

They're so kind, so respectful.

But then say we're at camp.

And then later on I walk in the dorm and they don't know I'm there.

Alright?

And I hear them say things that if I repeated, I would probably get fired and it would not be good for me.

Or I hear them talking about things, not confiding or confessing, but bragging about things that they they do or have said to their significant other.

Or when they don't know that an adult's watching, alright, they see how they treat someone who is younger than them or who they don't view as cool.

Those moments are always hard because that person is trying to make it look like they are consumed by Jesus.

When in fact it's it's kind of makes it seem like it's a facade.

But there's grace in those moments, and with students, that gets to be an amazing teachable moment about what we are talking about today.

But with us adults, I hope that we can be better than that.

There's grace for us too, but I hope that we can be the ones who set the example of what it looks like to be consumed by Jesus in the lives of those around us.

I hope when people from our church run into you outside of this building, you're you're similar.

You're the same as when you in are when you are in here.

And it's not because you gossip a lot or cuss a lot in church, but it's because your relationship with Jesus is real and you're the same in his house as you are outside of it.

And you're not faking, and you're consumed and integrated into every part of your life.

And so maybe for you this morning, the next step for you is to really take this integrated life idea seriously.

You need to stop taking off and putting on all these different hats and just let Him have faith and consume your life.

Let God take over.

Take the next step of letting God consume your life.

And maybe it's different for you.

Maybe for you, that means you need to actually try taking off that old self.

You need to stop being apathetic about these sins in your life, and you actually need to let tell someone about them, talk to someone about them, let someone help you, let God help you.

Make an actual effort to take off that old self.

Maybe the next step for you is going to be telling someone about that secret sin that you struggle with.

Man, something that I really admire about our students is that so many times they actually have the guts to do that.

And it's been really amazing.

Or maybe the next step for you is simply you need to invite Jesus into your heart for the first time.

Maybe you've never done that before.

But whatever it is, I hope that you know you have you have people like me, you have people like Austin.

This church is full of people who want to love you and want to get you to the life where you're consumed by Jesus because it is an amazing life.

It is a life of peace, of joy, of contentment, of hope for something better one day.

And we believe here that that that is something that you should strive for.

And that is something that is so worth fighting for.

And we want to be there for you to help you fight for that, to help you strive for that.

And I hope you guys know that we are here to help you not just let Jesus into your life, but we want to help you let him consume your life.

Let's worship.

Thanks again for listening to the Carterville Christian Church podcast.

Our prayer is that today's message has encouraged you and drawn you closer to Jesus.

To learn more or get connected with our church family, visit Carterville Christian.com.

We'd love to walk alongside you in your journey of faith.