Unpack Camp Night 3: Throw it OFF

Today, you made it through breakfast, the morning show, team time, lunch, and then at 2:00 the schedule basically said, “Meet in the chapel wearing swim gear.”

Which is a completely normal sentence at teen camp and almost nowhere else.

And then we went to the lagoon.

So I need to know:

Who went to the lagoon feeling confident and came back deeply humbled?

Who wiped out today in a way you are praying nobody caught on video?

Who swallowed some lagoon water and is now choosing to trust the Lord with the results?

Who spent half the day trying to look cool and the other half pretending that wipeout did not hurt?

Who is already planning their Snack Shack order?

And who is definitely doing the late-night challenge tonight, even though your body has already submitted a formal request for bedtime?

That is what I love about camp.

By Night 3, something changes.

On the first night, everybody is trying to figure things out. Who am I sitting with? Is my group going to be awkward? Am I actually going to enjoy this? Is my room ever going to sleep?

But now we have stories.

We have inside jokes. We have laughed together. Some of you have made new friends. Some of you have worshiped more honestly than you expected. Some of you have had conversations with leaders or friends that you did not plan on having.

And for some of you, beneath all the fun and chaos, God has already started doing something real in your life.

Night 1, we heard Jesus say to tired and burdened people:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

We talked about how Jesus meets us in our pressure, anxiety, exhaustion, and the things we carry that nobody else can see.

Then last night, we went deeper.

We talked about the heaviest thing we carry: our sin and shame. And our main point was:

Jesus carried my sin to forgive me, free me, and make me new.

Jesus didn’t come just to make us feel less guilty while staying trapped in the same old life. He took our sin upon Himself at the cross so we could be forgiven, set free, and begin living a new life in Him.

And last night, I shared part of my story with you. I told you how Jesus met me when I was in one of the lowest and darkest places of my life. I told you how He gave me life when I felt empty, hopeless, and did not want to keep going.

But tonight, I want to back up, because I did not end up there overnight.

Some of you may look at me now and see a youth pastor, a husband, a dad, a guy who has spent more than 20 years telling students about Jesus.

But when I was your age, my life did not look like that.

From around 10 to 14, I kind of followed Jesus. I was around church. I knew about God. There were moments when I really did want to live for Him.

But around 14, something changed.

I wanted to be popular. I wanted to fit in with a certain crowd. Back then, I wanted to be what we called a “prep.” Basically, I wanted to dress right, act right, look cool, and be accepted by the people I thought mattered.

And slowly, being accepted by people started mattering more to me than honoring Jesus.

It started with things that didn’t seem huge. I changed how I talked. I decided having a filthy mouth would make me seem cooler. I crossed lines because I wanted people to like me. I made choices I knew did not honor God, but I told myself they weren’t that big of a deal.

Just words. Just trying to fit in. Just one choice. Just one compromise.

There’s a Casting Crowns song called “Slow Fade,” and it has a line that has always stuck with me:

“People never crumble in a day, it’s a slow fade.”

That was my story.

I didn’t wake up one morning and decide, “Today, I am going to wreck my life.”

I drifted there slowly.

A little compromise here. A little hiding there. A little less conviction. A little more distance from God. A little more comfort with things that used to bother me.

One compromise became another. One hidden choice became another. One step away from God became another.

And what started when I was 14 turned into seven years of deep sin, distance from God, emptiness, and becoming someone I never thought I would become.

I did things I’m not proud of.

I hurt people. I hurt some of the people who loved me most on this earth. And more than anything, I hurt the heart of the God who created me, loved me, and had something so much better for my life.

Last night, I told you where that road eventually took me.

But tonight, I need you to understand how I got there:

I didn’t ruin my life in one giant decision.

I drifted there one compromise at a time.

And when I look back, one of the things that hurts most is realizing how much time I lost.

Those were years when I could have been honoring God. Years when I could have loved people better. Years when I could have shared the hope of Jesus with people who needed it.

I think of a friend named Justin who died when he was only 17. I never told him about Jesus.

I can’t go back and relive those years. I can’t go back and change every conversation. I can’t go back and become the person I wish I had been in every moment.

I’m not saying that to put unbearable guilt on you tonight. I’m saying it because your life matters. Your choices matter. The people around you matter. Eternity matters.

Sin always costs more than we think it will.

It promises popularity, but leaves you empty. It promises freedom, but wraps itself around your life. It promises you can get serious about God later, while stealing the life God is calling you to live right now.

But I’m also standing here tonight as proof that sin does not have to get the last word.

Jesus met me. Jesus forgave me. Jesus freed me. And Jesus began making me new.

But I had to learn this: Jesus didn’t save me so I could return to the same things that had tangled me up in the first place.

Following Jesus meant surrender. It meant bringing things into the light. It meant allowing His grace to change not just my future someday, but my heart and my life right now.

Maybe some of you understand that tension.

Maybe God is speaking to you this week. Maybe you know there are things pulling you away from Him. Maybe you keep telling yourself it’s small, manageable, not that serious, or something you will deal with later.

I thought that too.

But the slow fade is real.

WE

That struggle’s not just part of my story. It’s part of the human story.

We all know what it’s like to want acceptance, comfort, approval, or control so badly that we hold onto things which eventually begin holding onto us.

And if you’re a Star Wars person, you know exactly where I am going with this:

Anakin’s Fall:

One of the most tragic stories in all of Star Wars is the story of Anakin Skywalker.

Anakin didn’t start out as Darth Vader.

He started out as a kid with incredible potential. He was gifted. He was brave. He cared about people. He wanted to do something meaningful with his life. He wanted to protect the people he loved.

But underneath all of that was fear.

He was afraid of losing people. … of being powerless. …of not being able to control what happened next.

And instead of surrendering that fear, Anakin held onto it.

He listened to the voice that told him:

“You need more power.” “You need more control.” “You can’t trust anyone else.” “Cross this line — your reason is good.” “Do this wrong thing now, and somehow it will make everything right later.”

And Anakin didn’t become Darth Vader in one giant moment.

It happened one choice at a time.

A fear he would not surrender. A compromise he justified. A lie he believed. A line crossed. And then another.

Eventually, the thing he thought would save him became the thing that enslaved him.

He wanted freedom, but he became trapped. He wanted control, but he became controlled. He wanted to protect people, but he hurt the people he loved most.

There’s a word used in tragic stories for this: hamartia. (haa·maar·tee·uh)

In literature, hamartia means a fatal flaw that leads to the downfall of a tragic hero.

For Anakin, it was fear and the need for control.

But that word also matters tonight because hamartia is the Greek word the Bible uses for sin.

Sin is missing the mark. Sin is choosing our own way instead of God’s way. Sin is walking away from the life we were created to live.

And sin rarely tells you the truth up front.

It doesn’t say, “I’m here to destroy your life.”

Sin says:

“This is not a big deal.” “This will make you happy.” “This will help you fit in.” “This will numb the pain.” “This will give you control.” “Nobody needs to know.” “You can stop whenever you want.”

That’s what I believed.

That’s what Anakin believed.

And maybe someone in this room has started believing it too.

Maybe it started with one lie. One secret. One relationship. One compromise. One click. One angry decision. One habit you keep returning to because you think it will make you feel better.

And now you are beginning to realize: “This doesn’t feel like freedom anymore.”

You may still be smiling. You may still be at camp. You may still sing the songs. You may still know how to look fine on the outside.

But deep down, you know something has you tangled up.

Anakin’s story shows what happens when somebody holds onto the thing destroying them.

My story shows what happens when small compromises turn into years of drift.

But here is the good news:

The Bible doesn’t say we have to stay tangled.

Hebrews 12 shows us another way.

GOD

Hebrews 12:1–2 — “There Is Another Way to Run”

Hebrews 12:1–2 says:

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Hebrews describes following Jesus as running a race.

Now, some of you hear “running” and immediately think, “I love Jesus. I do not love cardio.”

But this race isn’t about how athletic you are. It’s about the direction of your life.

There’s a race God has marked out for you: a life with Jesus, a life where sin doesn’t control you, a life where His grace changes you and makes you more like Him.

And Hebrews says we are surrounded by a “great cloud of witnesses.” It’s pointing back to Hebrews 11 — people who trusted God before us.

They’re not just sitting in stadium seats waiting to see if you fall.

Their lives remind us: God is faithful.

They kept running because they believed God had something better ahead.

Some of you know God has something better for you, but part of you is still looking backward.

Back to the same approval. Back to the same habit. Back to the same hidden life. Back to the old version of you.

Hebrews says there is something better in Jesus.

But you can’t run toward what’s better while refusing to let go of what keeps pulling you backward.

Evan’s Race

I want to show you a video of a student from our youth group at Amplify. His name is Evan, and he runs track for Willow Spring High School.

On this particular day, it was approximately 1,000 degrees outside.

Not literally, but it was the kind of hot where the track feels like an air fryer and every runner is trying not to become a human chicken nugget.

Evan was the anchor runner in a relay race. He was the last runner, and when he got the baton, he was behind.

He had serious ground to make up. The pressure was on. It’s blazing hot.

Watch what he does.

[Show Evan relay video.]

Did you see that?

Right in the middle of the race, Evan throws off his sunglasses like an absolute boss.

It’s like he decided, “I don’t have time for these anymore.”

And then he goes ham.

He passes everybody and finishes in first place. By a lot.

Now, obviously, sunglasses aren’t sinful. Nobody needs to come to the altar tonight and repent for owning Oakleys.

But in that moment, they were in the way of the race he was running.

Evan knew where he was going. And when something got in the way, he threw it off.

That’s the picture Hebrews gives us.

Some Things Hinder; Sin Entangles

“Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.”

Some things may not be sinful by themselves, but they may slow down your relationship with Jesus.

Your phone isn’t automatically sinful. Sports aren’t sinful. Gaming isn’t automatically sinful. Wanting friends isn’t sinful.

But if something owns your attention, shapes your identity, feeds your insecurity, or keeps moving your heart away from God, you need to be honest about it.

Sometimes following Jesus means saying:

“This might not be wrong for everybody, but it is keeping me from becoming who Jesus is calling me to be.”

But sin goes even deeper.

Sin doesn’t just distract you. It entangles you.

At first, you may think, “I’m fine. I can control this. It’s not a big deal.”

That’s what I thought. That’s what Anakin thought.

But what we keep holding onto eventually starts holding onto us.

Maybe it’s lying. …or lust. Maybe it’s anger or bitterness. …or approval. Maybe it’s a secret habit. Maybe it’s something on your phone that you know is changing your heart.

Hebrews doesn’t say, “Manage it better.”

It says:

THROW. IT. OFF

Not because God hates you.

Because God loves you, and sin is stealing the freedom Jesus died to give you.

Jesus Frees Us and Makes Us Holy

Last night, we said:

Jesus carried my sin to forgive me, free me, and make me new.

Tonight, Hebrews shows us what that new life looks like.

We don’t keep holding onto the chains Jesus broke.

John 8:36 says:

“So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.”

Really free.

Not just free during a camp service. Not just free while the band plays. Not forgiven while still believing the same sin has to control you forever.

Jesus can really free you.

That doesn’t mean you’ll never face temptation again. It does not mean you don’t need prayer, Scripture, trusted friends, or leaders.

It means sin does not have to be your master anymore.

Romans 6:22 says that being set free from sin leads to holiness.

And holiness isn’t being fake. It’s acting better than everybody else. It’s not pretending you never struggle.

Holiness is belonging fully to Jesus.

It’s letting His Spirit cleanse your heart and reshape your life. It is loving God with your whole heart and loving people the way Jesus does.

God’s grace doesn’t only forgive what you have done. His grace changes who you are becoming.

Fix Your Eyes on Jesus

And here is the most important part.

Hebrews doesn’t say, “Throw off sin, try really hard, and hopefully you make it.”

It says:

“Fixing our eyes on Jesus…”

Because whatever you stare at shapes the direction you run.

If your eyes are fixed on popularity, you’ll run toward whatever gets people to like you.

If your eyes are fixed on shame, you’ll keep believing your past defines you.

If your eyes are fixed on comparison, you’ll keep running somebody else’s race.

But if your eyes are fixed on Jesus, He will lead you into freedom.

Jesus didn’t just tell us how to run. He ran ahead of us.

He faced temptation. … endured rejection. … carried shame. He went to the cross.

And Hebrews says He endured the cross “for the joy set before him.”

What was that joy?

It was doing the will of His Father. It was defeating sin and death. It was making a way for you to be forgiven, freed, and made new.

So tonight, your hope is not in how strong you are.

Your hope is in Jesus.

And because of what Jesus has done, this can be true for every one of us:

I can throw it off, fix my eyes on Jesus, and run free.

YOU — Rock Response

Tonight, I want to give you a chance to respond to what Jesus may be saying to you.

Up here at the front, we have rocks and markers.

In just a moment, I am going to invite you to come forward and take one.

There’s nothing magic about this rock. It can’t save you, forgive you, or change your life. Only Jesus can do that.

But Hebrews says there are things that weigh us down and sin that tangles us up.

So tonight, let this rock represent whatever you know has been slowing you down or holding you back from Jesus.

Maybe it’s sin. … shame. … approval. … anger or bitterness. … fear or control. Maybe it’s something nobody else knows about.

When you come forward, take a rock and write one word on it. You don’t have to write the whole story. Nobody needs the details. Just one word between you and Jesus.

And as you write it, you’re being honest with God:

“Jesus, this is what I have been carrying.” “Jesus, this is what has been tangling me up.” “Jesus, I don’t want to keep running with this anymore.”

So while the band plays, when you’re ready, come receive a rock, write your word, and take it back to your seat for a few minutes.

[Pause and allow students to come. Do not rush this.]

While Students Hold Their Rocks

Look at the rock in your hand.

It may not be very big, but if you had to carry it everywhere — to every meal, every activity, every conversation, every day when you go home — eventually, you would get tired of carrying it.

And some of you are tired.

Tired of hiding. Tired of feeling trapped. Tired of saying it’s fine when it’s NOT fine. Tired of carrying something Jesus already died to free you from.

Remember Evan in that race.

He knew what was getting in his way, and he threw it off.

Remember Anakin.

He held onto what was destroying him until it controlled him.

And remember Jesus.

He endured the cross. He carried your sin and your shame. He rose again so you could be forgiven, freed, and made new.

So tonight, you have a choice.

You can keep holding that rock.

[Hold up rock.]

Or you can bring it to Jesus and say, “I’m done carrying this. I surrender it to You.”

Altar Invitation

In a moment, I am going to invite you to come to the front.

This time, you’re not coming to pick something up.

You’re coming to lay something down.

When you’re ready, come place that rock here at the foot of the cross. And after you lay it down, find a place to pray.

Our leaders are here. If you want someone to pray with you, lift a hand or ask one of them.

You don’t have to explain everything. You can simply say, “I need prayer,” or, “I want to be free.”

Tonight, don’t stay tangled in what Jesus came to free you from.

By His grace:

I can throw it off, fix my eyes on Jesus, and run free.

*Prayer time for students/leaders*

WE — Closing Vision

What if we left this altar different than we came?

What if we stopped going back to the same things Jesus has set us free from?

What if this became a group of students who didn’t just have a camp moment, but went home with our eyes fixed on Jesus?

What if, in our schools, on our teams, in our families, and in our friend groups, people began to see the love and holiness of Jesus in us?

Not because we’re perfect. Not because we never struggle. But because we are no longer trying to run alone or stay tangled.

What if we became the kind of community where we help each other run? Where we pray for one another, encourage one another, and remind one another that there’s a better way in Jesus?

Students, this doesn’t have to end when camp ends.

By the grace of Jesus, we can leave the old things here. We can fix our eyes on Him. And together, we can run free.

Closing Prayer — Praying the Scripture

Read before praying:

“Now may the God of peace… equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ…” — Hebrews 13:20–21

Jesus, You are the God of peace.

You brought life out of death, and You can bring freedom out of everything we have surrendered tonight.

Equip us with everything we need to do Your will.

Work in us what is pleasing to You.

When we go home, help us throw off what hinders. Help us leave behind the sin that entangles, run with endurance, and fix our eyes on Jesus.

Your Word says that if the Son sets us free, we are free indeed. So teach us to live in that freedom.

Your Word says that being set free from sin leads to holiness. So Holy Spirit, cleanse our hearts, change our desires, and fill us with the love of Jesus.

Make us holy — not just looking different on the outside, but transformed from the inside out.

And when we are tempted to pick back up what we laid down tonight, remind us that Jesus is better, Jesus is faithful, and Jesus is enough.

We surrender ourselves completely to You.

Work in us what is pleasing to You, through Jesus Christ.

Amen.

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