March 17, 1999
Lakeland's gym bounces back with Upward
___LEWISVILLE--Before Upward Basketball, Lakeland Baptist Church in Lewisville was a church with a gym but no recreation ministry.
___After three seasons of Upward Basketball, the suburban Dallas church has involved hundreds of children in its basketball league and led more than 400 children and adults to faith in Jesus Christ.
___"The results have been incredible," said Stan Cole, a layman who heads the Upward league.
___"There are a lot of gyms sitting out there (in churches) that are not used very much forrecreational evangelism," Cole said. "Our gym was that way. It was used for Sunday school department assemblies, banquets and maybe once or twice a year for a drama. When I went in and looked around that gym, I could only find one or two basketballs that would hold any air."
Two Upward training dates set for Texas
___Upward Unlimited will offer two Texas training sessions for clergy and lay leaders this summer.
___The first will be May 28-29 at Alamo City Christian Fellowship in San Antonio. The second will be Aug. 20-21 at First Baptist Church of Garland.
___A $280 fee covers registration for up to four people from the same church.
___For additional information about these sessions, call (800) 585-4721.
___This winter, however, basketballs full of air and children full of excitement flew through the air in Lakeland's gym, where dozens of Upward Basketball games were played each weekend and an equal number of practices were held on weeknights.
___The church with an average Sunday attendance of 1,000 ministered to 3,000 children, parents, siblings and grandparents each week for the eight-week season of Upward Basketball.
___Lakeland's Upward league is perhaps the largest in Texas, maybe in the nation. And the church doesn't even have a paid recreation minister.
___The first profession of faith in Christ known to have resulted from Lakeland's Upward league was the father of two young players who had told his wife he never would go to church.
___"He came to sign up his two sons for Upward Basketball," Cole recalled. "When he came and saw the organization, he felt led to sign up to coach. We allow non-church members to serve as assistant coaches."
___Through the witness of the team's coach and others involved in the league, this skeptical father's distaste for Christianity was overcome. "By week six, he was baptized," Cole said.
___"Here's a dad I don't know how many years it would have taken to reach, but through sports ministry he became very interested in the gospel."Frontpage / Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!
