It was 1996, and I was a new believer in the things of God. The past Wednesday service, I agreed to go out with a team to do basketball outreach in South Apopka. That Saturday, when I showed up, there was Pastor Duane Broom and umm, well, there was me.
Shoot, I was a wrestler, I like basketball, but was more of a fill the middle guy, able to give a good hard foul if called upon. I was really just wanting to talk to some people about Jesus and try to get some people to come to church. Our church, Everlasting Covenant Christian Center was just over a year old, and not very numerous in number of members.
Pastor Duane, always the teacher, spoke faith and insight on the trip to the schoolyard. South Apopka is a area on the outskirts of Orlando that has endured the ravages of low income and crime, but is also filled with a people who have a love for God as well. Having come from the quiet suburbs of Milwaukee, I was pretty naive to the fact that that you don’t see a whole lot of white folk in this part of town. None the less, Pastor prayed with me before we got out of the car, and I was ready to play some ball in the name of Jesus.
There were as many as 20 people playing a game of 21. For a wrestler, I could get a rebound, and throw some weight around, but as soon as I tried to dribble, I would lose the ball immediately. Well, Pastor who could play some ball, had a hard time wth that many guys, even he had a hard time trying to touch the ball. There was one guy who had got up to about 16 points and another 12, Pastor had none, and well, you know how many I had.
What happens next, you have to take my word, I am not embellishing whatsoever. Here is my Pastor, wearing a huge leg brace, and finally he gets his hand on the ball. He is smart enough and good enough to know, driving in with the ball is suicide. ( with so many guys on the court). He pulls up from ouitside, swoosh, and so went the rest of the game, which includes free throws after each basket. My man of God takes the game all the way out to 21, in front of me, and 20 other amazed young men. I knew he was good, but there had to be some divine intervention here.
After that first game we broke for some water, and the first thing Pastor Duane does is start telling some of the players about Jesus. (I was in tears later just thinking about it). At that moment in time, Pastor Duane seemed 10 feet tall to me. That Sunday, one of the young men (Harold) was in church and gave his life to the Lord. This whole event, the game and then seeing that young man come to Jesus, changed me, and made me want to live for God even more.
Pastor Duane was a hero to me that day, not because he schooled a whole bunch of guys on a basketball court, but because I saw what it was to be a real christian living for God.
Everlasting Covenant Christian Center is located at 1250 Piedmont Wekiwa Rd. in Apopka, Florida, 32703.
Go to www.covenantconnection.com for more video and words from Dr. Broom
Heres a snippet to get you started!