Pickup the Ball is a basketball ministry that gives teens something to do that they love while also keeping them active and healthy. It helps take their minds off everything bad in their personal world, getting them out of the house and around other people. The boys share a bond that is like a brotherhood, understanding and caring about each other.
Many of these teens lack money and a family structure that would provide guidance and role models for them to learn the basics of life. Without these life skills they will continue the cycles they have come to see as normal and will never develop into the leaders their communities need. Pickup the Ball seeks to provide the structure, accountability, and resources these teens are lacking. Their vision is community transformation through a mission of personal transformation. They know that transformation does not occur without Jesus, but they don’t stop their meetings to preach the Gospel. Instead, the Gospel is shared throughout all of their interactions - through love. Jesus isn’t a separate topic – He is woven like a golden thread through everything we say and do, as a part of life. Like the Word of God, Pickup the Ball’s theme, method, and goal is love – and they believe love will lead to transformation.
