By Craig Franklin, Jena/Olla Times
JENA — For Louisiana College men’s basketball coach Reni Mason, basketball is nothing more than a platform to build the kingdom of God.
He and his assistant coach, along with two LC players, brought that platform to Jena last week as they conducted a free basketball clinic at First Baptist Church for aspiring players from kindergarten through 12th grade.
“We basically teach the fundamentals of basketball but the most important reason we conduct these camps is to share the Gospel,” Mason said. “We start each day with a devotion, get into our drills, and end with a devotion. Everything we do starts and ends with God.
“I’d like to thank Pastor Dominick DiCarlo and the Jena First Baptist Church family for allowing us to come and conduct this clinic,” he said. “I have never been to Jena so all I knew was what I had heard. Well, I can tell you after being here, Jena is nothing like the image some tried to make it out to be several years ago.”
Louisiana college, which is located in Pineville, sponsors basketball camps for three weeks each summer but this year began branching out and conducting free clinics to other areas outside of their campus after the camps at LC have concluded.
“This year we conducted two of these clinics, the first was at Alpine Baptist Church in Pineville and the second was here at First Baptist Jena,” Mason said. “We’ve averaged about 65 youth between the two camps and hopefully this is the start of something even bigger next year.”
The coach said he feels very fortunate to be in the position he’s in that affords him the opportunity to reach so many youth with the message of Jesus through the sport of basketball.
“It’s important that we use our platform that’s afforded to us – not for publicity purposes – but to further the kingdom of God,” he said. “Basketball is just another tool that is used to reach youth with the Gospel.”
Mason said he has long felt his mission is to reach as many young people as possible with the life-changing message of Jesus, the message that changed his life many years ago.
“I signed up 20 years ago to be a basketball coach not knowing that God had a plan to use me for His kingdom this way,” he said. “I’m just so humbled…thinking about how much He loved me even when I didn’t even acknowledge Him.”
But the coach is acknowledging God now, giving God credit for everything in his life and living his life determined to reach as many young people as possible.
“Our only hope, our young people’s only hope, is found in Jesus,” he said. “Our mission field is to help young people find that hope and help deliver them from all the different types of bondage they are in.”
Along with Mason, assistant coach Jonathan Brooks, LC Senior basketball player Raheem Regis and sophomore basketball player Travis Schutlz conducted the camp Thursday and Friday at First Baptist’s Family Life Center.
Mason, who is in his second year as head coach and was recently named associate athletic director at LC, is praying for more opportunities to conduct the free basketball clinics throughout the state.
“All they have to do is call and set it up,” he said. “We are always looking for opportunities to come and share Jesus and basketball. We are available and willing to come.”
The LC Basketball Department’s phone number is (318) 487-7503, or you can visit their website at www.lacollege.edu.
