Indiana produced such basketball greats as Larry Bird, Oscar Robertson and George McGinnis.
It also produced Matt Bostic, a lesser-known — but not less outstanding — basketball player. Bostic is the Guinness World Record holder of the most free throws made in 24 hours, chaplain of the NBA G League team Birmingham Squadron and vice president of the nonprofit Life House University.
“I grew up in Indiana, the heartbeat of basketball,” Bostic said. “As a kid, you grow up in your hometown wanting to wear the varsity warmup uniforms, and you just can’t wait to be a part of that team and be loved by your community.”
This community focus helped drive Bostic’s gift and passion to master free throws as a child. He made an automatic ball return by leaning a picnic table against the pole and engaged in countless hours of practice. In seventh grade his target was 100 in a row. He won an award when he made 124 goals.
A time of adjustment and struggle led to his first world record in 2006.
“In 2005, I found myself married with three kids and out of ministry for the first time. I had been youth pastoring for about six or seven years, and I took a break from that and took an office job — suit and tie — in Washington, D.C.,” he said.
More than an idea
However, out of basketball and out of ministry, Bostic was miserable. While back in his hometown visiting his father, he couldn’t sleep, missing the old times and basketball.
Thumbing through a Guinness World Records book that belonged to his dad, he noticed the current 3-point world record. Covering the distance for each shot would be incredibly difficult, but he lay in bed anyway calculating what it would take.
Driving home, his wife and biggest supporter, Andrea, noted how full of life he was talking about the idea. Bostic excitedly said that he would name the associated nonprofit he would create as part of trying for the record “Shoot for Life,” and it became more than an idea.
Even with nine months of extensive training, the attempt still took a major toll physically and emotionally.
He lost a toenail at hour 17. His fingertips were bloody. His wrist-to-elbow ligament had gone out. They had to carry him out of the gym on a gurney after it was over.
“I was going to quit. Here I was, going to start a nonprofit in honor of my mom, who died of cancer — ‘Shoot for Life.’ … I’m sitting on this chair. I’ve got a towel over my head and I’m honestly crying. I’m delirious. I’m dehydrated,” Bostic said.
Hearing he was going to call it off, his dad crawled on all fours to him through the team of people and said, “Hey, do you think your mother had a chance to quit when I wheeled her to chemotherapy at 2 in the morning every night while we were in the hospital?”
Bostic then got a shot of adrenaline, and he hit his highest percentage during hours 17 to 22. He completed 6,272 3-point goals in 24 hours, beating the old record by 51 — his mother’s age when she passed away.
“In the middle of it, I realized, ‘Wow! There’s so much more in our bodies that God can do when we feel like we’re done. There’s so much in the tank there that God can still carry us.’ And He really did,” he said.
Coming to Alabama
Bostic’s nonprofit, Shoot for Life, brought him to Alabama, and he grabbed another world record in 2017 — 20,500 successful free throws — to raise funds for cancer patients and their families.
In 2019 he heard about a nonprofit called Life House University, a program to reduce prison recidivism. Its goal is to introduce people to Jesus and help with education and finding jobs by offering “safe, clean and comfortable homes for those desiring a healthy change.”
Bostic joined the nonprofit in the spring of 2020.
After reading about the number of people going back into prison in Alabama the prior year, he decided to try for that number of free throws — 22,000 — in another attempt in Montgomery on Oct. 4–5.
During the nine months prior, he had to train for three hours a day lifting, running and shooting — no matter where or how busy he was. Even with all the preparation, at 3 a.m. during the attempt his back went out, and he couldn’t catch a breath.
He barely made it through the last six hours. However, he still broke his record, achieving 21,001 free throws.
Being able to do something one is passionate about is significant. Being able to minister to others through chaplaincy or a nonprofit is even more valuable. Breaking a world record three times is beyond amazing.
But there’s even more.
“There are no limits with God. There are times that I limit God as to what He can do. Every time I do the 24-hour event, God reminds me that He is so much bigger than I give Him credit for,” Bostic said.
“The Guinness Book is great to be in, but the Lamb’s Book of Life in Revelation 20 says that if your name is in this book, you’ll live forever.
“The Guinness Book is temporary; it’s going to burn when I die. The Lamb’s Book of Life is the one that you need to be in. That’s the real book — and it’s a lot less effort to get into.”
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