What is Lori Adams up to?

Today we are sharing an update from Lori Adams, a missionary to ISU student athletes and Christian educators who has strong ties to our church. She is leading an event for Christian educators called AWAKE (Ambassadors Working As Kingdom Educators) at Pilgrim Heights Retreat Center in Montour, Iowa, March 22nd. The event is meant to “encourage, inspire, and equip anyone involved with educating youth with the tools and knowledge necessary to navigate today’s school culture as Christ’s ambassadors.” You can learn more about this event or register here. *

Lori shared how God has answered her prayers for her ministry and her own needs. Our God is amazing! Her prayers from December are in black type. God’s answers are in red.

1)     Thank God for coaches saying yes to study His word together. Please ask Him to clear schedules and diminish fear so our meetings can happen. It’s happening! Three coaches are committed to the process no matter how long it takes and they are being transformed! Pray for creative windows of time to work for the four of us to be together.

2)     Thank God for ISU FCA leaders who have taken initiative to invite others to read the Bible and pray with them. Please ask God for a movement of the gospel on every sport team at Iowa State. This is the way that we’re now focusing our ministry. We have an adult  “character/faith coach” now for 8 of the 16 teams.  Pray for more adult women to step up to shepherd teams.

3)     Thank God for female leaders who have enthusiastically stepped up to lead in creative ways! Ask Him for ISU male student-athletes to step up and help lead the multi-sport huddle. Football players are asking to be built up as Jesus followers. Please pray that The Forge gathering of male athletes and former male athletes would be attended by many and the Holy Spirit would raise them up to lead in their teams and throughout the athletic department.

4)     Thank God for all He did through Fields of Faith! Please ask Him to lead the way in an Iowa State FCA Worship Night with athletes and staff in early January. And please ask God that students and staff would have the courage to say yes to an extended time of silence and solitude for a One Word Retreat in January. Seventeen came to the One Word Retreat and many left with huge smiles on their faces because they sensed God met with them and were loved in community.  Praise and worship night is yet to be scheduled. Pray for Audi Crooks and Ella O’Neal as they plan the FCA Worship Night and come up with a date that works for most student athletes.

5)     Thank God for the 20 Iowans who have attended the Christian Educators Summit the past three summers. Please ask Him for at least 3 new Iowan Summiteers for 2025. We have 3 and maybe 4!

6)     Thank God for our Student Teacher Encouragement and Prayer ministry that my wise friend, Stacy Dobernecker and I do over Zoom. Please ask God to help us find Christian future teachers in education for next semester. We have found four more and are consistently reaching out to find others! Please pray that we meet future teachers who are hungry to understand that they are Ambassadors!

7)     Thank God that I’ve been invited to go to California January 1-5 to be a part of the development team for our AWAKE Day #2. (Ambassadors Working As Kingdom Educators) Please ask God to prepare me to be to be a helpful part of the team. All of us there admitted that we were afraid we didn’t have anything to offer. But as we lived in community for those days, the Lord worked through us! We prayed and created the skeleton, prayed and mined the scriptures for the chapters and verses we would use, and prayed for the exercises we would use to help participants interact with each other and the Lord.

8)     Thank God, I’ve been chosen to go to ALBANIA May 1-8. (I was there in 1992 for my DTS Outreach with YWAM.)  I will be a part of a Christian Educators team of 5  from the US to facilitate the AWAKE Experience with 200 educators from around Europe, then train them in leading AWAKE in their countries.  I’m preparing my part of the conference where I will do a workshop on introspection and I will share my mental health story. I’m so grateful God is using that very long and dark time in my life now for good and to point to Him. Please pray for my preparation to be focused and I would not put too much inside this 75 minute timeslot.   

9)     Thank God for the new life in Christ for a Cyclone alumni soccer player, now playing professionally in Portugal. Please ask God to grow her in understanding God’s word for her life and connect her with other Believers. Nothing to report on her, but God is faithful.  Please pray for more last year seniors to be curious about the Lord.

10)   Thank God for a third housemate, Abby, (who was homeless but has a job.) Please ask God to continue His stream of provision for this place.  Abby and I are having many good conversations, and she thanks me for praying for her. Please pray for God to communicate his love and grace through me.

11) . We are preparing for our Iowa AWAKE March 22nd at Pilgrim Heights Retreat Center near Marshalltown. May we be so bold to ask God for 40 to come? We have team of 9 preparing and we are announcing it on Christian radio in the Cedar Valley and Des Moines areas. AWAKE is Ambassadors Working As Kingdom Educators. There are 150 trained teachers around the nation leading these days in their own areas and helping other states as well. Christian educators are waking up to being God’s Ambassadors! Check out www.christianeducators.org/AWAKE

In addition, Lori sent her 2024 newsletter, highlighting her work with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) in Ames, and with Christian Educators in Iowa and nationally:

*In addition to the AWAKE event, there is also a LIFT event happening in Cedar Rapids, Sunday, March 30. Lasting Impact Fellowship for Teachers is a time of worship, a meal, a message, and meaningful time around the table. Educators connect in a way that makes a difference in their year. Cedar Rapids LIFT Registration.