Here's to 2016!

Hello, friends!

As 2016 comes to a close, we wanted to show y'all our end of the year ministry and family update. Two things for you before we get to the good stuff:

- If you are looking at this letter and saying, "Man, that looks great! Why didn't I get one of these?!" The reason is because we don't have your mailing address! You can fix that by clicking here and updating your contact info for our records.

- If you feel so inclined, you can also give a year end gift to the work that we're doing with InterVarsity in Mid-Missouri. All gifts are tax-deductible and can be done by following the link here.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

RSC16!!!

Hello, friends!

First of all, thank you all so much for all of the love and support that I've received regarding my incoming new role as Director for the Asian American Ministries Pilot Project. I have been overwhelmed by the congratulations from everyone. I'm really looking forward to the taking on this new role come January.

Normally, I post on Thursdays but, you'll notice, it's Friday. I had to take a little bit of a rest day yesterday because we got back from our Regional Staff Conference (RSC16) Thursday morning and I needed some time to recoup after 3 days of being in full on conference mode.

As always, RSC was a great time. I did notice though, that while there are some things that I can count on, things still also change from year to year. Here are a few of my epiphanies from 72 hours of staff conference goodness on what's changed:

- I've officially transitioned from "young staff" to "veteran staff." The move was probably a long time coming but I really felt it this year. There are two ways you can tell if you've moved from "young staff" to "veteran staff" status. The first is how you spend your free time, including meals. If it's spent at the pool, playing games, or things like that, you're probably "young staff." If it's spent in a meeting, you're a veteran. The other way to tell is how you spend your 10pm. If you spend your 10pm around other staff, hanging out, playing games, and otherwise having a good time, you're probably a "young staff." On the other hand, if you spend your 10pm asleep or getting ready for sleep, you're probably a veteran.

- Having a kid on site is hard work! Last year, we had Ezra with us but he was barely 6 months old. He didn't really do a whole lot besides sleep and poop so watching him was pretty easy. This year, Ezra was eating solid food, only taking one nap a day, and practically running down the hall every chance he got. I think that Meg and I worked pretty well together in making sure that we both were able to be somewhat present while still keeping an eye on him but it was definitely more of a struggle than last year. It also didn't help that Ezra had a bit of a cold so we couldn't utilize childcare like we wanted.

- The room looks different from before. Every year, at RSC, I look around and notice a few more faces are not there that I'm used to seeing. Staff move away or go off staff. It's a normal part of the job. Since 2008 or so, we've been focused on our "2020 vision" for the area. At ever RSC since then, we've done a status report that included a photo of our staff team from when we launched the vision. Every year, there are fewer and fewer of us in the room who where part of that original photo. It's a little bittersweet, even though I know that everyone no longer in the room is still doing good work for the kingdom in one capacity or another.

Still, with all the changes, there are still things that I can count on during RSC. I can count on great conversations with staff friends who know what I do and have been through similar experiences. I can count on a great vision being cast for our Region and being charged up and ready to take on the upcoming semester. I can count on RSC feeling like a great bookend to an eventful semester. I can count on Jesus showing up and speaking to me in profound ways. I can count on showing up and it still feeling like home and familia. For all the changes that each RSC brings, I'll take those constants any day of the week.

Next week there may or may not be a post by me. I'll be in SoDak for Christmas with Meg's family, so I may take the week off. In case I do, Merry Christmas, and, as always...

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

A New Adventure Awaits!!!

Hello, friends!

So, some exciting news! Starting January 1, I will be assuming the role of Director of Asian American Ministries Pilot Projects for InterVarsity! I'm super excited about the role and wanted to let y'all know about what I'll be doing for the position.

Q: What is the Asian American Ministries Pilot Project?
A: The AAM Pilot Project is an initiative within AAM, where staff who are interested in seeing more Asian American students reached at a particular campus, whether it be a new chapter, a new small group, or what. Our focus will also be on evangelism so that new groups aren't just created but that we're seeing evangelistic fruit coming from those groups.

Q: That sounds cool. What will your role be?
A: As director of the Project, my role will have a few different facets. On the one hand, I'll be finding campus staff who want to see Asian American students reached on their campus and then pairing them with coaches. I'll also be developing the training and resources for the coaches and staff. On the other hand, I hope to be learning a lot from our National Evangelism Team on different things that folk around the country are trying in terms of Evangelism.

Q: Wow, that sounds like a lot of work. Does this mean you won't be doing your other stuff?
A: Well, yes and no. It's only a part-time position, so I'll still continue on as my role as Associate Area Director for Missouri and I'll still be working with Lincoln University and Mizzou Nurses Christian Fellowship. Those things don't change. However, there are a few of my current job responsibilities that I'll be letting go of so I don't end up sipping too much of that workahol.

Q: I guess that makes sense. How did you get this job, anyway?
A: Back in October, I wrote about going to Boston as a coach for a staff who was working with Asian American students. That was actually part of the Pilot Project. Last year I served as a coach. This year, I'll be coaching another campus while also taking on the role of director. The current director is leaving InterVarsity and asked me to fill the position.

So, that's one piece of big news that's happening in our world right now. Please pray for me as I begin preparations for the new role, especially as I take on new responsibilities and let go of old ones. It's going to be a new adventure and I'm looking forward to it.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Hooray for the Lincoln Semester!

Hello, friends!

Yesterday I had my last Wednesday visit to Lincoln University for the semester. Finals start next week and I've been at this job long enough to know that during Finals season, no one really wants to see their friendly neighborhood campus minister.

In fact, even yesterday was a little bit of a bust. It wasn't the worst of days but the caf was pretty dead so I didn't have too many conversations. One of the women who is in my bible study is also in the band and this week they had a rule that band members couldn't talk in the caf or be seen around boys. So, we had to call an audible and go off campus for some ice cream. Add that to not hearing back from the woman in my other bible study and a potential faux pas in a conversation with a faculty member and it was a so-so day.

Still, it's been a really great semester for a number of reasons:

- New Life at Lincoln. I've already posted about the 2 conversions that happened at Lincoln this semester but I also found out that on Sunday, one of the guys in my bible study is going to be baptized! We've also had a ton of great conversations doing the proxe stations about faith and where people are in their spiritual journeys.

- Trust Built on Campus. I think just by virtue of being on campus for a longer period of time, I'm a bit more of a known commodity on campus than before. It's not uncommon for students to say hi to me when I'm on campus. I've had random people stop by and ask me questions and start a conversation about something. It's good to know that I've developed a reputation as someone who can be trusted.

- A Real Cell! One of my top goals at Lincoln has been to establish a small group, or cell, with missional students who would be ready to take risks and bring the Gospel on campus. Last semester there were some false starts with starting a cell but this semester, we actually got some regular student meetings! It's been really great to see students coming together in community and to be on mission.

- Good Weather. The biggest barrier we had last semester with doing the proxe outside and having to deal with the elements. There were gusts of wind and spotty rain storms that really made life kind of difficult. This semester, though, we really had no weather problems. Every day that we planned to proxe, it was sunny, not too hot, and with just enough of a breeze to make things pleasant. It was pretty great!

All said and done, it was a really great semester. I'm excited to see what God has for the Blue Tigers next semester.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Another Conversion at Lincoln!

Hello, friends!

Yesterday was another day at Lincoln and another fun story!

A few weeks ago, I told you about Mix It Up Day and meeting R randomly when she stopped by my table to sit and eat lunch with us. We had a great conversation and I told her about the bible study that we normally do at 2pm on Wednesdays. She normally has class at 2pm so last week, I asked her if she wanted to do a GIG with me, which is what we call our non-Christian bible studies. She agreed and we set up for yesterday @ 3pm after she got out of class.

Her big questions are about finding her calling in life. She wants to do something great but she also wants to make sure she isn't making the wrong decisions. I decided that we could spend time studying the life of Peter, from his calling, to his mistakes, to his redemption, to his leadership.

The first thing that I like to do when I start Bible studies with non-Christians is ask them how close they are to Jesus. I take an index card and draw an arrow across the center. A little bit to the right of center I put a cross, signifying the point where someone would consider themselves a Christian. I ask students to put themselves somewhere on the spectrum, then put the date at that spot. I tell them that my hope is that by the end of our bible study series, they will be closer to Jesus then before, even if they don't decide the follow Jesus.

I wanted to break the ice a little so I said, "of course, if you wanted, you could decide to become a Christian right now!" fully expecting to get a chuckle then moving on with the bible study. Instead, the response I got was, "is it really that easy?"

R's understanding was that first you needed to pray a prayer (true), then get baptized (there are disagreements as to how necessary this is), then get your life right (false) before you can call yourself a Christian. I was able to explain to her that it's actually the opposite; first Jesus makes us right, then we start to act right as a response to him changing our lives. I asked her again if she wanted to become a Christian today and she said yes!

We prayed together, then went through the Bible study. She really responded to the idea of God having a calling for her life that may be in line with the gifts she's already been given. It was a good day.

Please join me in praying for R. Pray that she will continue to grow in her faith and that she will grow in her sense of mission on campus.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

A View of the Election from Lincoln...

Hello, friends!

For as long as I can remember, politics has been a passion of mine. I'm sure that Mama can confirm that at some point when I was little, I said I wanted to be President of the United States when I grew up. (NOTE: I will officially be eligible for that office in 2020. =0).) My degree is in Political Science, and before I signed on with InterVarsity, I had a job offer as a congressional aide in Missouri's first district, held by the honorable William "Lacy" Clay. Politics is part of my life-blood and this election season was no different. In fact, I actually spent my election day working as an election judge for Boone County, MO. I helped set up the polling place at 4:30am, worked until 7 checking in voters, and helped tear down the polling place and count the votes until 8:30pm that night.

Wednesday, to say the least, was unexpected and surreal. I have lots of thoughts about the election, about the candidates, and what Tuesday says about our country as a whole. I considered using this space to articulate those thoughts but decided instead to share about my day at Lincoln yesterday.

I normally go to Lincoln on Wednesdays, so this was nothing new. If I'm not out with a proxe station, I'm inside the cafeteria, talking to students and trying to insert Jesus into the conversation as much as possible. Lincoln is a historically Black University so I knew going into the cafeteria that there would be some processing that would need to happen. The following experiences really happened. I post them here because while we can argue politics and strategy all day long, we cannot argue with experiences. These are things that people are really feeling. You may disagree with their feelings but you cannot say they aren't real.

1) A Full Prayer Box. I normally put the prayer box outside the cafeteria every week I'm there. It's just a little brown box that says "FREE PRAYER" on it with some cards and a pen. Every week, I'll get between 8-12 cards. The requests range from the specific ("Please heal my mother's cancer") to the general ("LORD, help me") with all points in between. Most don't put their names and that's OK. Yesterday, when I went to go check on the prayer box, it was jammed packed, and more than one person wanted me to pray for our country.

2) "Is Trump the Anti-Christ?". When I got into the cafeteria, I went to fill up my water bottle and one of the food service workers (a middle-aged White woman), asked me what I thought of the election. When I told her that I was surprised, she asked me if I thought Trump was the Anti-Christ. I told her I didn't think so, but I could be wrong, but I hope I'm not.

3) The Alpha Comes to Talk. Alpha Phi Alpha is one of the fraternities on campus. As I was sitting with a student, eating lunch, one of the Alphas pulls up a chair right across from me, and says that he needs to talk about the election. We talk for about 20 minutes about his thoughts, fears, frustrations, and hopes moving forward.

4) Voting Your Values. When I'm at Lincoln, I usually connect with a local pastor who leads a church on campus. We have had great partnerships and one of the IV students attends his church. As we were eating lunch, he told me about the series he just finished at church about Voting Your Values. We had a great conversation with his students (who joined us around the table) about how neither party or platform aligns perfectly with what Jesus taught.

There are so many things that I can glean from a really rich and full day at Lincoln. This election rocked the campus in a profound way. I've NEVER had people come up to me before and want to talk. This election is what did that. I've NEVER had so many prayer requests. I've NEVER had such in depth conversations about politics. As I listened to these students, read their prayer requests, tried to help them process, and generally tried to figure out my own feelings, I kept coming back to this thought:

Politics isn't a game. It's real life. These students are really scared. They are really hurt. They legitimately don't feel like the rest of the country cares about them. They want to know how a man who can say the things that he has said and do the things that he is done, can be trusted to be "for them." I don't know how many people who voted for Trump had conversations with people of color about their vote but my guess is that many didn't. I believe that a few more conversations like the ones that I had at Lincoln may have changed a few minds. Maybe it wouldn't have done anything. I don't know.

Voting for Trump or for Clinton does not make you more or less of a Christian. Voters have their reasons and everyone has the right to vote. You make your decisions. My one request is this: if you voted for Trump and are now happy that we will be the next president, please think of Lincoln students before you fire off that Facebook status or tweet. Remember that politics isn't sports and people are legitimately dismayed and afraid. Remember that empathy is the only thing that will lead to a healing of the deep divisions in our country.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

The Week of MPD!!!

Hello, friends!

Ministry Partnership Development, or MPD in the IV circles, is in intregal part of the work that we do with InterVarsity. More than just fundraising, MPD is about builiding a team to rally around us through prayer, volunteering, advocacy, and giving, as we reach the campus with the Gospel. Without our partners (like you!) we wouldn't be able to do the work that we do. Thank you.

This week, our entire staff team in Missouri is going to be taking an "MPD Focus Week" going off campus for us to focus on developing our networks and building more partnerships for the ministry. We will be putting all of our campus work (meeting with students, leading bible studies, things like that) on hold so we can refocus and remember that MPD is important for our work too.

Friends, will you be praying for our team this week as we enter into this time? Please pray for a few things specifically:

- Pray for diligence as we work. MPD is one of those things that isn't really a ton of fun for most staff. It's easy to get distracted and want to do other things. It's easy to forget how important this work is. Pray that God will continue to direct us and guide us as we work.

- Pray for a constant reminder of God's presence. One of the biggest temptations when doing MPD is to get too high when good things happen and too low when bad things happen or nothing happens. We need to be constantly reminded of God's faithfulness and his presence regardless of our funding percentages, the number of phone calls we make, or how an appointment goes.

- Pray for God's provision. We know that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He holds the whole world in his hands and is our great provider. Would you please pray that as we take these risks and ask people to partner with us, that God will provide for us?

If you'd like to join our team, we would love to have you on board! Here's how:

- If you'd like to volunteer, advocate, or be part of our intentional prayer team, you can email us and we'd love to chat!

- If you'd like to partner financially with us, you can do that by clicking the link here.
Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Mix It Up Day!!!

Hello, friends!

Yesterday was an interesting day at Lincoln and definitely in a good way! Allow me a few minutes of your time to share. =0).

At Lincoln this semester, I've been alternating between doing proxe stations on campus and spending time in the cafeteria and doing bible studies with students. This week, it was a cafeteria week. I'm really glad that was the case.

When I walked into the Student Center, I noticed that it was way more crowded than normal. I usually get there around 11:30 or so, right before a big lunch rush comes in so it's not hard to find a seat. This week though, you could tell that the caf was a little more full than usual. There were also students with name tags greeting everyone who walked through the door, welcoming them to "Mix It Up Day."

One of the things that's I've noticed this year is that Lincoln has made a concerted effort to build school spirit amongst the student body. There are always some things going on but this semester it seems like it's been a little bit more. I just figured this was another one of those things where the student government was trying to build a party atmosphere or something. I was actually wrong on that one.

Here's the deal. It turns out that Mix It Up Day was being hosted by two of the professors in the education department. They wanted to get students to explore and learn about other cultures, so instead of class, their students were supposed to go into the caf and "mix it up," by sitting with people who they didn't know and eating lunch with them. As a campus missionary, I wholly support this endeavor. =0).

Besides the students who I normally see, I got to meet 3 new students at Lincoln. The first two students I met were L and J. There was "sushi" (and I use the term loosely...) on the menu, which meant there were chopsticks in the caf. I taught them how to use them and we talked about their lives and their programs. (NOTE: J picked up using chopsticks much faster than L did, but he eventually got the hang of it.)

The third gal I met was R, and that was a really fun conversation. It turns out that her step father is a Chinese man who grew up in Korea and she spent a month teaching English in Korea this past summer. It was fun talking with her about culture and such. That conversation eventually led to talking about what I do, which led to me sharing the Gospel with her and challenging her to recommit her life to Jesus. She even joined us for our afternoon Bible Study!

You never really know what kind of relationship you are going to have with a school when you step on campus. Sometimes the administration doesn't really know or care that you're there (like at Mizzou). Other times, the administration couldn't be happier to have you there and do whatever they can to make sure you're in the know (like at Columbia College). Other times, the administration is actively hostile towards you. Lincoln has been a little more in that third camp, especially since I started doing the proxe stations. Still, they may not have known it, but by letting their professors do something out of the box they helped me "mix it up" yesterday, and that may even lead to new life on campus!

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Coming Home, ACF Style...

Hello, friends!

When I moved out to Columbia in 2007, it was with a very specific purpose in mind. I was sent to plant an Asian American InterVarsity chapter with hopes of it being one of many chapters in Mid-Missouri. ACF was officially started in the fall of 2007 and we were officially recognized as a student group in October of 2008. For 8 years, Mizzou ACF was my primary chapter. It was my baby and it will always have a special place in my heart.

Over the past 2 years, as I've moved onto other things, I've been less and less involved in the day to day operations of ACF. It's been fine. Danny now and Matti before him have done an incredible job of taking care of the fellowship. Honestly, it'd been a long time since I'd visited a Wednesday night Large Group...

Until last night...

Finally, the Rock has come back to ACF... (shout out to all the fellow WWE fans who got that one). =0).

With Danny up in Iowa for a training, I was invited to come speak for the group. They are going through a series right now on emotions and I was given the topic of "doubt." One of the leaders made Chinese breakfast as the meal, I spoke, and all in all it was a good time. A few observations:

- I love seeing people I don't recognize. One of my favorite things when I visit various churches that I've attended is seeing all the faces that I don't recognize. There are always new people who have started attending since the last time I was there, and oftentimes, they are leading or serving in some capacity. When I walked through the doors and saw all the new faces, it warmed my heart.

- I still love preaching. On the way home yesterday, I realized that it had been a really long time since I'd done any preaching. The last time was probably when I was back in California at my home church. Since I've been planting so much these past few years, I haven't had a big enough group to do any preaching. It felt good to spend time studying the word and putting together an outline, then executing. I'd forgotten how much I'd missed it.

- Some things never change. The faces are different. I was talking with a student who I remember as a Freshman but is a Senior now. We were talking about how much the group has changed over the years. But it really hasn't. It's still about food. It's still a place where people be silly and a little bit awkward. There's still musical worship. Some students eat up the teaching and others struggle to stay awake. The faces are different but the community was definitely familiar.

Friends, it felt good to go home again. As I was leaving, I was thinking about how much fun I had and how I wouldn't mind stopping by more often. Then, I was reminded by God that I'm exactly where I need to be right now. I'm enjoying being at Lincoln. I'm loving putting my baby boy to sleep and hanging out with my wife. I'm content and challenged in my roles. It was good to visit home but it was also good to remember that home now is different, and that's OK.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

In the News...

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New Life at Lincoln!

Hello, friends!

I'm still working on finishing up everything from Fall Conference so there will be a blog post recapping that coming in the next week or so. Until then, I wanted to share this story with y'all that I wanted to share last week but I moved it back a week because of Fall Conference. Enjoy!

To give some context, one of the things that we do in InterVarsity is a "proxe station." These are interactive Gospel displays that are eye catching and artistic in a way that draws in students. The basic model of the proxe is 4 steps:
- Invite students to make a statement about the world
- Invite students to then make a statement about their personal worlds
- Share with them a bible passage that speaks to the conversations you've been having already
- Present the Gospel using the "4 circles" diagram and ask them to make a decision (you can see the 4 circles Gospel presentation here).

Yesterday I did the Hope Proxe at Lincoln. I've been doing proxes at Lincoln for the past year or so which has been fun but a little frustrating. Most of the students who come through identify themselves as in Circle 4 (working towards change in the world) but in conversation, they're probably more like Circle 1 (their world is great with no problems) folk.

However, just in this past month I've already met more "Circle 2" (their world is broken) folk than ever. It's been really exciting.

D came up to the proxe and asked what it was. We walked through the proxe and talked a little. He's a freshman who just moved to Mid-MO a little while back to live with his dad. He said his mom is a Christian, his dad is an atheist and he's not really religious but if he had to choose something, he'd probably choose being a Christian since that was how he was brought up.

We made it to the 4 circles diagram and as I explained it to him, he got really excited about circles 3 and 4. He said, "this makes total sense!" I asked him where he identified himself and he said Circle 2 but that Circles 3 and 4 sounded really great. I invited him to make a decision right then to follow Jesus and he said "yes!" We prayed, chatted a little more, and he went on his way, a new believer. We're going to be doing the Deeply Rooted book starting next week.

This is the first conversion at Lincoln University through InterVarsity. Praise Jesus for his faithfulness!

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam

Come and See!

Hello, friends!

We are just 48 hours away from Fall Conference 2016 (FC16)! After months of planning and preparing, it's finally here!

Fall Conference is one of those things that you can always count on every year. No matter if you're planting a new campus or staffing an established chapter, in Missouri, New Student Outreach (NSO) season "officially" ends with Fall Conference. It's our chance to gather students from all over the state to come, worship Jesus together, build friendships, and hopefully make significant decisions that will impact them for the rest of their year, or even their lives!

I've always had a special place in my heart for FC's. It was at FC07 that I had a "come to Jesus" moment and would say that I moved from being a believer to a follower of Jesus. FC09 was the catalyst for our very first ACF conversion. I've had the pleasure of directing the past 3 FC's and there's a chance I'll be directing my fourth one next year too. I've seen students receive significant healing, other students make decisions to follow Jesus, and other students still take steps to becoming missionaries on campus. It's a beautiful thing.

FC16's theme is "Come and See." As the directing team and I tried to figure out what we wanted our theme to be, we kept coming back to this idea of "Come and See." I was hesitant at first because I knew that we had done that theme for a Fall Conference before and I didn't want to be redundant. Then I looked back at my notes and saw that the FC where we had used that theme was FC09; none of the other staff on the FC16 directing team were even in college for FC09. I guess I'm just and old man. =0).

Friends, please be praying for us these next few days. We have a lot of moving pars and a lot of things that could definitely use your prayer.

- Registration: We still have 10 spots left and would love to get them filled!
- Travel: Please pray that students will arrive safely and not get lost on the way there or back
- Health: I've already had one migraine this morning and would rather not that anyone, staff or student, get sick
- Spirit: With these conferences, it's always so important that the Spirit move. Pray that we as staff will be ready to hear whatever God has for us and that students will have soft hearts to receive.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

So, how's ministry going?

Hello, friends!

One of the questions that I get asked pretty often is "So, how's ministry going?" Most/all of my friends and family know what I do and it's an easy way to start a conversation. Consider it the missionary version of "How's work?" or, "How're the wife and kid?" (For the record, I get that question a lot too).

A few days ago I was asked that question again and for whatever reason, this time I decided to stop and actually try and quantify "how the ministry was going." It led me down a very interesting rabbit hole of sorts.

Back when my sole job was ACF, answering that question was relatively easy. There were always different areas going well and other areas not going so well but usually everything was pretty simple to calculate and stuff was correlated so when one area was going well, it usually meant the chapter was doing OK.

Now that I have 4 chapters that I work with, 2 staff I supervise, 1 staff team to lead, and a host of other responsibilities (like this conference I'm directing next week), there are more levels to consider. If stuff with one chapter is going well but not with another, how do I answer the question? If campus stuff is going great but the conference planning has been difficult, does that mean ministry is going well or not so well? Should I just go with "net positive" and assume that if I add up all the plusses and minuses that it'll all work out?

In one sense, it doesn't really matter. I was praying a few days ago about different areas of ministry and the word that kept coming back to me was, "I require faithfulness, not results." I'm reminded of Psalm 50 where God reminds David that he doesn't actually need anything from him. I go back to one of my favorite stories from scripture where Jesus reminds the 72 after they come back from missions work to rejoice only because their names are written in the book of life. All said and done, I'm doing the best I can, following where I believe God is leading me, and trying not to focus on the results as much as the process.

The other side is that I want to be honest and transparent. Meg will tell you that honesty and integrity are two values I hold very high. When I started ministry, I said from the jump that since I was working in Missouri but most of my base was in California, I was going to be as transparent as possible in ministry. That means that the question to me is less of a rhetorical device asked with no care for the answer; it is a chance to re-evaluate, assess, and analyze, in hopes that it gives glory to God.

What does that mean for y'all? In short, it means don't worry if I take a second to answer that question. I'm just searching for the right answer. =0).

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Starting Today!!!

Hello, friends!

Today is a really full day so it'll just be a quick post but I wanted to get this out there because two of the InterVarsity Chapters I lead "officially" start today!

At Columbia College, from 10-1 Central is the annual "Hey Day" tradition. This is essentially a big activities fair when students from all over campus come, enjoy free food, and look around at all the different clubs to get plugged in. I'm new to Columbia College but what I've learned is that 1) This year is the biggest ever for on campus students at Columbia College 2) When students get involved in something, they go 100% and 3) Students are way over involved so if they don't join your group early, they may not join at all.

Would you please pray for Hey Day? Pray that God will bring students of peace to our table, that we'll make good connections, and that this will be the beginning to a great year!

Just a few hours later, @ 3:30, Nurses Christian Fellowship (NCF) will be having its first meeting of the year. Apparently there's a big exam for second year nursing students @ 4:30 so our plan is to have a more informal meeting with snacks so students can come in, meet one another, grab some brain food, and get on their way. The cabinet has been working really hard on planning for today and I've been really impressed with their leadership.

Would you please pray for NCF? Pray that students, even though they have an exam, will still come for fellowship. Pray that the cabinet will not be overwhelmed. Pray that the 65 Freshmen who expressed interest in our group at the Nursing School orientation in August will take a risk and join us.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

A Fun Day Meeting Non-Christians

Hello, friends!

I've been spending most of my time at Lincoln University doing "proxe stations" which are interactive Gospel displays. Instead of asking students randomly if I could talk to them about Jesus, I set up a display that draws folk to me. They ask me what I'm doing, then I get to have a conversation with them that leads to a presentation of the Gospel. I love proxes because it makes talking about Jesus natural and not super awkward. It's also something that students can learn to do pretty easily and is a great way to get them started on doing evangelism.

Proxes at Lincoln have been really great for meeting people but not actually super great for evangelism. It isn't because folk aren't interested in Gospel. It's actually because most students at Lincoln identify themselves as Christians, which means the conversation about inviting them to follow Jesus is much harder. It's not really good strategy to try and convince students that they aren't Christians as a way to get them to want to be a part of your chapter.

The model that I use to present the Gospel is called the Big Story. You can see it here. Basically, you explain the world using 4 circles then ask students to identify which circle they identify with the most. The first circle says, "my world is great and I wouldn't change a thing!" Circle 2 says, "my world is messed up and that's just the way it is." Circle 3 says, "my world is messed up but I believe that Jesus has saved me." Circle 4 says, "my world is messed up, Jesus has saved me, and he's sent me to go heal the world."

Here's the "problem" at Lincoln. Most of the students who I encounter put themselves between circles 3 and 4, meaning they identify as Christians but don't feel like they're "ready" to go out and heal the world. Sometimes this means that students need or want to make a re-commitment to following Jesus. Oftentimes though, it means that they they grew up in the church so are "Christian by default" but really haven't thought about their faith in any substantive way for a long time. I'm sure this happens on other campuses too but I've noticed that this is very much true for students at Lincoln. These conversations are difficult because before you can invite a student to change, you first have to have a conversation about how their view of the world isn't actually accurate.

Wednesday, was an exception to the rule and it was terribly refreshing. More than half of the students who I met on Wednesday did NOT identify themselves as Christians. There was the self professed atheist. There was the woman who believed in a higher power but wasn't sure what to make of all the claims about who Jesus is. There were the two men who put themselves solidly in Circle 2 and knew that their world was broken. While on the one hand, these conversations are heartbreaking because students are lost and they need the Gospel, it was so uplifting to actually have real conversations about faith where students were free to share their doubts, fears, and questions. No one made a decision to follow Jesus on Wednesday but it was good for my soul to have real conversations about Jesus.

Friends, would you please pray for these students? Kloe, Diamond, Autumn, John, BlueMan, and a host of other students on Lincoln's campus need to know who Jesus is. Would you pray that God will reveal himself to them and that He will change their hearts. Please pray that I'll get another chance to interact with them and share the story of God's goodness with them. Pray for more interactions like this and that students will say "yes" to following Jesus!

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Oh, What A Night!

Hello, friends!

First of all, a shout out to "Papa" John Leong because I'm sure he's the only one who got the the title of this blog. (That man sure does love his Jersey Boys...)

Anyway, this post isn't about December 1963, but rather September 2016, particularly September 2, 2016, when ICF held it's first ever English Club! Meg may be guest posting about this later but I wanted to give you a taste of what I saw from my perspective.

The plan was to combine what international students are always in favor of (English practice) with something that college students are always in favor of (free food) with something that ICF is always in favor of (studying the Bible in order to discover Jesus). English Club at 6, followed by Dinner (7) & Discovery (8). It's a good plan. Check that, it's a great plan. It just has a lot of moving parts.

I've said this before (although I can't find the exact post), that one of my favorite things to do is actually run logistics during events, particularly for ICF. I figure, I'm good at doing the small tasks, like taking out the trash, refilling the water jugs, and things like that, which allow folk who are more gifted at networking, having conversations, and generally connecting to people (read: my wife) to do their thing. At the end of the day, everybody wins! My job for Friday was going to be in that sweet spot with a twist: I was going to be running Ezra duty.

We decided that Ezra was going to join the ICF group for English Club/D&D number one because 1) it would be fun 2) he attracts lots of people and 3) while watching Ezra is a full time proposition, it would still allow me to be present to help as needed. Ezra and I got there a little bit before 6 and immediately things started to go off the rails in the best way possible.

6pm rolled around and there were a few people in the room, including volunteers. It was a small crowd for sure and I figured that more folk would be there. I just didn't expect to see the train of people entering never end. While I'm simultaneously watching Ezra go up and down the stairs in Memorial Union, I'm also seeing person after person come up for English Club. A few people became more, which quickly became more, then even more. It was at that point that I was commissioned with a very important task; I needed to order some pizzas because we didn't have enough food.

Now, at this point, I'm trying to keep my son from killing himself by going headfirst down a flight of stairs while also trying to order pizzas. Thankfully, there was a student who was there to help watch Ezra and the pizzas got ordered. The problem was that by the time the pizzas got there, the room was packed and we needed to make another order.

Mizzou has multiple pizza joints in town (as you would expect from a college town) but one that I often frequent is the Domino's on 9th because they usually have "hot and ready" medium pizzas that you can pick up quickly if you're in a hurry. I'd made the first order to Papa John's because we had plenty of time but for my second trip we were going to need pizzas faster so I literally ran to Domino's.

They didn't have any pizzas ready to go...

So, I place and order and wait for what seems like an eternity (probably only 15 minutes or so) then run back to see that dinner was in full swing. I plop down the pizzas and realize, it's 7:40 and Ezra, who is currently being watched by the whole group, needs to get home. I scoop up the little guy, much to his chagrin since he was having so much fun, get him home, give him a bath, get him to bed, and then attempt to decompress a little.

I'm not actually entirely sure of everything that happened during the "Discovery" part of the English Club/D&D night. I went to bed around 10:30, before Meg came home. I heard she preached the Gospel and then they got ice cream. Those sound like a good pair, to me. =0).

Friends, it was a crazy night but a total blessing. Running out of food because you have more people come than you'd anticipated is always a good problem to have in our line of work. To our financial ministry partners, thank you for all of your support and partnership. You bought those pizzas to make sure that we had enough.

Could you please pray for ICF and the English Club? Week 1 was so great but Week 2 is really when you figure out how big your group is going to be. That's when the folk who aren't just "checking things out" come back and you can start to get into a rhythm. Pray for good follow up, that students will continue to be engaged, and that the non-Christian students who come just to practice their English will discover Jesus in the process.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

So Long, Miss Ashley!

Hello, friends!

Just about 10 years ago, when I was but a wee Freshman at WashU (Go Bears!) I joined InterVarsity. At the time, InterVaristy @ WashU (Go Bears!) actually had 3 or 4 groups. There was InterVarsity/One Voice, the multi-ethnic chapters, ACF (Asian Christian Fellowship), Harambee (Black Campus Ministries), and I'm not sure if International Friends was a thing yet but it may have been. Each group reached out to a different part of the campus but we were all of one body and did different events together occasionally, like conferences.

It was at one of these conferences, Fall Conference 07 to be exact, where I had my life changed in a number of ways. I point to that conference as the moment when I changed from a believer in Christ to a follower of Jesus. It was also there that I first met my lifelong friends from Harambee, Thomas (T-Mo), Rachael (Rae Rae), and Lauren (Jad).

A few months later some friends and I had an idea to do some stuff between different campus ministries. Howie, the Harambee staff, suggested that I invite a student of his named Ashley Smith. I said, "sure, why not?" and a friendship was born.

It's entirely possible that my recollection of the story is not quite accurate but I think it is. The important thing is that for the past 10 years or so, "Miss" Ashley Smith (now Moore), has been a great friend and wonderful co-worker. We've been through battles together, usually on the same side, but sometimes not so much. We both went through the life of a college student trying to lead a chapter into mission. We did our InterVarsity internships together (along with T-Mo). We joined staff at the same time and enjoyed many a staff meeting together. We've seen tornados, both literal and figurative in our staff careers and somehow survived them all. I had the pleasure of being a part of her wedding (she married T-Mo), and was sad when she moved to Seattle. It's been a blast.

Miss Ashley ends her tenure with InterVarsity tomorrow. The past few years she'd been working on her seminary degree and praise Jesus, it's done! Now it's on to whatever adventure is next for her (and T-Mo!). Maybe it'll mean a move back to Missouri. Maybe it'll be across the river in Illinois. I don't know. What I do know is that I wanted to spend a few lines of internet sharing a few things that Miss Ashley has taught me over these past 10 years of friendship/co-workerness.

1) Miss Ashley taught me how to talk to people with feelings: Y'all may know that I'm not a very emotional person. I don't understand them well and usually have trouble engaging with emotions, especially in others. Friendship with Miss Ashley taught me not just that feelings are OK but that it's possible to engage and minster to folk with feelings without being great at having your own! Thanks, Miss Ashley.

2) Miss Ashley expanded my worldview: I have no idea what it's like to be Black in America. I know what it's like to be a minority, but that's not the same thing. Through the years, Miss Ashley and I have had so many conversations, some easier than others, about ethnic identity, racial reconciliation, and a number of other things that I just didn't understand before talking to her. I'm by no means at the end of my journey, but I'm further than I was before thanks to her. Thanks, Miss Ashley.

3) Miss Ashley was my friend: I'm not someone who has a lot of friends per se. I know a lot of people and have plenty of acquaintances. I feel comfortable meeting new people and don't have trouble talking to folk. But I'm not someone who really has a lot of friends. Miss Ashley is my friend. She puts up with my ridiculousness. She opens up to me and doesn't mind me doing the same. We don't talk as much as we used to but we still have our inside jokes and things of that nature. I know I can count on her and she can do the same for me. We make up after we fight. It's a good thing. Thanks, Miss Ashley.

So, onward to my dear friend "Miss" Ashley Moore. Whatever happens next for you, I'm still just a phone call away. =0).

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Service Above Self...

Hello, friends!

When I was in high school, I joined the Interact Service club. It's entirely possible that I joined it because my sister was the president (as was often the case) but either way, I joined. My Junior and Senior years of high school, I became President of Interact, which apparently meant that I was also invited to Rotary club meetings, since Rotary was the parent sponsor of Interact. I met a lot of really great people and my dentist was even a Rotarian, which was pretty fun. During my Senior year, when I was completing my Eagle Scout project, the Rotary club of Garden Grove sponsored the entire project.

Last year, as a way to meet more people in Columbia, I decided to join the Downtown Columbia Rotary Club. I'm not sure why it never occurred to me to look for a Rotary club out here but on a whim, while I was visiting Columbia College, I saw that there was a club meeting. I walked in, a nice Rotarian bought me lunch, and I've been going ever since.

Rotary, much like Lions, Kiwanis, Elks, Optimists, etc., is a community service organization that seeks to build community through serving the community. I could go into all the details of its history and such but I'll just say that it's motto is "Service Above Self." In many ways, it lines up perfectly with the work that I'm doing with InterVarsity. While not a faith based organization, Rotary aims to build stronger communities and change the world. They do it through service. We do it through the Gospel.

I'm writing about this now because the past few weeks I've had a chance to see a really fun colliding of two worlds, InterVarsity and Rotary. A few weeks ago, one of our Rotary members passed along a signup sheet asking for volunteers to help at Mizzou's International Student Orientation. They were going to be doing a Walmart fun for new students and the next day there was going to be a picnic in the park. Well, it just so happens that volunteering at the International Student Orientation is one of ICF's main outreaches during the first part of the year! I didn't make it to the Walmart run (Meg did) but Ezra and I joined Meg at the picnic and we were able to not only meet tons of students but also a few fellow Rotarians!

Another one of the great ideas that Meg had for ICF for this year English Club. This would be a chance for international students to practice their English with native English speakers, followed by optional dinner and Bible Study. When I announced it at the Rotary meeting, I was pleasantly encouraged by the number of Rotarians who were interested in being a part of the club!

So far, it's been a fun run as a Rotarian. I've seen blessings to the ministry, developed great friendships and networks, and even had the chance to do a little good in the community. For as long as we're in Columbia, I'm excited to continue to be a part of this great organization.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Hooray for the Olympics!!!

Hello, friends!

Confession: Meg and I haven't been sleeping a ton the past week or so. We're getting up at around the same time but we're not getting to bed until close to midnight. It's been a bit of a struggle getting up in the morning but you won't hear us complaining... Why? BECAUSE IT'S OLYMPIC SEASON!!!

That's right, friends. Meg and I are total Olympics nuts. We love every part of it. It's competition at the highest level. There are heartwarming and inspiring stories from athletes from around the world. There's my boy Rowdy Gaines calling swimming races like his non-existent hair is on fire. The Olympics have it all! (Seriously, Rowdy is the best.)

One of the things that I love about the Olympics has been seeing the US not only dominate but dominate in such a multi-ethnic and diverse fashion. Simone Manuel became the first African-American woman to win Olympic gold for the US in the pool. Ibtihaj Muhammad won a bronze medal for the USA as the first USA olympian wearing a hijab. The US team has White folk, Black folk, Latin@'s, Asian Americans, and multi-racial folk all over the place, and that's just on the track team! It's so great to see that in the midst of a great amount of public racial tension in the US, we can all agree on one thing... The USA is a beast when it comes to athletics.

I've been trying to rack my brain all week about how I was going to turn this post into something deep or related to campus ministry but I've been having some trouble. See, sports/athletics/competition is the one area of life where I have consciously made a decision to not pray for God's favor. I don't pray for my teams to win. I pray against injury but not for dominance. It's my way of making sure that I don't get too deep into a funk if my teams lose. So, while I've been rooting for the USA, I haven't made these Olympics very spiritual.

However, there is one area where I've been praying during these Olympics and that's during the medal ceremonies. I don't remember how many years ago it was I heard a sermon about how we're supposed to pray for our elected officials. For whatever reason, that sermon hit home and I decided that I would try to make that a regular habit. However, I couldn't really figure out how to make that a regular rhythm that would make sense. I settled on the national anthem. I decided that whenever I heard the Star Spangled Banner, I would use that minute and a half or so to pray for our elected officials on the city, state, and federal level. During the Summer Olympics it's also always a presidential election year so I pray for all of our presidential candidates too. Just like with sports, I don't pray for any one candidate to win or lose (although I definitely have my opinions). I pray that every elected official, regardless of their policies or their faith background, will be guided by Jesus and know him better.

Who knows if it has any impact on a wide-scale level. I know it has impact on a personal level. Since the USA has been dominating so much, I've been watching a lot of medal ceremonies where the Star Spangled Banner is played, which means I've been spending a lot of time praying, which has been changing my heart towards some candidates and elected officials. That's not to say that my political views have changed but rather that I'm working on seeing the "other side" as less evil than before. =0).

So, friends, as we finish up these next few days in Rio, watching Bob Costas do his thing and the USA win a few more medals, please join me in praying for our elected officials. Don't pray for folk to win or lose but for God to move in our nation and through our leaders. Maybe we'll see some change as we root our guys and gals to victory.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

1000 Asks, 65 Asks, 2 Ears, and 1 Mouth...

Hello, friends!

Happy TUESDAY to you all. Here's hoping it's been a good one for you. I know that normally I post on Fridays instead of Tuesdays but I decided that I'd like to switch things up a little bit. Fridays can be kind of crazy with travel, conferences, and things like that. Tuesdays, on the other hand, are generally pretty stable. It's also a day when I'm usually stuck in front of a computer catching up on all the admin and such that I didn't do on my off day (Monday). So, it makes sense to add this to the mix of "things to do on a Tuesday."

This past weekend our Area Team (affectionately known as " Team MO Fast, MO Furious", or "MO Fast" for short). had it's first staff meeting of the year. We had some time of bible study and prayer together, got some great training on reaching Latin@ students, watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics together, played some team building games, and generally had a good time working on starting the year off right.

One of the big things from our time together was Will, our fearless leader, challenging the team to make 1000 asks as a unit this year in 3 categories; Ministry Partnership, Student Ownership, and Conference Attendance. For ministry partnership, this means asking more people to serve alongside us, give to our ministry, and pray for us regularly. For Student Ownership, it's about asking students to make decisions for Jesus, or asking Christian students to lead in some capacity. For Conference Attendance, we mean specifically for our different strategic ministry conferences that we have this year reaching international students, Black students, Latin@ students, Native students, and Asian American students.

A second big thing was from the 2 interns who I have been coaching in Ministry Partnership this summer. As a team, we decided that we wanted to make 65 asks to partnership before October 1. I'm pretty sure that if each of us makes 3 asks for the next 7 weeks, we'll just hit our goal. It was a goal they wanted to hit so that they could finish out our New Student Outreach season fully funded.

What was interesting about those two ask related goals was my reaction to both of them. Rather, it was how I noticed my reacting to both of them. If you know me, you know that I'm a very competitive person and that I'm a team player to the max. I also have what can only be described as a mildly unhealthy sense of responsibility when it comes to my teams. When you put those 3 characteristics together, what you get is someone of often takes a team goal and decides that the best way to make sure it's accomplished is to do a bulk of the heavy lifting.

I totally had to stop myself when I heard both those goals because my mind immediately started moving towards how much extra I could do to lessen the burden on the rest of the team. If MO Fast wants to do 1000 ask, I'll just do 200 of them so no one else has to work too hard. Our interns want to do 65 MPD asks in the next 7 weeks? Well, maybe I'll do 35 so they only need to do 15. It comes from a good place, wanting to help, but it's also not one of my healthiest qualities, especially if we miss our goal and I beat myself up for "not working hard enough."

Really, the key, as I've been learning, has been to listen to God as much as possible. I have to know when I'm making an ask, whether it be to a student, a ministry partner, or whomever, because I want to get the ask done or because Jesus is really leading me in that direction. There's an old saying that we have 2 ears and 1 mouth because we're supposed to listen twice as much as we speak. In this case, there is probably some truth to that.

So, dear friends, please be praying for our team as we prepare for all these great asks in the next few days, weeks, and months. Pray that God will be leading us to the right asks and that we'll have the boldness to take those risks. Pray that we will not be burdened by the goal but be encouraged and strengthened by knowing that we're a team.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

One Last Week of (Semi) Rest...

Hello, friends!

Megan and I were out to dinner last night and it suddenly hit us that July is just about over, which means that August is right around the corner and that school will soon be starting! The summer really has flown by and now it's time to get back to work on campus.

Of course, that's not to say that we haven't been working hard these past few months since the our conferences ended at the end of May. There's been plenty of work to be done; finishing up the year well, planning for the new year, meeting with new ministry partners, praying a ton for students and ministry, and doing what we can do to keep ourselves sharp for what's ahead. In fact, Meg has still been meeting with students and ICF has been having Bible studies over the summer.

The big difference really is the pace. Even though I've been traveling a bunch this summer, the pace of work has been lighter than during the school year. Between August and May, a 40-hour work week is a given. 50 is always possible. If there's a conference or some big event happening, getting up into the 70's and 80's isn't out of the question. During these past few weeks, it's been a much more relaxed pace, which is very much appreciated.

It's not just about the number of hours worked. It's the content of what is actually in each of those hours. During the school year, not only are the hours higher but the hours are much more condensed. It's not uncommon to have meetings back to back to back, meaning that every interaction needs to get to the point as quickly as possible. During the summer, things can be a little more relaxed and time can be a little more relative. There's more space to breathe and pray. There's more time to listen and pick the right words to speak. It's nice.

So, these next few days will be the end of that period before it's time to get going again. Next week we'll be at staff meetings and then it'll be ICF will start it's pre-fall student ministry. Before we know it, it'll be time for students to move back into CoMO and classes will be beginning. Hooray!

Friends, please be praying for us these next few days as we do these last few preparations before the beginning of the semester. Pray that Meg and I will be refreshed and not stressed by the impending school year and that we will be trusting in God with all of our plans.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

The Joys of Home Ownership...

Hello, friends!

Happy Friday to you all and happy heatwave! It's been consistently in the mid to high 90's here in Missouri for the past week or two, which has been a bit of a bummer but we're making it work! Ezra and I have been taking a lot of "indoor walks" which essentially means strapping him in the Ergo and walking around our living room in circles around our coffee table. For some reason, he really loves it!

One of the things that is really nice about the summer is that it gives us a chance to do all the things that didn't get done during the school year and start to prepare for the year to come. This usually means meeting with potential donors, doing prayer and strategy for our chapters, setting goals, and things like that. However, it also means we get to take some time and take care of the personal stuff that doesn't quite take priority during the year. Of course, then there are the disasters...

Friends, the past 2 months have felt like a comedy of errors of sorts when it comes to La Casa Leong here in CoMO. In just the past few weeks we've had:

- Our washing machine die
- Having to install a new electrical box so we can use our new dryer
- Our garage door needing to be fixed
- The toilet not filling well so the pump having to be replaced
- Our basement flooding so having the carpet all torn out and having to put in new carpet

I'm sure there are other things that we've had to do and have had to get done but those are the big ones that jump out to me from the past 2 months or so.

The biggest issue, of course, is that all of this costs money. Washing machines aren't cheap. Neither is carpet. Thankfully, we aren't big spenders in general so we have the savings set up to take care of these things without any stress. Also, insurance has helped us cover much of the cost too. So, while it isn't much fun to deal with all of this, it also isn't totally devastating.

All said and done, these past few weeks of home fixing has actually made me really thankful. I'm thankful that we have the money to cover all these things. I'm thankful for our ministry partners who give to the ministry, allowing us to spend money on the things we need. I'm thankful that I have a house to begin with and that it's actually something that we own. I'm thankful for insurance. I'm thankful for all the nice people, from the guy who ripped out our carpet to the guy who installed our dryer outlet, who have been nothing but helpful, kind and courteous. I'm thankful that Meg and I have been able to partner together in making our house a home. I'm thankful that these fixes haven't had an adverse affect on Ezra. I'm thankful that this is all happening during the summer when there is more flex time. Ultimately, I'm thankful because God is good.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

A Few Weeks Home...

Hello, friends!

It's the middle of July, meaning we're just one month away from the start of the school year! Time sure does fly when you're having fun! This is the season where we start to transition from all the summer work that needed to be done to thinking about the semester ahead, before you know it, it'll be August and it'll be time to start up another fun year of ministry!

Do you know what my favorite part of these next few weeks is going to be? It's going to be not having to travel anywhere. No work meetings. No weddings. Nothing like that. I just get to hang out at home with my wife and son and be home for a bit.

Here's been my calendar since May 1. Mind you, not all of this has been work related but still, it's a lot of miles on the car, a lot of time on the road, and a lot of nights sleeping in a bed that actually isn't mine.

May 6-9: Impromptu trip to South Dakota for Mother's Day (4 days)
May 13-20: End of the year conferences in the Lake of the Ozarks (8 days)
June 2-3: Regional Ministry Partnership Development training in Iowa (2 days)
June 4: Area staff team meeting in St. Louis (1 day)
June 13-15: Regional Leadership Team meeting in St. Louis (3 days)
June 17-18: St. Louis so Meg can attend a bachelorette party as a bridesmaid (2 days)
June 25-28: St. Louis for a wedding then immediately to Chicago for another wedding and some meetings with potential donors (4 days)
July 1-6: South Dakota for the Fourth of July, Ezra's birthday, and a vacation (6 days)
July 9: Day trip to Innsbrook, MO to attend a wedding (1 day)
July 13-14: Omaha, NE for a staff meeting with other staff in the region plantin on campuses part-time (2 day)

By my count, in the last 75 days, I've been out of town for 33 of them, or just under 45% of the time. Even if you just count the business travel, it's about 25% of the time. I know there are tons of jobs where this is normal, or even light, and again, not all of this was for business purposes, but still, that's a lot of travel!

Of course, I'm not complaining. I love the work that I do and every trip on that list was totally worth it. However, when I first started working for InterVarsity, one of the things that took me by surprise was just how much travel was involved. Especially when I was the only staff out here in Columbia and everything was centered in St. Louis, it felt like I spent just as much time in the car as I did on campus. Now that I've been around for a while and have more and larger responsibilities, the amount of travel has become even more pronounced.

All this is to say that I'm excited to be spending the next 3ish weeks in Columbia with no plans to go anywhere that I couldn't get by bike. =0).

Friends, please pray for this time home. Pray that it will not only be productive but also restful and restorative. Pray for good connections with friends and my family, and that my next trip will be met with excitement and not dread.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Happy Birthday, Ezra!

Hello, friends!

Today is a very special day. It's Ezra's birthday! To celebrate, I put together a little something. Pardon the missed chord change and a lyric mishap, I had to record it real quick before we left for South Dakota. =0).

Happy Birthday, Ezra!

~Adam

Happy (Fiscal) New Year!!!

Hello, friends!

It's July which means it's time for InterVarsity to turn the calendar over to 2016-2017! Here in Mid-MO, that means we have a lot of really great things on the horizon. Get excited!

New Hires! As of July 1, we officially have hired a new intern, Danny Poon, to take over Mizzou ACF! Danny is a Mizzou ACF alum who graduated in 2014. He has a big heart for students and loves working with them. We're super excited to have Danny on the team and are really excited to see what God is going to be doing through him these next 2 years (and maybe beyond?!?!)

New Chapters! With the beginning of the new year also comes new opportunities for reaching new corners of the campus! First up, Asian American graduate students and faculty. We're still not sure of how this will work exactly but Charis is going to be focusing her time on that population in Columbia. As someone who was an Asian American graduate student herself, she knows the rigors of life and how faith is crucial to that walk. Hooray!

New Campuses?! June ended with a flourish in terms of contacts from other campuses who were interested in potentially starting a new InterVarsity chapters on new campuses across Mid-MO. We have no idea if any of these campuses will stick at this point but it's exciting to think that this could be a year of great expansion.

Those are just a few of the highlights from what to expect this upcoming year. We know that everything is going to depend on the grace and provision of God and that in this job, things can turn from good to bad in a hurry. Still, we're excited for the possibilities and ask for you to pray for us. Let's do this, New Year!!!

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Prayer Walking Columbia College

Hello, friends!

It's been in the low to mid-90's around here in CoMO for the past few weeks or so, which has changed a lot of things considerably. Ezra normally loves walks but since it's too hot to go outside, Meg has been taking him on early morning walks and he and I have been doing laps around our living room (which he really enjoys, oddly enough). I've been trying to run more this summer but sweating my face off in 90 means getting up (or at least trying to get up) at 5am to knock out a few miles.

However, it's never too hot for a prayer walk. =0).

Just a few days ago, I took on Columbia College as an added campus for the next year. Columbia College IV is already a group but next year I'll be having a more hands on approach. CCIV is very near and dear to my heart as it is the first Mid-MO chapter to break out of the Mizzou bubble.

Since I'm relatively new to the campus, I thought it would be a good idea to spend a little time praying over the campus, listening to see what God might say in terms of my work there. Here are a few highlights from that time.

"Fall in love with the campus." One of the first things that an older staff told me when I joined staff 9+ years ago was that to make it in this game, you have to buy in 100% to the campus you're staffing. I took that to heart when I moved to CoMO, following Mizzou sports, buying the gear, and getting myself up to speed on all the rivalries and quirks that make Mizzou what it is. When I started doing work at Lincoln, I did the same thing, learning all about the Blue Tigers. Now it's time to see what Cougar Country is all about.

"There's more than meets the eye." A favorite story of mine from my time in ministry is that one of the last things I did as a student before joining staff was to take a prayer walk around WashU's campus (Go Bears!). It took about an hour or so but it was a really good time. When I first moved to CoMO, I decided to try to do the same thing at Mizzou. It took me 6 different prayer walks before I could cover the whole thing. =0). When I prayer walked Columbia College, I got around the campus in 18 minutes. Still, it was actually a lot bigger than I'd remembered it. Everyone sees the big buildings but it does actually go further back than I thought. I think it was God reminding me that there are unseen corners of the campus, places where students are who need to hear the Gospel. I'm excited to see where those places are.

"I've always been here." As I was walking, it was hard to not start planning. I'm someone who loves coming up with ideas and strategies. I also love analysis so I started going back and forth in my own mind about what may or may not work. About halfway through the walk, I was reminded that my job is not to save the campus. It is to see where God is moving and join him in that work. I honestly don't know what kind of structure this thing is going to take or what students I'll meet from where. I just know that he's always been there and will continue to be there.

One last thought that's unrelated to anything about campus work. My cousin-in-law just had a heart transplant last night/this morning. He's doing well now but this is the critical time where we find out if his body accepts the heart. If you have a moment, keep Dakota in your prayers.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

So Many Things!

Hello, friends!

As I was thinking about what I wanted to post this week, I realized that there were too many things on my mind to only touch on one topic. At the same time, there wasn't really enough for a Super Blog like I've done in the past. There was a plethora of topics but not really a cohesive theme to tie them all together besides the fact that life has been happening this past week. So, we're going to do a little bit of a "quick hits" sort of thing. Few thoughts on a couple of different topics that have been rattling around in my brain for the past week. Here we go!

Our Ministry Partnership Celebration: Thanks so much to everyone who came and who prayed for us as we prepared for our first ever Mid-Missouri Ministry Partnership Celebration Dinner. All said and done, I'd say it was a success! Folk showed up, there was a ton of delicious food that everyone enjoyed (cooked by my wonderful wife), folk learned a little more about InterVarsity in Mid-MO, and some folk were interested in partnering with us further. We definitely learned a lot and if we do it next year (which I hope we do), it'll be an even better experience.

Regional Leadership Team Meetings: Monday through Wednesday I was in St. Louis for my first ever Regional Leadership Team Meetings. Since I took the role of Associate Area Director this semester, I was invited to these RLT meetings. It was a really interesting experience for me. We talked about the differences and similarities between a team and a family (while trying to be both), spent a lot of time praying for each other and our different ministries, enjoyed one another's company, and made some really important decisions regarding the direction of the Region. In some ways, it was exactly as I'd expected it to be but in other ways, it was very different. I was anticipating all the business stuff. I wasn't expecting such a heavy emphasis on the "familia" aspect of things.

Orlando: I've been trying to figure out how to talk well about Orlando. My heart is broken for those in the LGBTQA community who lost their lives, who had friends or loved ones who lost their lives, who feel unsafe, who have heard horrible things said about them by those who claim Christ, and are the victims yet again of another hate crime. My heart breaks for the Latin@ community because many of the victims were Latin@ and it feels like that fact is being a lost a little in the news coverage. My heart breaks for those in the Muslim community who now have to deal with even more hatred and hateful rhetoric, stereotyping, racial/ethnic profiling, and potential acts of "revenge." My heart breaks for the Church in the U.S. because yet again, I feel like we're caught as a body divided, especially as I scroll my Facebook. I'm still not sure how to talk about Orlando well. I know what the answer isn't, but I'm not sure what the answer is, beyond praying for comfort, praying for peace, and praying that God's will be done.

Father's Day: So apparently Sunday is Father's Day! Honestly, I'd been getting prepared for Ezra's birthday (get excited!) that I hadn't thought about Father's Day much. Being a dad is the best. End of story. I don't know how good of a job I'm doing (he's still alive, so that's a positive, right?) but I'm having tons of fun.

I think that's everything for now. If I forgot something, you can bet that you'll hear about it (or read about it) soon. =0).

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

It's Go Time!

Hello, friends!

I've already posted about this a few times already in the past few weeks but it's finally here! On Sunday, InterVarsity in Mid-Missour (IV@MidMO) will be hosting its very first ministry celebration dinner! We've got a great time planned with dinner, a game, some different testimonies, and a preview of what's next for us so people can consider partnering with us as we bring the Gospel to more parts of the campus and more campuses in Mid-MO.

To be honest, it's been a beast planning this bad boy. The team has done a great job but there have been so many different moving pieces that had to be coordinated and since this is our first time doing this, there were a lot of things we didn't know we didn't know! We've had to work out a date, a venue, invitations, tracking down RSVP's, figure out food and programming, and making sure that all of our ducks are in a row. I think what I've enjoyed most about this has been seeing us as a team come together towards a common goal. We still have a lot of work ahead of us but I'm happy to see us all moving in the same direction.

Friends, please be praying for us this weekend. Here are a few specific ways to be praying:
- Pray that folk will show up. Not just because we've got food that we don't want to go to waste but also because we believe in what we do and want folk to be able to experience that with us.
- Pray for the staff team as we prepare. There are a lot of little things and moving pieces so it's easy for stuff to fall through the cracks. Please pray that we'll continue to work well together and that this will be a blessing to our team.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

You're Invited!

Hello, friends!

Greetings from beautiful Morovia, Iowa, where I'm here leading a regional training for our staff team on Ministry Partnership Development. So far, it's been a great time of being in the word, learning from one another, hearing from Jesus, and getting down to business. I've talked about it a lot, but MPD really is one of my favorite parts of the job and I'm blessed to be part of a team that gives me space to explore my passions and giftings.

One area related to MPD where I would love your prayers is in regards to an event that our team is hosting next weekend in CoMO. We wanted to celebrate God's fathfulness to us this year and prepare for the upcoming year by having all of our ministry partners and potential ministry partners in the know about how they can be a part of our journey. Thus far, we've had some trouble with getting an accurate headcount, which can be a little frustrating at times but an area where were are trusting Jesus to give us peace and to work through the logistics.

If you're in the CoMO area or know folk who are, we would LOVE for you to attend! Here's the info:

Come and Celebrate God’s faithfulness
with us & look ahead to next year
InterVarsity in Mid-Missouri invites you to a:

MINISTRY CELEBRATION DINNER
6:00pm-8:00pm (DOORS OPEN AT 5:30)
Sunday June 12, 2016
4600 Christian Fellowship Rd, Columbia, MO 65203
Tickets are $10/person or $50/family
Childcare provided upon request for kids under 10 (free dinner included)

Please RSVP by: Sunday June 5, 2016
RSVP : http://goo.gl/forms/pWRQtdDVSW or email adamjohnleong@gmail.com

If you aren't in town and don't know folk who are in town, woudl you still please pray for us? Pray for responses, pray for logistics, and pray that God would be glorified through our celebration.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

The Development of an Iceberg...

Hello, friends!

One habit I've gotten into talking about staff work like it's an iceberg. You've heard that analogy, right? It's said that icebergs are only 10% above water and that the rest of the thing is actually below the surface, which is what makes them so dangerous (Feel free to insert your own Titanic joke here). In the same way, much of what we do in staff work is actually happening below the surface. The way I see it, there are 4 major parts to staff work, one of which is actually seen and the other 3 parts that happen below the surface.

The part that everyone sees and asks about is the campus work and with good reason. I don't know that there are any of us who got into this job for any other reason than we love the campus and we love college students. It's the part that makes the most sense to ministry partners as well because it's the most tangible. It's what we talk about the most, what goes in our updates and prayer letters, and is probably the most fun part of the job for most of us. But, it's not the whole thing.

Lying below the surface are the three other, equally important pieces of staff life that can't be ignored and have to be done well. There's the preparation piece, which includes things like prayer, planning, studying, running errands to buy supplies, making copies, formatting bible studies, conference calls, trainings, and things like that. There's the reflection and reporting piece, which is what allows us to learn from our experiences on campus and actually grow in our staff work and as followers of Jesus. Then there's Ministry Partnership Development (MPD), which is us gathering a team of people together to partner with us through time, prayer, energy, and finances, so we can reach as many students as possible. All 4 of these pieces are crucial to a healthy staff life and none can be neglected for the sake of the others if you want to thrive in this job. Of course, we all have parts we like to do more than others. (NOTE: other staff may add other categories to their icebergs. I'm just giving you my breakdown)

It may seem odd, but I really love the MPD part of the game. I love casting vision for people who may not have ever thought of the campus as a mission field. I love training staff in how to build up teams of people around them to make the mission go. I love learning about why people give and how people give. I love coaching and developing new ways of thinking about our MPD. It's so much fun for me and it doesn't hurt that I think I'm pretty good at.

Within the next week or so, I'll actually have the opportunity to run two different MPD trainings for our Region and I'm really excited about both of them. The first training (that actually started last night) is what we call MPD 101, or an introduction to MPD. Two of our newly hired interns are here and we're going to go over the basics of MPD, starting from the beginning and making our way to the nitty gritty details. Next week, I'll be traveling to Iowa to lead MPD 201, which is for veteran staff. We have some really exciting (at least to me) training planned in hopes of seeing more of our staff fully funded with resources to spare so we can hire new staff too.

Friends, would you be praying for me as I prepare and lead these trainings? Although I love this part of the job, I know that it isn't the favorite part of a lot of staff, which can be kind of draining when you're the one teaching it. Would you pray that God gives me clear words and a clear vision as we all move forward in developing this part of our staff iceberg together? =0).

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Hooray for Spring Conferences!

Hello, friends!

Meg, Ezra, and I just got back from a wonderful week at the Lake of the Ozarks. Vacation? Well, maybe for Ezra, but definitely not for Meg and me. We were actually helping to staff TWO student conferences for InterVarsity, Catalyst and Getaway. 

I was thinking about these conferences on our way home yesterday and the thought that came to mind was how different yet effective both of these conferences are at reaching their student populations. Both conferences had a really good week. 

Getaway is tons of fun because it is first and foremost, a conference for international non-Christians. They spend the entire week not just studying stories about Jesus and having great conversations but also spending time together and really having fun. Around half the group that attends is non-Christian so the tenor of the conference is very much one of exploration. 

Catalyst, on the other hand, is a conference designed more for students to experience a calling of mission from Jesus to go back to their campuses as missionaries. It has more of a "training" feel to it with seminars and informational meals and stuff like that. 

Of course, that isn't to say that either conference only does one thing. There are students who go to Getaway and are developed as missional leaders on campus and there are students who go to Catalyst and make decisions to follow Jesus for the first time in their adult lives. That also isn't to say that one style of conference is better than the other. It's just one of those things where different conferences scratch different itches. 

The important thing is that Jesus is at both conference and we saw that this past week. At Catalyst, 2 students made decisions to follow Jesus and a number of students made decisions to start something new on the campuses starting next year. Getaway had over 50 students from 18 countries come. Most made significant steps towards Jesus and one student called it "the greatest experience in the US so far." 

What was our role? A little bit of this and a little bit of that. Meg led 2 seminars for students interested in reaching international students at Catalyst and she was in charge of leading the Family Group (small group) leaders at Getaway. I once at Getaway and once at Catalyst as well as leading 2 seminars at Catalyst. 

Here's a video that a student made recapping Getaway. Enjoy!

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Conference Time!!!

In case the link above doesn't work, use this one! 

Have an excellent day!

~Adam