A Note from Chris Adams: I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to share the following with you all. I couldn’t be more excited about the future of women’s leadership at LifeWay! I have been so honored to get to serve as the women’s specialist for 22 years and have loved my time here. But retirement calls, and though I will still be serving and leading, it will be in a different way.
It’s time for new things, and I know you will rejoice with me as we welcome a new women’s leader. Below is the official announcement of my retirement. Join me in praising God in anticipation of the work He will continue to do through Kelly and LifeWay Women in the coming days!
LifeWay Women, a division of LifeWay Christian Resources, announces the retirement of Chris Adams, Senior Lead Women’s Ministry Specialist, after 22 years of service and ministry, effective March 1, 2017.
In her role, Adams has overseen the relationships between LifeWay Women and churches across the United States, equipping them to minister to women of all ages and stages of life. She managed various branches of women’s leadership development and represented LifeWay Women at numerous denominational meetings and events. In 2008, Chris received LifeWay’s Career of Excellence award. She is a wife, mother of twin daughters, and grandmother of fourteen.
“We are so grateful for Chris her unending contribution to LifeWay Women, her friendship, and the way she lives out her faith,” said Faith Whatley, director of LifeWay Adult Ministries. “How do you sum up the dedication it takes to be used by God to equip approximately a million leaders in the last 22 years? We will not know the incredible impact, on this side of heaven, that Chris has had on ministries to women all over the country.”
On November 1, 2016, Kelly King will assume the role of Women’s Ministry Specialist, and will work together with Adams until her retirement in March. King currently serves as the Women’s Missions and Ministries Specialist for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, a position she has held for 11 years.
“Our leadership team at LifeWay is thrilled that Kelly King has accepted this role,” Whatley said. “She brings immediate leadership experience and expertise to both church leaders and the Southern Baptist Convention. God has gifted her with unique skills that will propel LifeWay’s ministries into the future.”
King is also an adjunct professor at her alma mater, Oklahoma Baptist University, where she teaches women’s ministry courses. Along with teaching and equipping women, she is pursuing a Master of Theological Studies degree at Gateway Seminary. She has written extensively for Christian publications, including LifeWay Christian Resources.
Prior to her work at the BGCO, King served as the Women’s Ministry Director at Council Road Baptist Church where she and her husband still teach and mentor young adults. She has been married to her husband, Vic, for 28 years. They have two young adult children and a new “son-in-love.”
LifeWay Women will be honoring Chris Adams during the National Women’s Leadership Forum on Nov. 11, 2016.
