Tampa Bay Ray Jason Adam on Faith: ‘My Focus [Is] To Humble Myself, Under God’
By Movieguide® Staff
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jason Adam recently made headlines after acting as a spokesperson for a group of players who refused to wear pro LGBTQ+ uniforms with the rest of the team.
Movieguide® previously reported:
Several Tampa Bay Rays players refused to wear jerseys that celebrated LGBT pride earlier this month.
“A lot of it comes down to faith, to like a faith-based decision,” pitcher Jason Adam said on behalf of the players who opted out of the Pride Night regalia. “So it’s a hard decision. Because ultimately we all said what we want is them to know that all are welcome and loved here. But when we put it on our bodies, I think a lot of guys decided that it’s just a lifestyle that maybe — not that they look down on anybody or think differently — it’s just that maybe we don’t want to encourage it if we believe in Jesus…
“It’s not judgmental. It’s not looking down. It’s just what we believe the lifestyle he’s encouraged us to live, for our good, not to withhold. But again, we love these men and women, we care about them, and we want them to feel safe and welcome here,” Adam continued.
Adam is open about his faith and recently shared how God brought him through one of the scariest moments of his life.
After struggling to earn a spot on an MLB team, Adam made the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019. After one year, Adam signed with the Chicago Cubs. However, his time on a major-league team quickly ended after a gruesome injury to his ankle in 2021.
“That was probably one of the harder 24 hour periods that I can recall in my life,” he said on an episode of the Sports Spectrum Podcast in February 2022. “It fluctuated from a ton of peace to where I was really struggling. The fear started creeping in like, ‘what if this is infected?’ I spiraled quickly there.”
“But at the same time I had moments of really good peace,” he continued. “That morning my friend Dan Winkler had given me a book and I was reading it that morning before I went to the field. The whole chapter was on suffering and suffering well, to the glory of God.”
Adam fully recovered and signed with the Rays just months after his life-threatening injury. Despite his return, Adam confessed that sometimes it is more challenging to trust the Lord when his life is going well.
“At least for me, when things are going well, it’s almost harder on my relationship with God,” he said. “I start thinking things are going well because I’m doing good things and I can start relying on my own power instead of fully relying on God and trusting him with everything.”
“Knowing that I could do everything right and never play baseball again, and I could do everything wrong and he could give me a 15-year, multi-million dollar career… It’s all in his hands. He’s entrusted it to us, to a certain extent, to steward well,” he added. “So that’s kind of always like my focus when things are going well, to humble myself, under God.”
Adam and his wife Kelsey try to instill that faith into their three daughters, which he said taught him to be selfless and intentional.
“You learn a little bit about how selfish you are when you get married, but when kids come into the picture it’s a whole new ball game,” he confessed. “So I have learned that. But also just how freeing it can be to be intentional and have that intentional time. I never was good at sitting there and telling somebody how much I love them and what I love about them. But when it’s your daughter you look at them and you’re like, ‘I need to pour into their soul.'”
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Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
