December 15, 2006 11:43 pm
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When Seth Wilson was once asked how he wanted to be remembered, the venerable dean emeritus of Ozark Christian College replied that he would like people to say that he was willing to be used in the service of God.
That simple statement of faith was typical of the beloved OCC pioneer, who died Monday at age 92. However, those who knew Wilson during his time as dean or professor had many more words of praise to offer, as well as what this Christian icon meant to the 64-year-old Joplin college.
From OCC archives come the following comments from the people who knew him best.
n From Donald and Maxine Fream (former faculty members): “Seth Wilson was like an anchor in holding Ozark securely fastened to Christ Jesus. Ozark’s reputation was Seth Wilson’s reputation for years — solid and unflinchingly dedicated to training those who would minister in the service of our Lord.”
n Knofel Staton, former faculty member, noted the wisdom of Wilson’s teaching. He taught “that attitudes are more important than academics, that relationships are more important than degrees, that unity does not depend upon conformity and that we have no creed but Christ.”
Staton also noted that Wilson was “as close to the maturity of Christlikeness as anyone I have met personally.”
n Steve Siemens, former student who went on to be a Christian college president in Iowa, once said to Wilson: “Everyone of us is made up of bits and pieces of people, experiences and situations. Your bits and pieces of dedication, discipline, compassion and love for truth have been a motivation to my life and ministry..”
n Another former student, Roy Wheeler, had this to say about Wilson: “One statement he made in a chapel service has made a difference in my ministry. The statement was this: ‘There are two kinds of ministers leaving this school: those who build churches and those who live off of churches other men have built.’ I was so impressed with the statement that I made up my mind that I would not be the latter.”
n A former trustee of the college, Charley Greer, commented: “I’ve never met a man who could do more things than he can. I remember him tearing into the engine of a car and at the same time talking about the intricacies of the sky. Before long, I found out he could play many musical instruments.”
n Woodrow Phillips, former director of missions at the college, said: “I found Seth a friend, a brother, a confidant whom I could completely trust and a man deeply committed to the cause of Christ and to the authenticity and the authority of the New Testament. I don’t think that I can offer any higher praise than to say that as a believer of outstanding intellectual capacity, he spent his life training others to share the gospel of Jesus Christ and that army of men and women now reaches around the world.”
Address correspondence to Rich Brown, c/o The Joplin Globe, P.O. Box 7, Joplin, Mo. 64802.
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