“A Jesus School”
When President Ken Idleman planned the Casteel Administration Building, he made sure visitors were greeted immediately in the lobby by a large mural of Jesus welcoming workers into the harvest fields (Matt 9:37-38). Current Academic Dean Doug Aldridge likes to say that Ozark is “a Jesus school,” and he’s right. Christ is at the center of all we do. He’s at the center of our calendar, as we gather each week in chapel to worship him. He’s at the center of our curriculum, as each student studies his Word—especially his life in the Gospels. He’s even at the center of our campus. On the front porch of the Seth Wilson Library stands an eight-foot-tall statue of Jesus. Students call him “Scary Jesus.” (If you’re leaving the library at night and suddenly glimpse a towering figure in the shadows, you
might call him Scary Jesus, too.) The actual title of the statue is Christ Teaching, and on the wall behind the image are the words of Christ, “Come...learn from me” (Matt 11:28-29). It’s a powerful reminder: Jesus is the one we seek in every decision, the one we study in every class, the one we follow every day. He is the author of Ozark’s story, and for 75 years, he has kept us focused and kept us faithful. Seth Wilson used to say, “Who we teach you to love is more important than what we teach you to know,” and more than anything else, we want our students to love Christ. We are a Jesus school. May that never change.
Jesus is the one we seek in every decision, the one we study in every class, the one we follow every day. He is the author of Ozark’s story, and for 75 years, he has kept us focused and kept us faithful.
TO INSPIRE
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