A Marvelous Act of Love: OKWU Graduate’s 26-Year Ministry Journey
Jamie Prescott’s life is a testament to redemption, resilience, and servant leadership. A 1997 alumnus of Oklahoma Wesleyan University, Jamie is now the Family Pastor at Connect Church in Lawrence, Kansas, where he reflects the very values cultivated during his time on campus. His story is a powerful reminder of how personal trials can shape a life of profound impact and how God uses brokenness to build servant leaders.
Challenges and Triumphs
Jamie’s journey to OKWU was far from ordinary. His early years were marked by instability and hardship. At four, Jamie was adopted by his first father, who moved the family to Enid, Oklahoma, seeking a fresh start. Unfortunately, it began with the family sleeping in a small truck after discovering the promised job and home didn’t exist.
At sixteen, Jamie’s life changed again when his birth mother relinquished her parental rights, leading to his second adoption. While stories like this could foster bitterness, for Jamie, they sparked something different.
“Adoption is a marvelous act of love,” he says.
That love, shown through his adopted father and later his OKWU community, shaped his view of leadership.
A Safe Harbor
Jamie looks back on his time at OKWU as a defining season that shaped both his calling to ministry and his personal growth within a supportive community.
Jamie faced a life-changing loss when his adoptive father passed away while he and his brother were both OKWU students. It was a devastating moment, for their father had been a steady anchor in their lives.
When Jamie shared the news with his brother, their Resident Director offered a prayerful, supportive embrace, giving them space to grieve. The support didn’t stop there. After the funeral, Jamie returned to campus. Overwhelmed, he struggled to complete an exam. Instead of failing him, the professor understood his grief and gave him the chance to retake it.
Other professors also supported Jamie academically, personally, and spiritually during tough moments. Their compassion left a lasting impression, shaping his understanding of ministry and leadership.
Love Shows Up
“Those relationships—I didn’t realize at the time how much they were teaching me about ministry, patience, and emotional investment,” Jamie recalls.
Now, as a Family Pastor, Jamie leads with the same intentional care he experienced at OKWU. At Connect Church, he creates space where families and individuals find hope, healing, and belonging. His ministry is shaped by his past.
Servant leadership isn’t about spotlight moments. It’s showing up when life breaks someone apart.
Having grown up with shaky trust and conditional love, he now models the steady, sacrificial love he believes Christ calls His followers to show.
Everything he does, whether it’s coordinating community outreach efforts or making time to sit with a struggling student, is rooted in his belief that loving like Jesus means placing others’ needs above your own. This is servant leadership.
The Ripple Effect
Jamie’s story is one of transformation and impact. Living out the values he gained at OKWU, he demonstrates how servant leadership can ripple outward, shaping families, and communities.
Following the example of his OKWU professors and peers, who modeled Christ’s love, Jamie now strives to do the same. He credits those formative years of mentorship and community for giving him the confidence to trust God with his ministry.
After 26 years at Connect Church, Jamie continues to serve others with passion, humility, and faith. His story reminds us that leadership isn’t a title but a daily act of service, often arising out of our own stories of redemption.
Jamie’s life invites reflection. How can we, like him, use our stories to serve and lead? How can we lead with love in our everyday interactions? For servant leaders like Jamie, OKWU is a marvelous place to be shaped for God’s glory