Spencer Leslie Wise

Spencer Leslie “S. L.” Wise was born Leslie Spencer Wise on July 15, 1884, in Port Washington, Florida, to T. F. and Elizabeth (Colvin) Wise. Pentecostalism had not yet emerged when Wise was born, but his mother was a “shouting” Methodist whose fervent prayer life and devotion to God profoundly influenced her family.

In 1907, Wise married Minnie Lee Payne. The couple relocated to Remlig, Texas, in 1913, where they operated a pool hall and confectionery. During this time, the Kraus family from Arkansas moved in across the street. One of their daughters, Sybil, became gravely ill. The family chose prayer rather than medical intervention, a decision that alarmed the community and nearly prompted legal action. Sybil made a complete recovery, stunning the town and leaving a powerful testimony of divine healing.

In gratitude, the Kraus family sponsored a tent revival led by Louisiana evangelist Robert LaFleur. It was during this 1913 meeting that L. S. Wise received the Holy Ghost and was called to preach. He then vowed to fast until both his wife and his youngest brother, Robert Cecil “R. C.” Wise, received the same experience. Though his brother initially said, “He will starve to death before I become a Pentecostal,” both soon received the Holy Ghost.

Wise attended the Elton (Louisiana) Bible Conference in 1915, where he met O. F. Fauss (a 2006 Order of the Faith inductee), who baptized him in the name of Jesus Christ. The two men formed a lifelong friendship rooted in a shared passion for the Jesus Name message. Around this time, Wise reversed his name from Leslie Spencer to Spencer Leslie (S. L.) Wise, explaining that L. S. “is too close to Lucky Strikes, and I do not want any wisecracks.”

Between 1909 and 1929, God blessed S. L. and Minnie Lee with eight children. One died as a toddler, but the remaining seven received the Holy Ghost and were baptized in Jesus’ name. One daughter, Mary, married Lonnie Bill Treadway, and their son, Lonnie Charles “Buck” Treadway, later pastored a church in Beaumont, Texas.

In 1914, Wise was elected pastor of a brush arbor church in Browndale, Texas. He belonged to the General Assembly of the Apostolic Assemblies, a group formed in 1916. In December 1931, he became a member of the Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ and was ordained by R. L. LaFleur in a watch-night service held in a large rice warehouse in Kinder, Louisiana. In the early 1930s, he served as chairman of the  organization’s South Central Council and as vice-chairman of its Louisiana District. 

In 1927, Wise founded Hodge Pentecostal Church in Hodge, Louisiana, which became one of the largest congregations in the community. He pastored there for nineteen years while also serving in various Oneness organizations, including as a general presbyter in the Pentecostal Assemblies of Jesus Christ (PAJC). During the 1940s, Wise conducted Bible schools that taught the oneness of God, Jesus Name baptism, and soulwinning to aspiring young ministers. In 1946, after the PAJC and Pentecostal Church Incorporated (PCI) merged to form the United Pentecostal Church, Wise was elected as the first superintendent of the UPC’s Louisiana District following two days of intense balloting between Wise and George L. Glass, Sr.

During the UPC’s formative years, Wise’s unifying spirit proved invaluable. In June 1947, General Superintendent Howard Goss asked him to chair a meeting intended to reconcile disagreements between promintent ministers S. G. Norris, W. T. Witherspoon, B. H. Hite, and Goss. According to General Secretary Stanley Chambers, Wise’s participation was instrumental in the survival of the fledgling organization.

Wise also worked tirelessly to promote unity across the newly formed Louisiana District. He travelled throughout the state to organize and affiliate congregations, preaching, teaching, establishing church membership rolls, leading business meetings, dedicating new churches, installing pastors, and conducting official business. Many of the congregations he helped organize still exist today. During his tenure, the number of UPC churches and ministers in Louisiana doubled, and his leadership laid the foundation for what became one of the organization’s most influential districts.

Early on, Wise and other district leaders recognized the need for a permanent campground. Wise wanted a site near the center of the state, so he and his son-in-law Bill Treadway met with the owner of a seventy-five acre property in Tioga, Louisiana, that was for sale. Wise was confined to a wheelchair at the time, so Treadway pushed him all over the site as they considered the purchase. In 1946, the district board approved the $3,000 purchase. Wise gave liberally to the effort, even eating boiled eggs all the way to St. Louis for General Conference to save money. The first camp meeting on the new property was held in 1947. (Wise could attend only one service due to health issues.) Over the years, thousands of people from all over the country have made their way to Tioga, with many experiencing salvation and transformation.

Wise retired as district superintendent in 1953 due to declining health. After that, he did most of his gospel work from a wheelchair. When preaching, he preferred an armless secretary chair, which he rolled from side to side on the platform. Weak and in poor health, he was brought to the Louisiana campground by ambulance to preach an ordination service. It was the last sermon Wise would preach on his beloved campground.

S. L. Wise passed into eternity on February 8, 1963, in Hodge, Louisiana. At his funeral, Stanley Chambers declared, “The United Pentecostal Church is better because of Rev. S. L. Wise. He was, as his name suggests, a wise man.” Fittingly, the concluding funeral message was preached by Wise’s longtime friend and former organizational counterpart George L. Glass, Sr., a living testament to the unity Wise labored to achieve.