21 MAY 2018 BODY OF CHRIST NEWS Tell the Lord Thank You! Pastors come, and pastors go! That’s a fact of life, but it doesn’t make it any easier to say farewell to a much-beloved pastor and his wife. When Pastor Orian Flournoy announced his upcoming retirement from pastoral ministry some months ago, his announcement was met with much sadness on the part of members in the True Spirit Baptist Church because they had come to love this pastor and his lovely wife, Mittie, over the eighteen years they have pastored the True Spirit Baptist Church. However, June 10, 2018, is their last official day. Members and friends are invited to bid them farewell as they prepare to take up a new phase of their lives nearer to their family in Gainesville, FL, where he was born and raised in Micanopy, FL. As a member of The United States Air Force, Orian Flournoy and his family came to Colorado Springs the second Sunday in June 1993. Not knowing what the Lord had for them, their goal was to go to back to Florida, but the Lord sent them here. He retired from the Air Force in 1996 and was already serv- ing as a bi-vocational pastor and later entered the ministry full time. During his 25 years in Colorado Springs, he served at Trinity Baptist Church, Mt. Zion in La Junta and assisted with the establish- ment of other churches in the area. He became the Pastor of the True Spirit Baptist Church in 2000. Under the leadership of Pastor Orian Flournoy and the will of the people to work, the membership grew. It became clear that congregation needed a larger edifice to house membership and ministries. At that time the Church didn’t have a loan nor land. But God spoke to Pastor Flournoy and told him “We’re going in the door in 2004.” Pastor Flournoy told the Lord “Thank you” but God replied, “No. I want you to tell the people.” Pastor Orian Flournoy obeyed the Lord and told the people what the Lord had said, and the people had a vision to build. The Church found land in South East Colorado Springs and the building process began. Pastor Flournoy was reminded of Nehemiah 4:6, “The people had a mind to work,” and the new building project became a reality. Pastor Flournoy said, “I was blessed to be a part of such an amazing journey! The numerous ministries that came forth out of True Spirit Baptist Church were established to empower the member- ship and be a blessing to the community.” Looking back on the twenty-five years in Colorado Springs, Orian Flournoy has many accomplish- ments. He and his wife raised three children: Luflossia, Orian, Jr. and Elizabeth. They have seven grandchildren: Keea, Brianna, Adrian, Nyja, Isaiah, Orian, 3rd and Sarai. Pastor Flournoy is a true man of God who loves his family. In the eighteen years of pastoring True Spirit, he stated he has made many mistakes and has been far from being perfect and “I want to thank the people at True Spirit Baptist Church for all of the support and love they’ve shown to me and my family. They were really good to us.” Pastor Flournoy was ordained in March 1989. He completed a Master of Arts Degree in Counseling from Colorado Christian University. He served in the Ministerial Union as the Chaplain, Program coordi- nator and Vice President. Pastor Flournoy completed the Colorado Springs Police Citizen Academy and has received numerous awards for his exemplary contri- butions to civil rights and social justice. He is a life member of the NAACP and served as Military Affairs Chair, Ministry Affairs Chair, Second Vice President and Member At Large on the Executive Board. He also served on a citizen committee that was formed to be advisors to US House of Representative, on issues pertaining to the minority community. When asked what came out of the committee work, Pastor Flournoy replied, “The Representative shared his philosophy and it was valuable to understand his thought process. But my take-a-way is, some people are stuck where they are. Their mindset is fixed, and Continued on Page 22 CHURCH NEWS Orian & Mittie Flournoy By Rev. Zelna Joseph God is good all the time and all the time God is good, Tell the Lord Thank you!