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Bartlesville and Spirit Church are home to a local pastor that is moving on to follow God's will to become a pastor of pastors in Oklahoma City.

Spirit Church Lead Pastor Darryl Wootton, and his wife Faith, were asked to serve as the District Superintendents of Oklahoma for the Assemblies of God. Wootton said they will serve 470 churches, and approximately 1,500 ministers and missionaries.

Pastor D, as Darryl is formally known as by churchgoers, said they felt like their purpose in Bartlesville was to bring love, joy and peace to the community. Wootton said their prayer now is that God would bring that love, joy and peace to the 470 churches they will serve across Oklahoma. He added that the thought of moving has been emotional.

Wootton said he does not know where he stops and where Spirit Church starts. Likewise, through the years Wootton said he doesn't know where the church stops and Bartlesville begins. Wootton said they're so interwoven that he feels like they are being uprooted. He said they're excited about the new opportunity that God has led them to, but they're very sad to leave.

With the utmost confidence, Wootton said he knows that the greatest chapters are ahead for Spirit Church. As he looked back on their 18 years of pastoring in Bartlesville, Wootton said God has been so faithful with all of the Day of Hope, Convoy of Hope, and Easter Egg Drop events that they've held. He said God has also been faithful to the church when it came to their hallmark moves in foster care as well as their partnership with Agape Mission in Bartlesville. 

Wootton's family has played a role in making Spirit Church what it is today in some way, shape or form since the beginning. At the turn of the century, Wootton's Great Grandfather Lowry moved to Bartlesville from Coffeyville, Kansas, to work for the smelters. During that time, a lady that lived in west Tulsa that started a prayer meeting in her home. The prayer meeting turned into an incredible revival in downtown Bartlesville in 1922 and 1923. Then, in 1924, that group that saw many finding Jesus saw First Assembly Church formed at the corner of Frank Phillips Boulevard and Virginia Avenue close to where Frontier Pool is now.

Wootton keeps in his office clippings of the event from the Morning Examiner - now the Bartlesville Examiner Enterprise - to remember his heritage and those that came before him; he keeps the clippings nearby to remind him of the great moves of God over many decades in both his family and in Bartlesville. Wootton said his great grandfather was a charter members, not a pastor, but he was there in the beginning. He said he never knew his great grandfather, but his Grandpa Lowry grew up in Bartlesville and was near and dear to him. 

Pictures have accumulated over the years, and Wootton reflects often on an image of his grandfather (pictured right with the telescope) walking up the mound on the west side of Bartlesville along Highway 60 where the water tower is now before there was ever a water tower in 1918. Wootton said the mound used to be taller. He said the top was blown off so the water tower could be installed. In the picture, you can see the old Lincoln School where Service & Technology Corporation is located today.

Wootton's Grandpa Lowry would become a deacon and song leader for First Assembly. Lowry would make appearances on KWON AM 1400, FM 93.3 as part of the Gospel Four Quartet in the 1940's. The quartet sang every week on KWON. A picture of a program for the Gospel Four Quartet is pictured below. Years later, Spirit Church still broadcasts its services on Sunday mornings on KWON. Pastor Wootton said you can tune in and discover God's love, joy and peace at 9:30 a.m. on Sundays.

The church got so big that they moved to a new location. Pastor D said the church moved to 900 S. Dewey Avenue in Bartlesville in 1966. He said that location now belongs to Hope Presbyterian Church. Spirit Church was in that location for 40 years before moving into their new home at 2121 S. Madison Boulevard. The church along Frank Phillips Boulevard would eventually be torn down due to structural issues. 

With the move to Madison Boulevard, Wootton said they felt like they were supposed to reach another part of Bartlesville. Wootton said they didn't feel as if they had the room or parking to make that happen in downtown Bartlesville so they moved to the east side of the city. He said they felt like they were supposed to share a little more love, joy and peace with a few more people.

Sue Lowry Wootton - Darryl's mother - grew up in Bartlesville, went to Lincoln School, and graduated from College High School. Sue would go to college and eventually marry Harold Wootton. Both Sue and Harold were high school teachers in Bartlesville, so Darryl and his siblings grew up right across the street from Jane Phillips Elementary School. Sue taught at College High and Harold taught at Sooner High. Sue was also an art teacher at the Mid High School (now Madison Middle School) for around 20 years. Harold taught business. Wootton said he grew up in the same block as the Lacey's, the Rigdon's, and the Jones. He said they're still lifelong friends to this day.

From Jane Phillips School, Wootton attended Central Middle School. Earl Sears was Wootton's sixth grade teacher and middle school principal. When Sears became the Oklahoma House District 11 Representative, he would invite Wootton to be in Oklahoma City to be a part of everything that was happening at the State Capitol. Other teachers that Wootton still makes time to see include kindergarten teacher Arlene Conover, and first grade teacher Meredith Fraser, whose husband, Bob, runs Woolaroc. 

During his time in school, Wootton ran a paper route. Wootton also worked at the Bartlesville Kiddie Park before working at First National Bank as their "mail guy." As a senior in high school, Wootton worked for Phillips 66 before answering the call to ministry that God placed on his heart.

Pictured right is a group photo at First Assembly in the 1950's.

From there, Wootton went off to Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri, where he would meet his wife, Faith. The two served as youth pastors in Ohio and Tulsa before getting the call to return to Bartlesville.

To Wootton it has been a special gift to return to Bartlesville and be the Lead Pastor at Spirit Church. Wootton said Bartlesville is the greatest city on the planet because there is no other place like it. He said he is the fourth generation raising the fifth generation of kids in their family, which has been an incredible journey.

Just recently someone came to Pastor Wootton that had gone through a difficult time in 2020. Wootton said this individual was going through everything the pandemic brought on, their marriage had fallen apart, and they suffered from a deep depression. He said that person sent him a note recently that read: "When everybody was running out, Spirit Church was running in." Fighting back tears, Wootton said he was thankful for those words. He said he loves the people that he has gotten to surround himself with at Spirit Church. 

Everyone has been in a pandemic of fear, of anger, and of confusion. Wootton said fear leads to anger and confusion. He said no one knows up from down anymore, nor do they know what to say without worrying if they're going to be judged or not.

Pictured left is volunteers standing by to give bags of groceries to those in need during Convoy of Hope in 2019. This was an event Spirit Church helped coordinate as part of their Day of Hope event.

As people are pointed to Jesus by the Holy Spirit, Wootton said they hope that they find the opposites of fear, anger and confusion. Wootton said the opposite of fear is love, the opposite of anger is joy, and the opposite of confusion is peace. He said that they always pray that God continues to draw people to that place where they can experience His love, joy and peace.

Wootton said Bartlesville has the greatest churches and the greatest pastors. He said Spirit Church is just one lighthouse among other great Christ-centered, Bible-based churches in the city. The hope is that that will continue in Bartlesville now and well into the future.

Spirit Church is still in transition mode. Wootton said they believe that God has his hand on the next leader and that they'll be able to make a smooth shift in leadership. He said his family will need to relocate to Oklahoma City by mid-summer.