A cross remained standing inside a church in Dallas, Texas, after an F-3 tornado tore the building apart on Sunday.
“For me and for our church, it’s a symbolic source of encouragement. Christ and His cross is what still stands for us,” said Northway Church’s lead pastor, Shea Sumlin, who posted the now-viral photo online.
“Here an F-3 tornado ripped off our roof…yet here’s this wooden cross, that I have no idea how it didn’t get picked up,” the pastor told Fox News.
“Even though our building is broken, our body is as whole and alive as we’ve ever been because of the hope of Jesus Christ.”
The National Weather Service said that at least three tornadoes touched down in North Texas on Sunday evening, destroying homes and cutting power for over 140,000 residents.
“Monday afternoon, NWS survey teams confirmed three twisters: an EF-3 tornado with maximum winds of 140 mph in North Dallas, an EF-1 tornado with maximum winds of 100 mph that touched down in Rowlett and an EF-0 that touched down in Wills Point in Van Zandt County,” according to NBC 5.
On Sunday night, viewers sent video footage to the news outlet which showed the tornadoes moving across the area:
However, in the wake of the storms, Northway Church joined with other community members on Wednesday evening to feed neighbors whose homes were damaged.
“The dinner’s just kind of a communal piece in this to bring us together for a little bit of rest, a little bit of peace. Then we’ll go right back to work in the morning helping with the physical needs that around us, so that kind of brings us together again tonight,” Sumlin commented.
Resident Gabriel Flores said that although the church building is severely damaged, that does not mean its members are.
“Since Sunday night, I’ve been seeing the structure just broken and what I call the church building being broken down. But what we call the church, which is the people, coming together and having some brisket is amazing,” Flores concluded.
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