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Highland Baptist Offers Praises Following Tornado

February 21, 2008

“I’m so glad that God protected us through it all Sunday,” Pastor Brian Calhoun began the Wednesday night service at Highland Baptist Church, the first service in the church since Sunday’s tornado ripped the steeple off the church.

Several church members knew Sunday that the weather was forecast to be bad. The church organist received a call early on from a member who was sick at home. The TV weatherman was saying that bad weather was headed toward North Escambia.

Calhoun had just finished his sermon and was about to give the invitation. The organist received another call; this one telling her that a tornado was headed toward Molino. She quietly informed the music director. A decision was made, and worshipers were directed from the sanctuary with its huge stained glass windows to the fellowship hall, a brick building with no windows.

A few decided to leave. One lady did, only to find herself trapped in her car as the tornado neared. She saw the flying debris, and decided to return to the church. She pulled up under an awning at the church. The pressure from the approaching storm was so great that she was unable to open the doors of her car.

Meanwhile, inside the fellowship hall, the power was out, and it was dark except for emergency lighting. The children began to complain that their ears were popping due to the pressure. Mrs. Sara, the pastor’s wife and leader of the church’s Wednesday night Kids Klub, told the kids to pretend they were chewing bubble gum to unstop their ears. When that did not work, she led them in songs to comfort them as they huddled under tables.

The adults waited. And prayed.

When they emerged, they found destruction around them. Trees down. Metal in the trees. Windows blown out of cars. The church steeple on the ground in pieces, and smashed cars that were in its path down next to it.

They did not know that in one direction, homes were destroyed on Crest Lane. In the other direction, homes were destroyed on Molino Road.

“People have asked me ‘Were people screaming and stuff?’,” Calhoun said Wednesday night. “There were people crying. Sure. Some recalled Hurricane Ivan and the terror it brought. But there was a calming presence of the Lord that was there with us.”

After the storm, church members tried to cover the hole left in the roof where the steeple was ripped off. There were three men that did not attend the church that stopped by and helped.

Now the church is reaching out to the community. On Tuesday, Calhoun was walking around the Crest Lane area talking to storm victims. On Wednesday, Highland fed 15 people that were still without power.

“This has given us the opportunity to reach out to families whose homes were damaged in the storm,” he said. The Red Cross has left the area, but Highland continues to look for those in need. Two families from the Brickyard Road area have contacted the church so far looking for assistance.

“Anybody that still needs help should give us a call,” Calhoun said. “We will try to help them and minister to them at the same time.” The church can be reached at 587-5174.

Wednesday night, church members offered their praises to God for His protection during Sunday’s tornado.

The owner of the white car smashed by the steeple (pictured left), offered a simple praise. “It was all the Lord’s hand how it worked out,” he said. “I am just thankful that we were not sitting in that car.”

“I praise God for the calmness as we went to the fellowship hall,” another said. “We did not actually know that the tornado was just outside the door.”

“We are thankful that You looked out for us and did not let anyone get hurt,” a church member prayed. “We pray for all those in our community that lost their homes. Lost their vehicles. Give us all patience as we rebuild, and we rejoice that You had a hand in it.”

“Help us understand the needs of those around us, so we can reach out to them,” another prayed.

“We thank You for Your Spirit to calm us,” Calhoun prayed. “We thank You; we praise You.”

Highland Baptist Church suffered up to about $100,000 in damage in Sunday’s tornado, according to Calhoun. A structural engineer has determined that it is safe for the church to continue to hold services in the sanctuary. The damages include the steeple, portions of the roof as well as other structural damage around the church complex.

Pictured top: The cross from the top of the Highland Baptist Church steeple. Pictured below:The broken steeple in the parking lot. NorthEscambia.com photos; click to enlarge.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under Faith, News