EDWARDS, Miss. (WJTV) – A church was badly damaged and many homes suffered a total loss after Tuesday’s storms hit the Edwards community hard. When it comes to the faith of the people who live in the town, that has certainly not been broken.
People in the community are still picking up the pieces from the severe weather. One local pastor said while his church was damaged, that was the least of his worries.
“It means so much to me that God spared our Church. It means even more to me that he spared the lives of our members. You do realize that I could have been doing a whole lot of funerals next week. Thanks to our good Lord, I don’t have to do any funerals from the storm. That means so much to me,” said Ratliff Chapel Missionary Baptist Church Pastor Douglas Lacey.
Church service will be held as usual at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday morning. One member, who lives just a few miles down the highway, said he’ll be there. He also said that while the storm took everything, he’s looking forward to the future and what’s ahead.
“I knew that I wanted different. I wanted change. Here’s my change. It comes in a peculiar way, but I’m so at peace with where I’m at that it doesn’t phase me. People would see this and be in awe, but I’m just looking for what it’s about to be,” said homeowner Patrick Bradley.
He said his relationship with God is what’s holding him together.
“You have to have a relationship with the creator in order to have peace of mind. I just picked up a picture. It was a picture of my grandfather. He was smiling, and that gave me reassurance that ‘Hey son, everything’s going to be alright.'” said Bradley.
The rebuilding phase for many people in Edwards may take months. For others, it may take up to a year. One thing the people said is that it all starts with a positive attitude and taking things one day at a time.