‘This world is not our home,’ says family that lost house in Texas twister.
By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle
ROWLETT, Texas — Rain poured on Mike Patterson.
The Texas church member stood by the cozy fireplace where he used to glance out the window and enjoy God’s creation.
Now, crumbled bricks, broken glass and sticky yellow insulation surrounded him as he stared directly into the dark sky.
Soaked as he picked through the remains of his family’s tornado-devastated house, the 50-year-old father of two counted his blessings.
“It’s been a very good reminder of how quickly what we view as a home here in this world can just vanish and be torn apart in 15 seconds,” said Patterson, a deacon of the Saturn Road Church of Christ in nearby Garland, Texas. “It’s been a reminder that this world is not our home, and we should be focused on what is eternal.”
Patterson, his wife, Michelle, and their sons, Blake, 21, and Cameron, 16, were celebrating the holidays with extended family in Georgia when an outbreak of tornadoes struck North Texas.
Twelve people — including Timothy Harris, a member of the Johnson Street Church of Christ in Greenville, Texas — died as the tornadoes wreaked havoc the day after Christmas.
Related stories:
• Tornado victim lived by faith (reporting from Greenville, Texas)
• After the storm, heeding Jesus’ words (reporting from Garland, Texas)
These stories appear in the February 2016 print edition of The Christian Chronicle.
The Ross News 