Tulsa Church Optimistic About Future After Fire

Leaders at Tulsa's Memorial Drive Church of Christ are trying to figure out what to do next after a fire destroyed most of their building.

Intense flames and smoke left behind heavy damage at Memorial Drive Church of Christ after a fire Wednesday morning.

Church members took pictures from the roof, showing part of it had caved in, and the damage below. Back on the ground, others took time to pray about their situation.  

"God's not afraid of this, so that's where we take our confidence,” Minister Jason Thornton said.

Thornton has been with the church for 16 years.

While leaders said a decision to rebuild hasn't been made yet, Thornton said they're moving forward with optimism.

“The work it's gonna take is gonna be difficult, I'm certain,” he said. “It is the idea that we're still the people of God. So we're excited about whatever he has next for us."

About 60 firefighters worked to fight the flames, and some were on standby throughout the afternoon for any potential hot spots.

Tulsa Fire Captain Stan May said there are still a few things firefighters need to do before determining a cause.

"There is a witness they want to talk to and then there are certain parts of the church that have video and they're getting those downloaded and they'll take a look at it,” May said.

Brett Stewart works at a bakery across the street and saw his church on fire this morning when he went in around 4 a.m.

"The church is the people. The building is just a building. This is nothing, there's nothing holy about a building. It's the people,” Stewart said.

He's thankful no one was hurt, and confident about the future.

"We have a strong community here in the Tulsa area and so we'll be okay."

Leaders are working on plans for where Sunday services might be. The church does have insurance and is accepting donations to help them move forward.