Mississippi church van vandalized, burned

Brandon, Mississippi Thursday, January 24, 2008
On Sunday, January 13, NewDay Community Church of the Nazarene Pastor Mark Howie reports his church, a NewStart church in Brandon, Mississippi, had a wonderful service with seven people coming forward to accept Christ.The next day wasn't so wonderful.At approximately 7 A.M. on Monday, Howie received a phone call from the Brandon Police Department informing him the church van had been vandalized. The locks were broken, tires slashed, and “420 SATAN” was painted on the side. To make matters worse, that night, around 11 P.M., Howie received another call from police reporting the van was fully engulfed in flames.Upon arriving at the church, Howie found "a totally gutted van."Among other things, the church used the 15-passenger van to transport groceries to those in need. According to Jackson, Mississippi news station WJTV, the church only had liability insurance on the van and will be unable to replace it with insurance money. Howie told WJTV this is the first time something like this has happened to the church in the eight years he's been pastor. "Anytime you do good and you actively do good for a community you're always gonna have speed bumps," Howie said. "You're always going to have things that will try and set you back, but it's really your attitude towards it and we just decided to let it go and move on."After nearly two weeks of investigation, police arrested three men and charged them with arson. Two of the men are 17 years of age and one is 18. Bail was set at $250,000."We wish they would draw closer to Christ, we only wish positive things for them, that they turn their lives around and move in the right direction," Howie told WJTV.In an E-mail to NCN News Howie said he is now seeking ways to reach out to the families of the men. “Never let Satan overshadow what good God is doing,” he stated.NewDay Nazarene began as a NewStart church two weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit Mississippi, and just 18 weeks ago, moved into an $8 million industrial complex which is now used to house the church and its compassionate ministry center.