HOUSTON, Texas – The first in-person church services will be held at Lakewood Church since a woman walked into the Houston megachurch and began shooting.
On February 11, Genesse Moreno walked into the front doors of Joel Osteen’s church in Upper Kirby armed with an AR15 and accompanied by her seven-year-old son.
When she started shooting, two off-duty law enforcement officers returned fire, killing Moreno. Her son and another man were also shot during the incident.
In the week following the shooting, there haven’t been any regularly scheduled worship services at Lakewood Church.
The Lord is our strength. Let’s come together this weekend at Lakewood for A Special Service of Healing, Prayer, and Unity. pic.twitter.com/8x2Zvln9BE
— Joel Osteen (@JoelOsteen) February 14, 2024
“This Sunday, we’re going to have special services,” Osteen said in a video on social media. “Time of healing and restoration, time of praise and thanksgiving. Just thanking God for his angels watching after us and for his faithfulness. For where would we be without the goodness and the mercy of God? So, we hope you and your family will come out, that you know the forces that would like for us to shrink back and live in fear, afraid of what might happen at the school, the grocery store, at work, or even at church. But we are not people of fear. We are people of faith.”
Lakewood Church hires their own security, including off-duty law enforcement officers.
A spokesperson for the church told KPRC 2′s Gage Goulding that the church will have an abundance of security this weekend.
“We want our members to feel safe. We will have appropriate security,” a Lakewood Church spokesperson said.
Worshipers said they feel comfortable going back and are looking forward to praying with their congregation.
“It’s no doubt about it. Definitely going to be there this Sunday at 8 a.m,” said Claudia Cooper, who’s been a member of Lakewood Church for a decade.
Gage: “Were there any reservations of maybe I got to think about this or was it we’re going?”
Claudia: “Absolutely not. My friends and family did tell me, ‘Don’t go for a couple of weeks. You know, there could be copycat.’ All these things. And, I just, I’m not, I’m not afraid. I have to go.”
Jose Alvear and his family have attended Lakewood Church for the past 21 years. He and his wife were in the sanctuary when the shooting started and their children were in a classroom.
“At first, I thought maybe someone up on the stage had dropped an instrument or something was a very loud bang,” Alvear said. “After that, you hear some more, and then, you see all the the running and everything.”
Despite that, he and his family will be back this Sunday to pray, walking through the same lobby where Moreno opened fire.
“You know, faith is more than feelings. Obviously, our feelings could be a little confused, our feelings could be a little scared. But faith goes beyond that,” he said.
Lakewood Church offers three in-person services on Sunday, at 8:30 a.m., 11 a.m. and a Spanish service at 2 p.m.