Pastor speaks after startling New Year’s Eve service
By Bethany Cates
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WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina (WXII) — From praises to prayers is how people in the congregation at Mount Sinai Full Gospel Deliverance Center in Winston-Salem started their 2026.
“As we were closing to get ready to go to the photo booth, a bullet came through the vestibule door into the sanctuary door,” said Senior Pastor Yvonne Hines.
Hines said she has never experienced something so unsettling in her 30 years of ministry.
She said as soon as they heard the shots, everyone immediately hit the floor.
“We did everything that we were supposed to do, we had security on the grounds, we had a pipeline to the police department, we had people in-house who were prepared,” Hines said.
Hines said her message during her first Sunday service of the new year was a message of encouragement.
“We will proceed with probably a more cautionary perspective, but we will proceed with our service agenda,” Hines said.
She also added that there was a distinct takeaway that came from all of this.
“The world that I grew up in has changed considerably,” Hines said.
Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough also posted a response to the incident on Facebook. One of his deputies was grazed on the hand by the bullet.
“I just want to know where did we lose the respect for the church, where did we lose the respect for one another,” Kimbrough said.
And while this wasn’t the outcome Hines expected walking into the New Year, the situation has given her a renewed sense of purpose as she continues to minister to the community.
‘When something of this magnitude happens, when you’ve got grit and guts, it kind of steers you, adversity gives you a recharge or a reset,” Hines said.
Hines said the church is offering a $5,000 reward if anyone can provide any information on who fired the shots.
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office also asks that if anyone has any information, please come forward.
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