DALLAS — First Baptist Dallas members are getting closer to returning to their downtown Dallas property after a four-alarm fire ravaged their historic sanctuary.

“The Worship Center looks wonderful. I was in there yesterday, and I texted our pastor,” Dr. Ben Lovvorn said. “I said the Worship Center looks, feels, and smells great.”

Lovvorn is the executive pastor of the Dallas megachurch. On Sunday, he told congregants who had to go to the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center‘s main arena for the past two Sundays about their chances of returning to the property.

“Barring any surprise, I’m fairly confident that we will be together worshipping in our Worship center next Sunday morning,” he said.

Lovvorn said everything, including the building’s systems, elevators, escalators, media, internet, and life safety systems, must be checked out first.

In the meantime, he said crews are working around the clock to put beams and scaffolding up at the site of the scorched facade, where they are accustomed to having services.

“We are confident that we’re going to preserve much of that historic sanctuary—the exterior of those walls,” Lovvorn said.

The pastor also told the church he had no answers about how the fire started. He said the investigation could only proceed once First Baptist Dallas got the grounds safe enough for fire investigators to do their job.

“The priority has been to secure those walls and make sure the site is safe,” He said.

The damage to the church’s Criswell Center is significant enough that he said members would be unable to use it. The night of the fire, he said, the building took in dark smoke, lost power, and had a flooded basement.

The impact on the church’s artifacts remains unclear. A church spokesperson said the items are all digitized, but they have not worked through everything damaged or what didn’t make it.

The hull of the former sanctuary is where destruction occupies the place where members came to worship.

Mike Judd, the president of the Dallas County Pioneer Association, said the First Baptist Dallas fire reminded him of Notre Dame in April 2019.

“The wooden structure tends to burn straight up, very hot, and very quickly, but that type of fire tends to leave the exterior walls intact and reusable,” Judd said.

Judd’s Dallas County Pioneer Association is a non-profit organization that preserves and promotes the history of pioneer-era properties and facilities. The 1868 genesis of First Baptist Dallas is on their page.

“This is not just any church that burned. It’s the flagship church for decades and decades of the Southern Baptist Convention,” Judd said. “I think for prominence, it probably has no equals.”

As for what the rebuilt First Baptist Sanctuary could look like, Judd said he’s not a member. He does have a vision.

“Leaving a corner with smoke damage at the top of one of the windows, all those cornices around the edges that have the smoke damage, yeah,” Judd said. “Leaving one or two of those as a reminder of 2024 and the fire. That would be a wonderful call back to what happened this year.”

In a statement to CBS News Texas about the new sanctuary, Lovvorn said, “We are confident God is going to do great work in the days ahead. We are beginning to make plans to rebuild. Whatever we ultimately do will both honor the history and spiritual heritage of our church and express an excited optimism for the future.” 

When Dalton Schultz left in free agency ahead of the 2023 season, the Dallas Cowboys turned to second-year tight end Jake Ferguson. The fourth-round pick from Wisconsin had just 19 receptions for 174 yards with two touchdowns as a rookie.

Despite the modest numbers, the coaching staff had faith in his potential — and they weren’t wrong.

Ferguson broke out with 71 receptions for 761 yards and five touchdowns. He added three more touchdowns in the postseason and was rewarded with a trip to the Pro Bowl.

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Now entering his third season, Ferguson is looking to improve and arrived at training camp in excellent shape. After playing at 240 pounds last year, Ferguson is up to 255 and hasn’t sacrificed any speed.

“A lot of it was my speed, but also at the end of the year I finished at 240 lbs. and while I was still strong… that wasn’t the weight I can move guys at. At the exit interview coach was like we can get you to 250, 255… and right now I’m sitting at 255. I ran faster in all my testing. Ran faster than I did at the Combine. And then tested all and I lift better. I feel really good right now. Feel like I’m running well. Obviously… pads aren’t on yet so real football’s yet to be played.” — Ferguson said while speaking with reporters.

Dallas will have more targets to go around this year with Michael Gallup and Tony Pollard no longer on the roster. Much has been made of the battle for the WR3 spot, and for good reason, but Ferguson will also help pick up some of that slack.

He could also help their ground game outperform expectations should he become a better blocker, which he believes will happen thanks to the added strength.

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The sun has risen, which means we are another day closer to the start of the Dallas Cowboys season. In fact, fans are just 41 days away from watching their beloved Cowboys take the field against the Cleveland Browns.

A new day means it is time to celebrate another of the best players in the franchise’s long history.

Today, is all about the number 41.

Charlie Waters – DB

The best player to wear the 42 in Dallas was physical defensive back Barry Church. The best player to wear the 41 could be described as the same. Charlie Waters played 12 seasons in the NFL, all 12 of those years were with the Cowboys.

Waters played everywhere, from cornerback and free safety to strong safety.

The former third-round pick of the 1970 NFL Draft achieved 3 Pro Bowl selections and was a part of 2 Super Bowl-winning teams during his playing time.

After his playing career, Waters went on to become a coach for the Denver Broncos, starting in the 1988 season. Starting as the special teams coach and then working his way to defensive backs coach, Waters became the Broncos’ defensive coordinator for two seasons in 1993 and 1994.

A player with so much passion for the game, it is no surprise to see Charlie Waters as the best player to wear the number 41 in Dallas.

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