DEMOPOLIS-Members of Church Aflame in Demopolis, Alabama, are one step closer to having a new place to worship.

It took three years and three months to pay off the $230,000 debt for the property next to Wal-mart, but Pastor Mickey Green and his congregation made the last payment August 1, 2005.

“It feels wonderful,” Green said. “We have architects drawing preliminaries and we are making adjustments now.”

The money for the land came from the congregation and the community. Green said they only had one fundraiser for the project in the past three years.

“We had a Boston butt sale in December of 2002.”

Green said the new sanctuary will be in the neighborhood of $700,000, but he has faith that it will be paid for in about five years.

He said he doesn’t plan on having fundraisers to pay for the sanctuary because they “have people who are very committed to getting this done.”

Although the church’s membership stands at about 150, the new sanctuary will hold 1,500 people.

Green said phase one of the project will be a youth education and fellowship hall with space for 350 people. The hall will serve as a sanctuary for Church Aflame until phase two is completed.

Phase two will be the main sanctuary that will hold ten times the current membership.

Green and his congregation have already purchased chairs for the fellowship hall and are hoping for a groundbreaking in November or December.

The church’s current sanctuary is also up for sale.

“The money we get will apply to the new building,” Green said.

On Sunday, Church Aflame invites everyone to its “Mortgage Burning Celebration.” The event will begin at 10:30 a.m. and the congregation will celebrate the payoff.

“All day Sunday will be a time of rejoicing,” Green said.

Morning service begins at 7 a.m.

“It’s a miracle for our church to do something like this so quick,” Green said. “We are really grateful to God for what he’s done, He really laid his hands on it.”