JACKSONVILLE, Ark. — Arkansans all across the state have faced challenges this year and many of them were impacted by the March tornado.
That's the case for lots of families in Jacksonville.
New Commandment C.O.G.I.C members are moving forward despite the struggles, and they still have a thankful heart going into the holidays.
"When I was almost at the point of being depressed or down, someone would always step in and do something miraculously," New Commandment C.O.G.I.C Pastor Eddie Miller said.
Even though the March tornado destroyed their old building, it did not destroy their spirit.
"God is still doing miracles, people are still loving, it's not all bad," Miller said. "There's still a lot of good, there's still a lot of good people. So we got to grab a hold to the good and hold on to that."
Miller said the community has been a huge help in getting them back on their feet.
"Victory Baptist Church, right across the street from where we were located, offered their facilities for us to worship there," he said.
A land surveyor helping with the new building gave them a temporary space to worship.
"It's a miracle that we was able to do everything that we've ever done, and even on a larger scale this year," he said.
Thankfully, the Christmas traditions will continue, even though the new building isn't finished yet.
"Nothing is going to dampen our spirits, we're gonna have a great time. Because we stop here and just look back from March 31 up until now, it was worth it all," he added.
While the shape of the church's foundation may seem like it was planned, Miller said it was actually a surprise.
"When we laid it out, we had no idea it was the shape of the cross," Miller explained. "I never thought about it. We just saw the front entrance and when we walked in, 'I said I want the sanctuary a little bit longer,' which made the cross."
Now he looks forward to serving even more people in his new church.
"That means everything in the world to me to be able to serve people. That's what it's all about," he said.
The new church building comes at no cost to the members because a local contractor gifted it to them.
They hope to finish the building before the one year anniversary of the tornado.
New Commandment's annual Christmas Eve service will be held at 9:30am on Sunday, Christmas Eve.