二○二一年九月十八日／十九日
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SUN＋崇拜：堂內植堂，創新承傳
張穎新牧師
主日早上是北宣家人流最密集的時段，自從真理樓在 2007 年啟用以來，北宣信徒的確得到更適切的分流。不過這也促使至少三類的信徒會長期留在真理樓參與大堂崇拜的轉播，其中包括小學級家長、以及在真理樓或教育樓事奉的人員、在這兩堂點的課程班組學員。
無論是現場或透過轉播形式參與崇拜，按著心靈和誠實敬拜真神，誠然是眾人共同的屬靈基礎。然而，長期參與轉播崇拜有可能會衍生人與人之間的隔閡，並且削弱教牧領袖與信徒之間的交流，以及窒礙台上台下的牧養互動。現今信徒的生命背負著越來越沉重的擔子，故此近距離的教牧同行、彼此在崇拜前後的守望，實在是刻不容緩。
以上是堂主任周曉暉牧師在近幾年的觀察，教會由此醞釀出一個意念，就是透過新崇拜體現堂內植堂的異象。周牧師去年開始與教牧分享這意念，好幾位教牧和領袖也同感一靈，積極回應。今年初，我們開始籌備，要在真理樓早上加開一堂新崇拜，最後教會於 9 月 19 日設立了 SUN＋崇拜，既傳承北宣以神為中心的敬拜，也創新地融入了以「家」為本、敬拜與事奉兼備的元素。
顧名思義，「SUN＋崇拜」就是在 SUNday 主日「新加」的崇拜，其特色如下：
新理念：SUN＋與「神家」近音，我們深信神喜悅一個「家庭友善」（family-friendly）的崇拜，讓信徒一家大小可在現場更投入敬拜讚美，在會前會後交談分享，享受到「家」的親切感及歸屬感。因為，每一個敬拜者都是屬靈家庭的成員。不論是已婚或未婚的信徒，我們都歡迎你與家人一起來實時敬拜，家庭是人人有分的。
新亮點：符號「＋」同時代表十架為本的基督信仰，有恩典，有真理。我們既是神家裡的一分子，就應在崇拜中盡情結合愛心行動的服事，不做被動的觀眾，而是積極置身其中，成為「敬拜真神、彼此服事」的屬靈群體。試想想，核心家庭成員、兩代人、甚至三代人，一起投入敬拜和事奉，那會是何等的美、何等的善！
新連結：要落實以上願景，就需要教牧與信徒一起同行、關顧，一起樂意付出，如此大家定必能在屬靈的家裡一同蒙福。每一個敬拜者若持守平易近人和靈活貼地的 C.P.R. 原則——關心（Care）、代禱（Prayer）、重新連結（Reconnect）——這個 SUN＋崇拜就必能為主所用，而祂也必在我們當中作奇妙的事。
Pastor's Sharing SUN+ Worship Service: Innovation and Inheritance in Internal Church Planting
Rev Wayne Cheung
Sunday morning is the most crowded period for the NPAC family. Ever since its commissioning in 2007, the Truth Center has effectively diversified the premises for meeting for believers in NPAC. But this also encourages three groups of believers to stay in the Truth Center to attend worship services in the Main Church through onsite broadcast. These include the parents of primary Sunday School classes, brothers and sisters who serve in the Truth Center and the Education Center, and course participants at the two sites.
Worshiping God in spirit and in truth is the common spiritual foundation whether we attend worship services in person or through onsite broadcast. Yet, prolonged worshiping via webcasting is likely to create barriers for interpersonal exchanges. It also weakens the communication between church leaders and believers and hinder pastoral interaction in front of and behind the lectern. With the burden of life on today’s Christians increasing every day, there is a pressing need for our pastoral staff to walk closely with believers and watch over them before and after the worship service.
The above are observations by our Senior Pastor, Rev Arnold Chow, in recent years. From these observations, the church has come up with a new idea by which we can realize our vision of church planting within NPAC by setting up a new worship service. Rev Chow started sharing this concept with the pastoral staff last year. Some pastoral staff and church leaders also shared the vision and responded positively. Early this year, we started preparations for a new worship service at the Truth Center on Sunday morning. This resulted in the launch of the “SUN+ Worship Service” on September 19. The new worship service is God-centered in accordance with the NPAC tradition. It is at the same time family oriented, incorporating worship and ministry.
"SUN+ Worship Service" is "a newly added” worship service on SUNday. It has the following features:
A new concept: The Chinese pronunciation of "SUN+" sounds very much like “God’s family” (神家). We firmly believe that God is pleased with a family-friendly worship service in which the entire family can worship together, share before and after the worship service, and feel the warmth and sense of belonging as a “family.” Since every worshiper is a member of the spiritual family, you are welcome to join the worship service together with your family in person whether you are married or single, as everyone belongs to the family.
A new emphasis: The "+" sign is the cross, which is the basis of the Christian faith. It stands for grace and the truth. As members of God's household, we should take acts of love as a ministry alongside our worship service. Worshipers will not just sit there passively but participate actively as a faith community that "worship God and serve one another." Think of how beautiful and good it is when the core family and two or even three generations of a household worship and serve together!
A new connection: To realize the above vision, pastoral staff and believers need to work together. They need to care for one another and be ready to commit so the entire spiritual family will be blessed. It requires CPR – care, prayer and reconnection – to be applied naturally and flexibly. This way, SUN+ Worship Service will be used by God and God will certainly work wonders among us.
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