Chairperson: Fung Lam
Speaker: Rev Mureen Wong
Interpretor: Rebecca Hu
Singspiration: Shirley Ho
Committee on Duty: Herman Yeung
Proclamation
Praise the LORD, all you nations;
extol him, all you peoples.
For great is his love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.
(Psalm 117:1-2)
Opening Prayer
Singspiration
Ten Commandments
Scripture Reading
John 9:1-7
Sermon
Focus on the Mission
Response Hymn
Doxology
Benediction
Threefold Amen
Announcements
A warm welcome to everyone who joined us this morning. We are delighted to see you all.
Joint Mission Month Sunday Service and 12th Deacons' Inauguration Ceremony (August 27): The joint service of the three congregations will be at 10:00 AM, and the prayer meeting will be at 8:30 AM. On that day, the church will also hold a gift presentation ceremony for Pastor Paul Wong’s retirement and the completed term of the outgoing deacons. Please note the meeting time and attend punctually.
Mid-Autumn Festival Community Outreach Event: Cantonese Mission Dept. and Community Outreach Team are co-hosting a Mid-Autumn Festival event on Saturday, 30 September. The theme is "Mid-Autumn Hong Kong-style Food FUN FUN Day." The event will take place from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM. There will be a variety of delicious foods and game stalls for children available. Brothers and sisters are encouraged to bring family, relatives, and neighbors, and invite friends who are interested in the Gospel. Entrance fee is $10 per person, and free for children of five and under. For more details please refer to the poster. For inquiries or ticket purchase please contact contact Samantha Chan (Cantonese), Amy Tong or Sharon Chan (English), or Sean Wang (Mandarin).
54th Baptism will be held on 1st October as a combined service for all three congregations. For those who want to be baptised, please contact any Deacon, Pastor or your Small Group Leader. The deadline is 27th August. All applicants are required to have their nurturing course completed. Once an application is received, baptism class will be arranged and the deacons will meet with you to confirm your faith. Please also contact us if you would like to have your church membership transferred to HWC or would like to have child dedication.
30th anniversary of HWC in May 2024: One of the celebration items is the Anniversary Magazine with the theme "Love & Legacy." The church encourages all brothers and sisters to participate and express gratitude through written words. Share their experiences of God's presence, the love from God, and between brothers and sisters. The editing team welcomes submissions in different format (poems/lyrics/hymns). The word limit for essay is 1,000 words, with content that aligns with the theme. Please send the article in English and Chinese to the church's email address: hwc@holywordchurch.org.nz. The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2023.
The organizing committee members are: Nancy Choy, Phoebe Lam, Sean Wang, Sarah Li , Sharon Chan and Sally Che. Details about other activities will be announced later.
Mission News
Please continue to pray for the Mission Month, may the Lord inspire our heart of mission. Mission Department's budget for 2023-2024 is $31,100.00. Pray for brothers and sisters’ offering to the ministry.
S & C are often busy due to the new policies. May the Lord give wisdom to their pastoral team and the local church leaders.
H & Y had recently hosted a short term mission team. Praise the Lord, there were plenty of wonderful testimonies in the mission team’s ministry. And pray for the firefighters mentioned in the previous mission news, some members invited H & Y to their home to talk about the faith. May the Lord give H & Y wisdom and continue their friendship.
August Missionary Month:
The theme of Mission Month is "1 + 1 + 1 > 3" (The unique mission of each of the three congregations combined is more powerful than three). Please pray for the speakers and brothers and sisters to prepare to receive the word of the Lord! May the Lord prepare us and expand our horizons!
Theme scriptures: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Act 1:8); “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12)
Theme Hymn: Here I am Lord (Chris Bray)(YouTube: https://youtu.be/4t6mz8yoocY)
Objective: Through the sharing of pastors from the three Congregations regarding the unique opportunities for evangelism and missions, we hope to unite the strength of the three Congregations (Ecclesiastes 4:12), go the extra mile and serve in mission together as one body, with a global perspective and a heart for the Lord.
Prayer Items for the Week
Please pray for the continued recovery of Lucia and her post-operative healing process. Also, pray for the well-being of Pastor Ivan, so he can better care for Lucia.
Pray for the new deacons, that the Lord would give them a heart of servant and spiritual wisdom to serve brothers and sisters and lead them to build up the church.
Pray for the gospel needs of the North Shore as more Cantonese-speaking people move there. The mission fields are vast, let's seek God's guidance together and help us see what is needed.
Pray for everyone to strive to practice the theme of the year,: Love as He Loved • Love with His Love.
Last Week's Sunday Service Attendance (13 August 2023)
| English | Cantonese | Mandarin | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday Service | 57 | 148 | 60 |
| Prayer Meeting | 38 | Before service: 12 After servcie: 100 | 10 |
| Children Sunday School | 19 | - | 21 |
Next Week's Roster (27 August 2023)
Chairperson: Cassandra Chan
Speaker: Rev Mureen Wong
Interpretor: Amy Tong
Singspiration: Mandarin Service Worship Team
Committee on Duty: Lisa Fung