Church in the Middle of the Marketplace
创造宇宙和其中万物的 神，既是天地的主，就不住人手所造的殿，也不用人手服事，好像缺少甚么；自己倒将生命、气息、万物，赐给万人。(使徒行传 17:24-25)
其实，至高者并不住人手所造的，就如先知所言： “主说：天是我的座位，地是我的脚凳，你们要为我造何等的殿宇？那里是我安息的地方呢？ 这一切不都是我手所造的么？” (使徒行传 7:48-50)
神果真住在地上么？看哪！天和天上的天，尚且不足你居住的，何况我所建的这殿呢？(列王记上 8:27)
... 神的殿是圣的，这殿就是你们。(歌林多前书 3:17b)
你们拜父，也不在这山上，也不在耶路撒冷。 时候将到，如今就是了，那真正拜父的，要用心灵和诚实拜他，因为父要这样的人拜他。 神是个灵，所以拜他的，必须用心灵和诚实拜他。(约翰福音 4:21a,23-4:24)
The story of National Community Church (NCC) began twelve years ago when an optimistic pastor named Mark Batterson moved his family to Washington D.C. from Chicago to start a church. His plan was conventional: begin with a small group, then meet in a rented public school, and finally buy or build a permanent church facility. But Batterson's plans were dashed when the public school his small church of thirty-five was meeting in was closed for fire code violations.
Frustrated and uncertain about the future, Batterson was walking through the shopping mall at Union Station when he had an idea. He found the manager of the movie theater and asked for permission to conduct a church service there on Sunday morning. The manager agreed. Suddenly, Batterson found himself leading a church located at the center of the most visited destination on Capitol Hill.
After experiencing rapid growth NCC changed its strategy. Batterson no longer wanted a permanent church facility. Instead he saw the benefits of being in the middle of the marketplace. Today, NCC meets in four theaters located at Metro stops throughout D.C., and in 2006 the church opened its first permanent facility—a coffee shop. Ebenezer's, also located on "The Hill," is a popular, award-winning coffee shop that was previously the location of a crack house.
Source: A City Upon "The Hill", Leadership Journal, Summer 2008