Our Church, Our Place, Our Community
Kia ora, welcome to St Paul’s in the Park Anglican Church.
Kia ora, welcome to St Paul’s in the Park Anglican Church.
We will be holding regular Sunday services at 9.30am. Holy Communion in the church, including Sunday School.
Find out more about these services here.
Every week we also upload our services to Youtube. View our Youtube channel here.
Our present day church, although placed on the edge of Barry Curtis Park, is surrounded by a mushrooming community. This growing community is a melting pot of culture, ethnicity and faith.
A few years ago it was decided that a new building was needed to meet the demands of this growing community. A design is now completed and our initial estimates indicate that we are challenged with raising 7.5 million dollars to build our new church.
Update on Building Project
It has been something of a journey, but there is a very bright light at the end of the tunnel. In the latest update from the construction company, we are expected to move into our new complex towards the end of July. At this stage, we are expecting to hold our first Sunday service on July 27 and the community centre should be open for business early August.
However, again that could change, so watch this space!
There has been considerable interest shown, especially in the community centre and I have had meetings with several groups who would like to make use of our facilities. This is no surprise due to the shortage of such facilities in the Ormiston area.
The community centre will be known as The Park Community Centre. This gives it its own identity, while at the same time links it with the church, St Paul’s in the Park.
The official opening/consecration will take place on Sunday 31 August at 2.00pm and Bishop Ross Bay will be officiating.
It is exciting to be embarking on a new journey, a journey which will involve worshipping in a fabulous new space and an outreach to our local community under the auspices of our church. Without wanting to sound presumptuous, hopefully, this will be a significant step towards our dream of growing a slice of God’s kingdom in Flat Bush.
We look forward to welcoming you into our new church and community centre.
Rev Warner Wilder
14 June 2025
Site visit – new church & community center – May 24th
Promotional video
For vision and plans, click on FIND OUT MORE below.
God bless you.
Rev Warner Wilder
25 July 2024
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Times article: New church set to open
By CHRIS HARROWELL
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A new church is rising on a plot of land at a park in east Auckland and it’s hoped the building will become the heart of its local community.
Reverend Warner Wilder is overseeing the project, which entails construction of the new St Paul’s in the Park church and community centre in Barry Curtis Park, Flat Bush, and which will include a café and an adjacent garden.
The development will contain an auditorium, two lounges, a hall, offices and meeting rooms. It will be near the existing historic church and is accessed from Chapel Road.
Wilder says the $8.3 million project required the church to raise a substantial amount of money.
It received $2.5m from the Anglican Church in Auckland and $2m from the AH Somerville Foundation, named for the well-known late Whitford farmer Archie Somerville.
“I had several meetings with them and they were very supportive,” Wilder says.
He also called on contacts he had through his former role as chaplain at King’s College in Otahuhu, including former headmaster John Taylor.
John Bayley, executive director of the Bayleys real estate company, staged a fundraiser for the project at his Parnell home that drew guests including Prime Minister and Botany MP Christopher Luxon, whose electorate encompasses the site of the new church.
Warner says 50 per cent of the development is the community centre, which is badly needed in Flat Bush.
“There’s a dire shortage of community facilities here. It’s a great place but so many people have said to me we need facilities.
“Part of my challenge is to get out and promote ourselves in the community and say, ‘this is what we’ve got, are you interested, can we help you out?’.
“I also strongly believe the church should be very much part of the community.”
The community centre is intended to serve as a space for a wide variety of events and activities.
“Some will be programmes we initiate and run ourselves,” Wilder says. “But we’ll tell the community, ‘here’s a place and there will be hire fee, but we won’t be charging through the nose’.
“Another group I’d like to target is young mums with preschoolers. It’s not a daycare so they won’t be dropping them off, but a place for them to come to.
“It will have facilities for the kids to play but it’s as much about the mums sharing, talking, and having some companionship.”
Wilder says he’s grateful to John McClean, director at BSM Group Architects in Highbrook, for his work on the project.
“We have a great relationship. He’s been fantastic to work with and so supportive.”
He also thanks builder McMillan & Lockwood. Wilder hopes the new church and community centre will be open in time for Easter, in mid-April.
“When I have a site visit, I go inside that building and I’m still pinching myself a little bit.
“It’s been a huge challenge getting to this point but I’m really excited and I can’t wait.
“A lot of the congregation still can’t quite believe we are going to be in there.”
Local organisations and groups keen to make use of the church and community centre once it’s open.
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Selwyn Seniors is a group for over 65’s. A morning of gentle exercise, fun and friendship with a varied programme.
SPACE for you and your baby is a parenting programme aimed at mainly first-time parents of newborn babies. Sessions are held over 3 terms in a relaxed, baby-friendly atmosphere.
Our vision for SPACE is “empowering and encouraging parents to support the development of the whole child in their first year of life”.
During our 9.30 am service, our Sunday School runs during the school term. Children can share special items of news they may have, and say a prayer/sing a song together. Bible lessons are presented through varied activities such as stories, video clips, pictures, crafts or a game.
Two adventurous boys who were good friends were exploring caves when they found what appeared to be huge bear tracks deep inside a long tunnel. They bravely decided to keep going, keeping their eyes and ears open in case they actually encountered a bear. Suddenly, from behind a rock jumped the biggest, meanest-looking grizzly bear. Scared to death, the boys decided they had better run for their lives.
Just then, one of the boys dropped to the ground and started untying his boots. He whipped his boots off, jammed on his running shoes, and began tying the laces. His exasperated friend yelled at him, ‘Come on, man! Let’s get out of here. Why in the world are you changing shoes? We don’t have much chance of outrunning the bear anyway.’
Lunging to his feet and starting to run, his friend replied, ‘I don’t have to outrun the bear. All I have to do is outrun you!’
We are about to celebrate the birth of someone who came to be a friend to the world, and on a more personal basis, a friend to each and every one of us. One of the great things about having Christ as a friend is knowing that he will never leave not forsake us.
‘I will never fail you. I will never forsake you.’ Hebrews 15:5
There is a true story of a 13-year-old boy who read about Dr Schweitzer’s work in Africa. He wanted to help. He had enough money to buy one bottle of aspirin. He wrote to the Air Force and asked if they could fly over Dr Schweitzer’s hospital and drop the bottle down to him. A radio station broadcasted the story about this boy’s concern for helping others. The story spread. Others responded as well. Eventually, he was flown by the Air Force to Schweitzer’s hospital, along with over four tonnes of medical supplies worth half a million dollars freely given by thousands of people. This, of course, would be the equivalent of millions of dollars today.
If we all do our little bit, together we will make a difference.
‘Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full – pressed down, shaken together to make room for more.’ Luke 6:38.
A man walked into a grocery store and asked, ‘Do you sell salt?’ ‘Ha,’ said the storekeeper, ‘Do we sell salt! Just look!’ He showed the customer one entire wall of shelves stocked with nothing but salt – rock salt, sea salt, garlic salt, iodized salt – every kind of salt imaginable.
‘Wow,’ said the customer. ‘You think that’s something,’ said the storekeeper, ‘Come with me.’ He led the customer to a back room filled with shelves and bins and cartons of salt. ‘Do we sell salt!’
‘Incredible,’ said the customer, ‘You really do sell salt.’ ‘No,’ said the storekeeper, ‘That’s just the problem. We don’t sell salt, but that salt salesman, oh boy, does he sell salt!’
The most obvious quality of salt is that it lends flavour to food. As Christians, we should be adding flavour to life. Unfortunately, that is not always the case, and all too often people associate Christianity with negative attributes such as judgmental, exclusive and boring. If we really want to promote Christianity, it is important that we are seen to be full of the joys of life and embracing all and sundry with love.
‘Always be full of joy in the Lord. Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do.’ Philippians 4:4-5
There is the story of John Wesley, founder of the Methodist movement, who was sailing to America when he witnessed the keel-hauling of a member of the crew for an offence aboard the ship. This was a particular cruel form of punishment as it meant being tied to a rope, thrown overboard, drawn under the vessel and out the other side. There was always the chance that you would drown.
The captain said to John Wesley as they watched, ‘You see, Mr Wesley, I never forgive.’ It was not for John Wesley to question the captain’s power of command but he could and did question that statement. He replied, ‘Then, sir, I hope you never sin.’
How can we ever expect forgiveness if we are not prepared to extend forgiveness.
‘If you forgive others, you will be forgiven.’ Luke 6:37
A man who operated an icehouse lost a good watch in the sawdust. He offered a reward, and men went through the sawdust with rakes, but they were unable to find the watch. When they left the building for lunch, a small boy went into the icehouse. A few minutes later he came out with the watch. They asked him how he had found it, and he replied, ‘I just lay down in the sawdust and listened. Finally, I heard the watch ticking.’
One of the most effective ways of communicating with God is to just be quiet and listen for his presence. In the hustle and bustle of life, this is not easy to do, but do try it. You might be surprised.
‘Be still and know that I am God.’ Psalm 46:10