Early Beginnings

CHRISTCHURCH Lesley Simpson

‘After years of “waiting” for the WMCNZ to arrive in the South Is, my highlight was the appointment of Clint and Jamie Ussher in January 2012 to begin pastoring a church plant which was to grow into the present day “The Well “ church. It was then that I could conclude my time as Canterbury representative for the WMCNZ (2005-2012) and reflect on the many people, prayers and support from the national leaders to ensure this moment!’

PAPAKURA Arnold Hight

I knocked on the door and this Mum was obviously high on drugs. We talked about her children who came to the Papakura Wesleyan “Kids Club”. I said I’d visit next door where other “Kids Club” young people lived, but she said “No good, too early. They’re sleeping off their binge from last night”. Just down the street a pizza delivery boy had been clubbed to death not long ago. Where did Jesus want to start to transform this South Auckland sad suburb? Since 1998 the Upper Room Fellowship had met in the upstairs lounge of Des and Verna Vince’s. It was the embryo of what would become the Papakura Wesleyan Church. Des Vince was a well-known building contractor and in 2000, he gifted a section of land at the corner of Dominion Road and Croskery Road (worth $350,000) to become a Wesleyan Christian centre in the area. Two families lent the $70,000 to purchase the “Show Home” on the site. In February 2000 it was dedicated by Rev. Dr. Don Bray, International Mission Director of the World-wide Wesleyan Church. This was the first Wesleyan building this century. Little did we realise that by 2008 we would have a debt-free facility worth $4 million.

The Papakura Wesleyan Centre was opened and dedicated on 20 June 2009.

Des Vince “turning the sod” for the foundation of Papakura Wesleyan, 2004 The Papakura Wesleyan Climbing Wall

A GLOBAL VILLAGE Warren Jack

James 2:26 says, “Just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” It was a highlight for me as a partner at East City Wesleyan (ECW) and being on staff with the Auckland affiliate of Habitat for Humanity to see this verse put into effect so clearly by many Wesleyans who collectively offered their practical support to help struggling families out of appalling housing conditions into decent homes they would eventually own. People participated in fundraising events and have volunteered on site both in NZ and overseas. A group of men from ECW came to the Otara Habitat depot one Friday evening every month to undertake maintenance work culminating in them building a rugged transportable toilet block which provided separate men’s and women’s flush toilets for the volunteers at the construction sites, previously unheard of within Habitat. Another highlight was the Navula Vou project in Fiji which was the brainchild of Lupeti Fihaki. Habitat Global Village (GV) teams of volunteers

travelled from NZ to this remote, small, Fijian village in 2005, 6 and 7 and built 12 houses, did some renovation work on the church building and made improvements to the fresh water supply. All told, 13 Aucklandbased Wesleyans participated including key leaders Allan Oliver, Des and Verna Vince, Jane St George-Waugh and son Simon. Since that time, other Wesleyan partners have ventured further afield to Cambodia, Vietnam, Ethiopia and Nepal as GV team members, cession|community has supported Habitat’s ReStore shop, newly-appointed ECW Lay Pastor, Caleb Taylor has also been a member in several GV teams to Fiji and currently Kay Emmitt and Heather Jack volunteer weekly (COVIDpermitting) in the Curtain Bank for Habitat Northern Region. All these people have been truly the hands and feet of Christ and that is something to be treasured.

LOOKING BACK Lupeti and Titilia Fihaki

A life pulled out from the front seat of a car in a fatal car crash in Nadi Fiji and on that hospital bed, realising that the pain was unbearable; That person cried out; ‘Lord, if there is any use left for this life on earth, spare my life; if not please take my life away; Ni sa bula Vinaka. My name is Lupeti and my wife is Titilia. We are from Fiji with Tongan roots. My father is from Nukunuku Tongatapu and my mother is from Nukuni Ono i Lau Fiji; my wife Titilia her roots, can be traced back to the first Tongan missionary to Fiji Sioeli Pulu (Joeli Bulu in Fijian) Her father’s name is Joeli Bulu and her mother is Mereula from Navula, Keyasi Navosa. My wife and I and our youngest son left Fiji late in 1985, after the 150th year’s celebration of Christianity in Fiji. Our aim for leaving Fiji was to look for a place for the family to live. The rest of our children were left behind at our home in Nadi. We first went to Madang in Papua New Guinea to work for a while and decided to explore Sydney, fortunately we had an open return air ticket for 12 months, so we left PNG and travelled on to Sydney. We stayed there for a while and felt that it wasn’t a good place for our family. Auckland was just a stopover before heading back to Fiji and we have been here ever since. A few of the children joined us the following year and we became a member of the Mt Eden Fijian Congregation which is part of the Mt Eden English speaking congregation of the Methodist Church of New Zealand. We were very active and committed members to the Mt Eden Fijian congregation in its activities and responsibilities. We were confirmed members and I was a lay-preacher when we left Fiji. We were thankful to God for the things He has done in the lives of so many during those early days. The many phases we went through and the obstacles that satan used against us as a means to stop or disrupt this new wave or exodus of the Methodist Stream moving forward here on Aotearoa New Zealand. As my wife and I stopped and reflected on our journey in the Wesleyan Methodist Church of New Zealand, we went right back to honour those Godly people God inspired in those early years before we became a movement; their prayers, hope and dedication to see a change and a new season. They were promoted to glory and didn’t see what they were hoping for. We are also thankful that we can share with the church some of the things that we hold close to our heart; and that is the beginning of our movement and the opportunity to be there and learn from our leaders The ministers. We were also grateful to be among many faithful and committed God fearing people called by God to form the movement whilst still in the Methodist Church of New Zealand. As a layperson attending those early meetings, the conversations, the prayers and the careful thoughts displayed by those church ministers were very humbling and encouraging. Because those ministers were God fearing people and what they believed in were very important for Aotearoa New Zealand, many like-minded people after reading through the information on what the Wesleyans stand for, also joined the church. We hope that all our lay men and women from those early days of the movement, can join Titilia and I in honouring those early ministers and their families.