Christmas wishes and messages for Tamaki PIPC

This movie shares Christmas wishes as well as messages from some local and international stars. Special thanks to Ria and Lone who worked hard to get this piece ready for our Christmas Day service. We all loved it!

Special thanks to the sporting and radio celebrities who took time to send their personal message for Tamaki PIPC.

God's blessings upon you all. Looking forward to the New Year ahead.

Christmas and New Year's Message

The year has come to an end for Sunday School. It's been a fun year with plenty to do.

Before we leave you, here's a message from the grade 4 students of our Sunday School.

Have a joyous Festive Season everybody.

Raise Your Voice

Tonight is the night of the eagerly anticipated Raise Your Voice concert led by Essence. The evening has begun in fine fashion with a beautiful song by the lovely Vailelei Setefano.

It's been nearly 3 hours, Essence kept nearly all of God's people on their feet rejoicing and singing his praises.  There has been special performances from young and old members of our congregation who really lifted the roof tonight.

Thank you Essence for an amazing concert and for sharing your God-given gifts.  May God continue to bless and guide your plans into the future, and we look forward to singing and praising the name of Jesus in his house every Sunday.

Get well soon Malulu!

On Sunday the 20th November, Sunday school had the last “Fun-Day” of the year.
Our Fun-Days are themed Sundays in which all the classes have a morning of fun & games in mixed age group teams.

The Summer Slam fun-day was also special in that the money collected for our gold-coin offering would go to one of our young members Malulu who has been bravely battling an illness which has meant he has been absent from Sunday school for most of the year.

The Sunday school kids all signed a special card and gladly gave their offering knowing that it might cheer up our young brother.

As you can see in the picture below, Malulu had the biggest smile on his face when the card and gift were presented to him!

The message from Sunday school read:

To Malulu (Phat Boi)

You are such a good example of what it is to be a brave soldier. God in his goodness and mercy keep you strong, brave and courageous in this time of rest, healing and restoration.

Love from
PIPC Tamaki Sunday School
XOXOXO

Malulu, we wish you the 'bestest' Christmas ever and we look forward to when you will bring your big bright smile back to Sunday school!!

Bible Class comes to a close

Bible Class has had a wonderful year of in depth Bible Study, activities and learning experiences. This year has seen a steady group of committed members attend most Monday nights. Winter typically brings a drop in numbers, however this year a core group of members pushed past the desire to stay home and get to church every Monday.

Our closing evening was spent with one another as well as our minister Reverend Leiite Setefano. We were sharing about holidays and had Tama share with us about the passover festival and it's reason for being. A gift exchange was made between members and a delicious meal served provided by all the BC members.

Our annual prize giving went as follows:
Timothy Award (young up and coming): Nominees: Livingston,Rivalana, Kane and Zina. Winner: Zina
Merry Heart Award (always cheerful/warm to others):Nominees:Livingston,Josie,Marian and Masele. Winner:Masele
Most Improved Award: Nominees: Rivalana, Neta, Sione, Zina, Pamela. Winner: Sione
Most Encouraging Award: Nominees: Marian, Pareu, Masele,Faafeu. Winner:Pareu
Tafa'ipaia Award (all rounder - attendance, contributions,participation etc) Winner: Masele

The night following we went to watch the movie 'Courageous'. It's certainly a movie made by Christians with many strong messages, one being honour begins at home. We would strongly recommend for you to go and watch it. If you want to know more be sure to catch up with one of our BC members or click here to see the trailer. The picture you see we took after the movie. A word of thanks to our church family for your support and prayers for the youth in BC. They have undoubtedly helped us get through the year.

God bless you, be aware of the 'Snake Kings' ; )

Touch, Pause and Engage

Following all the excitement from the Rugby World Cup this months family service was conducted by the dynamic Bible Class.  Touch, Pause and Engage was the theme of their service.

Thank you to all the talented leaders and members of the Bible Class for sharing such an important part of our christian life - to stay in touch and engaged with our Lord - through his Word and in Prayer.

May God continue to bless you all in your studies and in your work duties.

Blessings,

Congratulations Peneueta and Valentine!

Today Peneueta - one of our Sunday School teachers married Valentine. A beautiful ceremony took place at Tamaki PIPC in Glen Innes. Peneueta looked stunning alongside her groom, bridesmaids and groomsmen. A beautiful day for beautiful people. May God bless you both as you start this exciting part of your life together.

Club Talitha - November Night

Key verse tonight presented by Rona was
1 Corinthians 12:4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.

So how did we learn further about this? We had three stations set up.
1. Flax bouquets and arrangements with Pareu
2. Sketching the cross with shading techniques with Pamela
3. Making and baking of Pagi Popo with Pola
A night for the 'P' ladies indeed. From the same sources we ended up with different outcomes - different spiritual gifts but the same Spirit...

It was enjoyed by all the girls and ladies present. We've put together a slideshow to show you some of the fun we had. Thank you to Rona and the team - Pola, Pareu and Pamela. We loved the lesson and time we had together. We hope all our families got to enjoy the pagi popo that arrived home hot and ready with a cup of tea.
Bless you all church. Lots of love - Club Talitha.

Tamaki PIPC @ Glen Innes International Carnival

This movie shows you more of all the groups that took part in the International Carnival that was hosted by Glen Innes.

International Carnival hosted by Glen Innes from SchoolTV on Vimeo.

Tamaki @ GI International Carnival

On Saturday the 15th of October our parish got to be part of our local carnival. It was the International Carnival and it was hosted by our community of Glen Innes. Many local Glen Innes residents came out on this fine day to watch, take part and enjoy the day. It was kicked off by a parade of all the local groups. Starting with the Samoan part of the community. Why? Well Glen Innes had the Manu Samoa as their adopted team from the RWC. So our Samoan community came out in force alongside all the other cultures in GI to strut their stuff.

This video shows you mainly our parish and their participation, we will soon post a movie that shows you more of the wider community who took part.

Definitely a day to remember and be a very proud GI local! God bless our community as we keep working together to make this place an even better one.

Lotu a Tamaiti 2011

A scene certainly to make any parent happy and be reminded of the precious gift we have in children. This scene unfolded yesterday in our church. Many happy children, parents, grandparents and families enjoyed the Lotu a Tamaiti at Tamaki PIPC.

Like year's before it was service that had so many different and valuable messages for parents and families alike. Parable of the servants in the vineyard, the denial of Jesus by Peter, debate of the greatest mountain, story of Queen Esther, the brothers Esau and Jacob and their important lesson on forgiveness were presented to us today by our children.

Some made us smile, laugh and cry as we received and reflected on their messages. Well done to all our children, teachers, Tama and Tina who prepared another uplifting White Sunday for us all to enjoy and grow from. We hope you had an enjoyable lunch with family and friends. God's blessings be upon us all as we venture into the last few months of the year.

Ia manuia outou matua, ae ola matou le fanau. Ia soifua ona o Iesu.

Congratulations Canaan

Congratulations to Canaan on coming second in the Auckland Primary Principals Association Champion of Champions Year 5 and 6 Speech final 2011, held at Ponsonby Primary School on Monday 26 September.

Canaan's topic of his speech was 'Kiwiana - what it means to be a Kiwi'.

Road to the final
1st in his schools 'Good Shepherd's speech competition
1st in the Eden Albert zone speech competition (13 school participated)
2nd in the APPA champ of champ (16 cluster representatives)

(2010)

1st in his schools speech comp last year, and represented his school at the Eden Albert zone speech competition.  Topic of his speech last year was 'Samoa'.

May God in his wisdom and love, continue to bless you with the confidence to excel in all that you do.  We look forward to hearing about your future speech competitions/achievements.  

Keep up the good work Canaan!  Keep aiming high and believing, in reaching your goals.

0800 God's Line

This month the talented students of grades 9 & 10 conducted our family service.  Their theme was called, 0800 God's Line - focussing on Prayer and the story of Daniel.
Well done to all the fantastic Teachers and students for presenting such a powerful message, that God is always there waiting on us to call him and talk to him, anytime and anywhere.

May Gods' blessings continue to shine upon you, your studies and in your work for the Lord.

Pulega Tupulaga(Youth) Service 2011

Every year our Tupulaga (Samoan Youth) combine with our neighboring PIPC churches to conduct a youth service. This year the Tupulaga service was hosted by Onehunga. Although the day was cold and wet, this didn't stop the Awesome name of our Heavenly Father lifted up - beginning with Praise and Worship. Later Panmure performed a Creative Dance, followed by a Chorus speech by Tamaki and Onehunga presented a short drama. The finale item was a combined song.
 Watch and listen to the combined song by our Tupulaga from Aukilani Sasa'e.   Malo lava Tupulaga!

Which way? God's Way!

The cool Kindy kids conducted their family service in June.  Their theme was called, Which way? God's Way!  
Please leave a comment for the cutest kids in Sunday School.
God loves you Kindy kids!

Tug of Life

Here are some highlights of the uplifting and inspiring Family Service by the talented Grades 11 & 12.

Great work team!

May God continue to shine brightly in your lives as you continue to strive to serve and uplift His holy name.

Tug of Life. Flesh v's the Spirit

Students from Grades 11 and 12, 18 years through to 29 led the morning service at Tamaki PIPC on the 31st of July. The theme was 'Tug of life'. The classes based their items on the verses found in Romans 8 and Galatians 5. In particular the verses related to the tug of life between the 'Flesh and the Spirit'. This is the intro trailer that was used before the play 'Tug of life'. Camera's followed two characters for a day, highlighting the constant tug between the flesh and Spirit when making decisions - big and small. Footage from the actual service will be shared soon.

Congratulations to the students, parents and teachers who worked together to put the service together. God's name be lifted on high. Feel the tug of the Spirit? Let yourself be led there every time : )

Happy 31st Birthday Tamaki PIPC

A wild selection of photos from our Jungle Safari Party.

The Temptation of Jesus

This months family service was conducted by the Beginners and Grades 1 & 2 classes.  Their theme was based on Lesson 2 of the Scripture Union Curriculum: The Temptation of Jesus.  You will be amused and entertained in the way they have portrayed this important message.
Please leave a comment to all the amazing children and teachers of the Beginners and Grades 1 & 2 classes.
To God be the Glory...Amen!

Jungle Boogie 31

These images are from our recent Annual Parish Dance. This year celebrating 31 years of being a multicultural parish. The theme of this year's dance was 'Jungle Boogie'. As you can see our youngest through to our oldest dressed up in the jungle theme. There were four main prizes awards to whole families who turned up in costume.

It was a fun filled night, with many laughs and animal cries of all sorts. Our children didn't seem to rest, enjoying the disco ball and the good music all night long. A wonderful night of celebration for our parish. May God grant unto us many more opportunities as such to spend time together in His love. God bless church!

Youth Rally - Fono Samoa. Our song.

Thursday night was kicked off with the fantastic Praise and Worship team from Saute. A very talented group. In seconds they had the entire Malaeola hall upstanding and praising our Lord.

We were second in the line up of items. We followed a highly entertaining dance group delicious. We all had a good time singing to our peers and parents, a wonderful experience to stand before people who love seeing you there.

Here's a look at the song we shared. One for all the Toni Braxton fans out there. Tell us which was your favourite and we'll work at getting that item up for you if we have it.

God bless you as you watch and listen.

Fono Samoa 2011

This was a special Fono for us, seeing our very own Tama being inducted at the new Ta'ita'ifono. Tama led the service with an inspiring sermon about giving opportunities. How we should be willing to give people the opportunity to see what they are capable of, what their gifts are. Not to look at them in the wrong light...judging on the physical appearance etc.

This year's Fono was hosted by our church family who are located in the South of Auckland - Matagaluega o Aukilani i Saute. For three days we were hosted by this very warm, kind and generous part of our PIPC. The Tupulaga and Autalavou programme was full of very useful teachings - no matter what the age. We will post more detailed pieces soon on the great programme we had the privilege of being a part of. Thank you very much Saute!

We also had the opportunity to share a short clip that showed what our particular Tupulaga have been up to since last year. Here it is.

The Redeemer Lives!

This months Family Service was brought to us by the students of grades 7 & 8. Their theme was 'The Redeemer Lives'.

Fittingly with this being Easter weekend grades 7 and 8 took the opportunity to remind us once again of the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Congratulations to today's classes for presenting a wonderful service. Thank you for reminding us about the truth and blessings we have in the Trinity -the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Praise the Lord for his many blessings. May we continue to move forward under the direction of the Holy Spirit, our helper and comforter at all times.

God bless you grades 7 and 8.

Congratulations Gary!

Good news - good news! Gary Mauga - winner of our most frequent and encouraging comment leaver on this our blog...

Saturday 2nd of March, Gary Mauga, one of our very own home grown - walked down the isle of Manukau Baptist to receive his degree in Applied Theology. It was a ceremony hugely uplifting and full of God praises for the achievement of many Theology Students of Carey Bible College.

Our Reverend Father minister and his wife Lealofi were there to witness this event alongside Gary's wife Suliana, mother Katie and siblings. Also a small group members of our parish were there to cheer for Gary as his name was called and degree awarded. What a special time to be part of.

It was very clear to all who attended that all students including our Gary, had an enjoyable yet challenging journey to reaching this day. Gary, on behalf of your church family we want to say congratulations and well done. Your achievement is one which will benefit many who cross your path. We are very happy for you and glad that we have been part of this journey with you.

May God in his wisdom and love, continue to provide you with ample opportunity to act out the many wonderful truths you have learnt during your time of study. We have no doubt that the parish of Glen Dowie Presbyterian are now enjoying your warm and cheerful way during your internship. We look forward to reading your very own post soon. God bless and keep you, Suli and your family in his peace and presence. Alofa tele.

God the Father. Seek Ye First...

Today's morning service was led by the students and teachers of Grades 3 and 4. Together they delivered a message that reminded us of the awesome Father we have in God.
This song was sung during offering. Some very talented students lead the way in singing the well known song 'Seek Ye First'.

Be sure to leave a comment for the wonderful students of Grades 3 and 4.

Club Talitha - night No.1!

We've started! We had close to 30 girls arrive and participate in our first ever Club Talitha! It was opened by our mother in Christ Lealofi. She shared a brief message on being thankful for all we have, reminding us of how truly blessed we are.

The youngest members came well prepared with Bibles, pens and books to write in. Question responded to with many hands rising to answer. Go girls!

Part of the evening was spent in groups designing a logo. The girls had to share about the story of Jesus and Jairus' daughter whom Jesus brought back to life saying 'Talitha Cumi'. As we wandered around the hall it was easy to see that the girls now have a good grasp of what our club is and why. You will find here the different groups with their designs. Listen closely to the very good explanations that are given as part of their presentation.

We'd love to have your votes - check our sidebar to pick which logo you think best suits our girl's club.

Talitha Cumi!

Talitha Cumi

Good news, good news!! Girl's Club is starting at Tamaki next Tuesday - 8th March 2011. Our families meet together with Reverend Father Setefano and Mother Lealofi. This was to share and discuss the plans for our monthly Girls Club. Girls and their parents were very excited. This is going to be a monthly space for girls 8 years and older. Not only within our parish but for the girls in our immediate community of Glen Innes.

It began with a devotion led by Reverend Setefano, Mark 5, the story of Talitha. This the story of this little girl, a twelve year old who's father was Jairus. Jairus went to Jesus to ask help for his daughter who was dying. When Jesus arrived, she had died, however Jesus told them not to weep...'she is asleep'. Jesus enters her room and tells her "Talitha Cumi" translated 'Little girl, arise'. From this beautiful story we've named our Girl's club, Talitha.

Our aim is to work together and allow Jesus to help us truly arise to the challenges in life! To show his extraordinary power in our ordinary beings.

We look forward to our first session this coming Tuesday. God's many blessings.
Please pray with us for the girls who will be part of Talitha. Thank you.

If you plan to attend, please remember your Bible, pen, book and your $5.00 registration fee. It's going to be fun girls!!

Parents @ Bible Class

Bible Class is in it's second week now. Parents, grandparents and the members of Bible Class, young and old gathered for their Parents night. It's a bit like meet the teacher, leaders sharing the plans for the year and opportunities for our parents to ask any questions. It was also a chance to introduce our newest and youngest BC leader, Pili Salu, hooray!!

Our Reverend Father Setefano and mother Lealofi were there to lead our evening with a devotion. A very apt devotion about plants and soil. The theme of not only being plants, trees for our Lord but to actually bear fruit that is of Him too. It was followed by a competitive round of Bible Trivia.

We shared a lovely meal provided by the members of BC. A very warm exchange of thanks and well wishes for the year were made before the evening was closed in prayer by Tama.

We would again like to thank all our families who attended. We look forward to working alongside you all in our ministry here at Tamaki. God's abundant blessings upon all your households.

2011 here we come!!

Conference - Friday night.

Talofa lava Tupulaga! The following movie shows you part of our evening on Friday. You will see Heston who boldly led the Praise and Worship on behalf of the music workshop team. There is also parts of Gary Mauga's (Tamaki born and bred) keynote included. Gary's message was around the gifts that we posses. He closes with a very unique song. Check it out! God bless Tupulaga, before you know it - God willing - we'll be altogether soon for Fono Samoa 2011.