Heard about this mega church for quite awhile now ever since I was introduced to Christianity. Had…read morethe opportunity to visit here when I was doing my internship at one of the children's hospital in Sydney. The first time I visited here was the first time I actually set foot in Sydney (2 hours after arrival). The parking was quite daunting for first timers as it was rather huge and if you came at the wrong timing, you might not be able to find a nearer one to where the congregation meets. The location for the service (Sydney Hills, Bauklam Hills) is like a stadium and if you arrive later (which I did on the first time), one of the ushers will guide you to your seats. The front and middle row seating fills up fast as groups of people saves seat for others. Might have to come earlier to get a better spot for viewing. The worship was great - vibrant and colorful background with high-lifting praise music that will speak to you. As most of you probably know, this is a world-wide known church and their music have spread quite a distance (that's how I know about its existence). The service was also great as week by week the message just hit me at the right spot and of course the preachers (Brian and Bobbie Houston) were excellent too as they were able to engage the audiences during the sermons. The sermons were short yet it points back to the Bible which is why I have made a commitment to come every week here for the service until my time in Sydney ends. While you are on the way out of the stadium-like church, you will pass by an open concept bookstore where you could buy CDs, DVDs, books, Bibles, Journals, apparels, etc. And there is a small information counter to ask more details on the different ministries that the church provides (Children, college, young adults, small groups, etc) and they will connect you to appropriate people. There are 5 services here and different services might have different messages. So a morning service will be different from an evening one. Definitely have to try both to see the difference. There is also a corner where you could grab some tea, coffee and snacks on the side (before entering the convention center) or the western foyer (ground level of the big amphitheater) . And there are shuttle services (courtesy buses) available at both Parramatta and Blacktown station. Timings could be found on the church's website. Overall, I enjoyed coming to this church and will continue to attend it until I leave Sydney. If you want to connect more, you could provide your contact details and one of the staffs will connect you to people around your age group so you won't feel left out. There are also a few conferences that you can go to and socialize throughout the year. Enjoy :) There are a few connect groups and age group activities. Be sure to connect yourselves. And there is a Korean group on the campus as well as Hillsong college.

If not for lack of clarity on their website and VERY little response from their facebook team, I…read morewould have rated them 5 out of 5. I sent emails three times and NO response. They need to improve ASAP. I paid AU$78 for a Uber ride near Circular Quay (Next to Wynyard park to be precise) to the entrance of Hillsong Hills, when I could have used the train from Circular Quay to Parramatta Station to catch the FREE redbus at 5:15pm. Does there website clearly state that? NO. Not obvious to an overseas visitor or anyone unfamiliar with the train stations or Sydney area. I'm sure MANY people have made this mistake. I met a lady visiting from Paraguay after service that said she paid for a taxi to the church as well. Now for the positive side - I went there for the 6pm service. I was 30 minutes early. Food was available for sale. I met 2 friendly ladies who are part of the concierge team and I was escorted to where they place first-time visitors. From there, there was an older, nice gentleman who interacted me as well as the other visitors. The 6pm service had Young and Free lead the praise/worship. I only knew 1 song. I'm much familiar with Hillsong Live/Worship/United. Brian Houston preached at the 11:15 so there was a different guy who preached. Can't say it was a good sermon or not because I slept through 80% of it. People stood up to give their life to Christ at the end so that's good. The crowd was diverse in ethnicities but a younger crowd (maybe ages 18 to 26). Tons of people were there. I was actually hoping to meet people from Powerhouse or Frontline but 2 people were uncertain if they are meeting in the foyer or not. I think they said their sanctuary can hold 3500 people. I checked out their bookstore. Ok size. Not a wide array of materials as I've seen at other megachurches (side note, I attend a megachurch). After service was over, I took the redbus and the final stop is at the Parramatta station. It leaves like 15 minutes or so after service is over. The driver made a couple of stops before arriving to that station. Again, NONE of that was mentioned on the website. I guess this is insider information. I was interested in the 11:15 am service but again, I lacked information to plan properly on how to get to the church after arriving from the airport. But it's all good. Nothing is ever perfect.