Life in the City UMC

Well, it’s happened again. 9 months later, Life in the City is once again facing hateful rhetoric directed at our place of worship. Let us be clear: hate has absolutely no place in our sanctuary. LITC is steadfast in its committment to standing with the LGBTQIA+ community and all marginalized communities today and always. We will continue to be a light in the darkness. #lgbtqchristian #noplaceforhate #affirmingchurch #loveisthegreatestcommandment #loveislove

Hey LITC community & friends, Sadly, our beautiful church space was vandalized and our LGBTQ+ Pride flag was torn down today by those who clearly oppose our mission of radical inclusivity in Christ. At Life in the City, we strive to welcome those on the outside to the inside of the circle because Jesus’ greatest commandment was for us to love our neighbor as ourselves. And we will continue to do that, even to those who chose to deface our church building…as we know, the church is not the walls, it is the people and the community. As the great spiritual says, we shall NOT be moved, except toward bringing the “kin-dom” of God to earth, where all of God’s precious children are loved and affirmed. JOIN US tomorrow at 9am for a creative restoration project. Bring your ladders, your exterior paint supplies, and your caring heart to help us meet hate with love. Also, ironically, our community partner of this quarter is OutYouth. You can text “LITCAUSTIN” to 73256 or visit the link in our bio and click “Give” to donate to Life in the City, of which 10% of our donations will go to OutYouth. #queerchristian #affirmingchurch #thegreatestoftheseislove #austintx #austinpride #southcongress #socoaustin #austintexas @kxan_news @kvuenews @fox7austin

A statement from our lead pastor, Rev. Glenn Luhrs —

Our church was vandalized again this weekend. Same person, same message, and our congregation has come together, once again, with the same response: Love. I wrote this song last August shortly after we were vandalized the first time. It’s written from the perspective of the person who did this, or anyone who knows they’ve done terrible things, and is hoping beyond all hope to find love anyway. It was on the setlist for this morning at least a week before the vandalism happened again this weekend. The timing feels powerful, and our message remains the same: we are a community built on love. We serve a gracious, forgiving, and loving God, and we seek to live out that love as best we know how. We hope the person or people responsible can find the healing and hope they need. If you’ve been looking for more community, we’d love it if you came to check out what we do at Life in the City. Everyone is welcome here.

“Everyone prays in the end…” @litcaustin music director Crystal Paull sings “Pray” as Mary Magdalene at Jesus’ tomb before his resurrection #eastermusical #livemusicaustin #austintexas #lgbtqchristian *** Keys: K. Sigrest Bass: @jessicafagrebass Acoustic guitar: @consciousenneagram @queergravel Electric guitar: @a_basini Drums: @kescodrums Sound: @rgsizerudy BGVs: @amyawendland1 @sonnyandthebee @s.e.ra_ @ceramicsfortherapy @courtneynaguilar @keepjesusweird

It’s that time of year again…EASTER!🐣 And for Life in the City, that means it’s ✨MUSICAL✨ time! 💃🏽🎶 Join us Easter Sunday for “Take This Cup From Me”, a musical telling of the Easter story. If you’ve been with us for previous holidays, then you know that the LITC arts team comes at the gospel from a thought-provoking, sometimes startling, slant. This show about the last week of Jesus’ life promises to be no different. The musical starts at 11:15 a.m. on Sunday, April 5, so come early, bring friends, grab a seat, and prepare to be moved, challenged and energized. #do512family #livemusicaustin #affirmingchurch #eastermusic #austintexas

@litcaustin is hosting a vigil this Sunday for families that are being affected by ICE raids. It’s a free event and please share with your friends. #keepaustinneighborly

Bring a friend and join us for a community vigil and benefit that supports families affected by ICE on Sunday, Feb. 8 from 2-5 p.m. *** Life in the City is proud to be partnering again this year with the Austin Sanctuary Network! 10% of LITC’s regular donations will support this small but mighty group of community members who advocate for justice and support the immigrant community in our city during these times of cruelty and injustice. As part of their work, they have built prayer spaces and altars to host community vigils and raise awareness of those taken by ICE. Inspired by their work, we are hosting an altar and prayer space here at LITC. The theme of the altar is “Lives Interrupted”. It is be a collection of detention center testimonies, photos of neighbors in detention, and prayers for all those living in fear. The altar will include artifacts representing the everyday items left behind when an immigrant is forcibly removed from their family. These items are daily reminders of their loved ones’ absence. We encourage you to spend time in the space, quietly reading and praying for all those being held in detention centers across the country. In addition to this, we are partnering with ASN and Projecto Altares for a community vigil on Feb 8 from 2-5PM that includes art auction, vendors, live poetry, and live music that will benefit families affected by ICE. @austinsanctuarynetwork #austintexas #abolishice #immigrantstories #austinart #leviticus193334

“I’ll be DAMNED if my children have to march for me!” This song from Dr King Sunday feels so…now. Take these words into your actions. March if you can. Speak out, we all must. But if you can’t do that, support @austinsanctuarynetwork , LITC’s community partner this month. As with all other partners we have throughout the year, 10% of our own donations will go to ASN this month. Find your ways of supporting our immigrant neighbors through action. Sing out, march on. ##abolishice #loveyourneighbor #immigrantrights readtheredwords austintexas

Due to severe winter weather that is expected to affect the Austin area this weekend, we are cancelling our worship service for tomorrow, Sunday, Jan. 25.

In this time of turmoil, if you’re looking to be inspired toward the work of freedom and human rights, join us on Jan 18 for a narrative service honoring the life and the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through protest and praise. Sunday, January 18 11:15AM 205 E. Monroe St. #austintexas #mlkday #humanrights #extremistsforlove

The world around us seems to darken every day. Our fight for justice, our work for peace, and our acts of love are challenged at every turn. So, what do we do? We come together and sing! We don’t sing to ignore the difficulties, but to make them easier to bear. We sing together to lift each other up in love and support. We sing together to strengthen our resolve to carry our song of love out into the world for all to hear. Join me (Abi Robins) for a new month service at @litcaustin ! The first Friday of each month we’ll come together and sing! We’ll do everything from classic hymns to top 40 hits, plus new original music by me and our other talented songwriters here at LitC. Everyone is welcome to join us in singing songs of joy, peace, love, and justice! Every service at LitC is kid and dog friendly, so bring the whole fam! First Fridays starting February 6th from 7-9pm at Life in the City UMC, 201 E Monroe, Austin, TX. What song do you want to sing with us? Let me know in the comments below!