Bring Out Your Most Festive Holiday Wear

Sunday, December 18

Let’s spread the Christmas spirit! All are invited to wear fun and crazy holiday clothes with festive fabrics to church on this Sunday!

Blue Christmas

Wednesday, December 21

7:00PM | EDU Murchison Chapel

How come I don’t feel it? In the midst of the wonder and expectation of Advent, many of us might feel out of step with the joy and excitement of Christmas. Some of us have lost loved ones or face the “happy” holidays feeling blue with grief or depression. Join us for this special worship service on the longest night to acknowledge our grief and longing for hope.

Christmas Eve - Noon Service

Saturday, December 24

12:00PM | EDU Murchison Chapel

This traditional service features carols, Scripture reading, and Holy Communion, and is ideal for those who wish to celebrate early and for those whose plans make it impossible to participate in our later services.

Christmas Eve - Family Service

Saturday, December 24

3:00PM | Sanctuary

Experience the traditions of Christmas carols, the Nativity story, Holy Communion, and a candlelit “Silent Night” in this 45-minute worship service especially designed for

families with young children.

Christmas Eve

Candlelight and Communion Services

Saturday, December 24

*6:00, 8:00, and 11:00PM | Sanctuary

These traditional services feature carols, Scripture, Holy Communion, and candle lighting to celebrate Christ’s birth.

*Childcare is provided during the 6:00PM Service.

Christmas Day Worship

Sunday, December 25

11:00AM | Sanctuary

Come as you are to celebrate the birth of Christ! On this most joyous of days, we will sing familiar carols as we reflect on God incarnate, God with us, Emmanuel. Children are welcome to come just as they are when they tumble out of bed! Appropriate

pajamas, bath robes, and slippers are welcome. After the hustle and bustle of the holidays, all are welcome to relax and come casual to church.

New Year's Day Worship

Sunday, January 1

11:00AM | Sanctuary

Start the year with a time of connection and reflection in prayer and worship, as you share your hopes and intentions for 2023 with God and create space in this busy season to hear what God is calling you to in this new year.

Epiphany Party! Celebrate Jesus' Birthday!

Sunday, January 8

10:00-10:45AM

FLC Great Hall

Crowns and camels and cupcakes, oh my! You are invited to a birthday party for Jesus! Decorate your own festive treat and participate in the Epiphany fun as we ring in the new year together. Children and youth will not have regular Sunday School classes, so bring the whole family. We will tell the story of the wise ones who brought Jesus his first gifts. Want to bring a birthday present for Jesus, too? We are collecting diapers in sizes 4, 5, and 6 to donate to the Austin Diaper Bank. Bring yours to add to the party. You can also sign up to bring breakfast food items or bake Epiphany cupcakes.

Another Look at the Christmas Story

Sunday, December 18

10:00-10:45AM

SAN Wesley Hall

We often talk about “the” Christmas story, but there are, in fact, many different versions. None of these versions match up perfectly, but all of them tell us something about the extraordinary child at the center of our faith. Join Pastor Brad King to learn about the Christmas story over cookies, hot chocolate, and some great conversation. 

Cookie Baking for the Christmas Breakfast

Sunday, December 18

3:00-6:00PM

FLC Great Hall and Kitchen

Calling all bakers! Bring your favorite holiday apron and come bake cookies! With our certified kitchen, we are no longer able to distribute cookies baked at home. So, we are starting a new tradition of baking these sweet treats right in our kitchen. Come as a family or on your own—all baking supplies and utensils are provided! Sign up below and get ready for some baking fun!

Mobile Loaves & Fishes for First Timers

Sunday, December 18

4:00PM 

SAN Wesley Hall

Help feed people experiencing homelessness daily on the streets of Austin. We are offering a monthly opportunity primarily for first-time individuals or families of FUMC to serve with Mobile Loaves and Fishes. We have 1-2 veteran volunteers for each run who will be there to lead the way! Volunteers can serve on the make-ready team at 4-5 pm, the truck team at 5-7:00 pm, or both! Families are welcome - children can easily participate. 

Sock Collection for Feed My People Christmas Breakfast

December 4-18

Murchison Chapel, Sanctuary Foyer, FLC Foyer

Thank you for donating new, white, adult-sized crew or tube socks to give to our unhoused neighbors at our annual Feed My People Christmas Breakfast. Sunday is the last opportunity to bring them to donation bins across the campus, as we need to give the Feed My People elves a chance to prepare Christmas surprises for our unhoused neighbors.

Feed My People Christmas Breakfast

Thursday, December 22

6:30-8:30AM

Family Life Center

At Christmas, our guests enjoy coffee and Christmas music beginning at 6:30AM, breakfast will be served at 7:00AM. Volunteers are also needed to prepare food and decorate on Wednesday, December 21. Many in our congregation have made these volunteer opportunities a significant part of their Christmas season. Spaces fill fast, so sign up now!

Book Study: Jesus and John Wayne

Tuesdays, January 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31

6:30-8:00PM | Zoom

Jesus and John Wayne is a sweeping, revisionist history of the last 75 years of white evangelicalism, revealing how evangelicals have worked to replace the Jesus of the Gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism. Join Pastor Cathy Stone and FUMC member and seminarian Becca Edwards as we read and discuss this book by historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez. Zoom link sent with registration at fumcaustin.org/social-justice. We encourage you to purchase the book locally at Black Pearl Books or Book People. For more information, contact Pastor Cathy.

MLK Day Community March

Monday, January 16

The annual Community March celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy while uplifting diversity and multi-culturalism in our city. Join FUMC member Cindy Walter at 9:00AM with a short program at the MLK Statue on the University of Texas campus and march from there or grab a breakfast taco in the Family Life Center at 9:30AM before joining the rally on the south steps of the State Capitol and then march on to Huston-Tillotson University for the Community Festival where exciting festivities are planned.

Disciple Bible Study:

New Testament

Wednesdays, January 18 - April 12

6:00-7:15PM | FLC Room 104

At the center of Christian faith is a library of twenty-seven books that we know as the New Testament. These texts preserve the foundational stories of our great faith and point the way to the lives that we can have together and with God. At the same time, they also expose human worries and imperfections and highlight the long history of our struggle to understand what it means to be a child of God. Whatever your stance on scripture, join Pastor Brad and FUMC member, Pete Meeker, for this 12-week study of the history, interpretation, and meaning of the New Testament in its original contexts as well as the ways that it continues to breathe life and hope into our communities today.

Wonderfully Made: Preteen Human Sexuality Workshop

January 27-28, 2023

Family Life Center

Wonderfully Made is a weekend workshop that offers you and your young person opportunities to learn, grow, and celebrate that we are all created by God, in all our many facets—including human sexuality—and God calls us good. God also calls us to responsible living as sexual beings. The weekend’s sessions include facilitated conversation for preteens (ages 10-12) and their parents about adolescent physical and spiritual growth. Preteens may invite friends, but all participants must commit to attend all sessions throughout the weekend and at least one parent/guardian is required to attend both sessions for caregiving adults. Spaces are limited, so register soon at fumcaustin.org/wonderfully-made. The deadline for registration is January 13 and the cost is $50/participant.

Get Fired Up! High School Retreat Registration Now Open

February 17-19 | Mo Ranch

2229 FM 1340, Hunt, TX

All high school youth are invited to the hill country where we will hike, kayak, run wild, eat s’mores, and share time together. The cost is $150 per person. Sign up now, and don’t be afraid to rope your friends into the fun, too! In fact, want to make things interesting? The student who recruits the most new friends (other high schoolers who don’t currently attend youth) will have their trip fees refunded and can enjoy the fun for free!