Why Austin

The Parsley family has been going on vacation in south-central Texas for 17 years. We visit grandma in New Braunfels, go to the Schlitterbahn (world famous water park), and enjoy all of the local events, hot weather and water sports between Austin and San Antonio. We have always loved the culture of Austin and finally came to the place where the Lord released us to build a life giving local church here.

Austin is the Capital of Texas. All the government, legislative and political mechanisms for the largest state in the lower 48 are in Austin. It is where the decisions are made. Power-brokers, law-makers and influencers all have a place in Austin. As a result, Austin leans to the political left but prides itself on being open to all views. It is quite a secular city and is seen as the blue dot in a red state.

Austin is called the "Live Music Capital of the World." They say this because of the world famous "Sixth Street" strip of clubs, bars and restaurants where you can hear bands from all over the country; but by no means is it just country music. Rather, it is a culture of musicians across many genres which have created an artistic texture in Austin where there is a thriving arts and entertainment industry, including film, theatre and the fine arts.

As the home of The University of Texas, Austin is an academic center. With more than 50,000 students, UT is routinely ranked in the top schools in the nation employing 20,000 people, with power-house football and basketball programs as well. Austin has a decidedly intellectual sophistication, with a youthful cultural ethos.

Austin is an Information Technologies hub. It is the origin of companies like Dell Computers, Texas Instruments, Motorola, IBM and others. It is a place where technology is studied and invested in through the University of Texas, which sits in the center of the city. As a result, people from all over the U.S. have been attracted to this city and many smaller IT companies have spun off on their own making this city an entrepreneurial seed bed.

Politics, technology, academics and the arts all in one major city make Austin fertile soil for the message of Christ's love and life-giving Spirit. While there are many good churches in this city, Austin is definitely a place where the un-churched and de-churched people make up the overwhelming majority of the population, making it a great city for another life-giving local church.