Pop-Up Oxford Hosts Worship Service at The Lyric This Week

Pop-Up Oxford, a series of cross- denominational worship gatherings for the LOU community, is having its first event of the year at The Lyric on Wednesday, Jan. 30.

Pop-Up Oxford’s worship service starts at 7 p.m. Jan. 30 at The Lyric. Photo provided.

This movement is planned and produced by worship leaders in the community who wanted to create a place for all people to come together as a community to fellowship, worship, and share their stories.

One of the organizers is Cody Hickman, a worship leader at Oxford University United Methodist Church.

“The goal of Pop-Up Worship is to break down the barriers that we have set up due to factors such as denominations, backgrounds, and generation by coming together as one community in a worshipful setting,” Hickman said. “We do this by meeting at locations that belong to the community rather than a specific church.”

The event is not for any specific church or denomination, the organizers said.

“Pop-Up Worship is about people coming together to worship,” Hickman said. “It’s about building community. It’s about a creative and free expression of worship.”

Pop-Up Oxford has already seen some success in Oxford. Past event locations include everything from the Powerhouse to a local backyard. Past events have drawn in participation from other worship leaders in the area, such as Alex Crosby of The Orchard.

“(When) I made it a priority to attend one that I realized how special it was to worship with other believers regardless of denominational tradition,” Crosby said.

Events have included music, spoken-word, preaching, panels on topics of religion, and more. This year’s events will center around the theme of “Unity.”

Organizers with Pop-Up Oxford believe the worship gatherings can be a conduit for people of differing backgrounds to come together around a common cause.

“The heartbeat of Pop-Up is worship,” said Cory Carr, worship leader at Community Church Oxford. “I believe that when we see people unite with the common purpose and passion of worship, we will see lasting effects in our community.”

For more information, follow Pop-Up Oxford on Instagram and Facebook.

Staff report

About Pop-Up Worship: Pop-Up Oxford isn’t about a church or denomination. It’s about people coming together to worship. It’s about building community. It’s about breaking down barriers and building relationships with people outside of our local congregations and friend groups.