May Council Update

President’s Letter

Renewal — this is the feeling we want to have at this time of the year. The renewal of spring, the renewal of the Easter promise, and the renewal of our church building. 

It seems that two of these are taking longer than we like. While we can do nothing about the slow start to spring this year, your church council is carefully monitoring the building renovation. As of this writing, the process is moving along with a few unexpected “bumps” on the way. All additional work is being done with an eye to keeping within the costs outlined for the project. Any extra outlay of expenses will be discussed, if needed, by the Council.

You can do your part for the renewal of our environment on Saturday, May 7, as we look to spruce up the inside and outside of our property. Hope to see you there!

Sincerely,

Susan Otto, Council President

Financial Report

We closed out the first quarter of 2022 in a solid financial position. Our total income has exceeded what we had projected by 6.8%. We had a slight uptick in expenses in March, but those were mostly attributable to bills for snow removal — something I hope we won’t have to worry about for the next eight to nine months. Our resulting year-to-date expenses are 1.2% higher than we’d budgeted, and the net result is a year-to-date budget surplus of nearly $11,000. 

Sincerely,

Zach Wittchow, Treasurer

Tanzania News

Holy Week, Drought, and School Lunches

Tanzania is in the midst of a severe drought alongside excessive heat. At the same time, they are also dealing with waives of locusts. Cattle are dying and food costs are increasing every day. We have had requests for prayers. Pastor Makenge has also asked for prayers for the disabilities classroom project, the evangelist education program, and the widows project.

Worship is carrying on as usual in the midst of the hardships. Families at Galiliya preaching point celebrated baptisms on Palm Sunday. During Holy Week, Pastor Makenge gathered the Evangelists from all of the preaching points of Samaria Parish for a seminar. Communion was shared on Maundy Thursday. Easter is referred to as Passover in Tanzania, and on this day, it is customary for families to bring a goat or a sheep with them to church for their offering. They believe it will help save their families. Following church, the goats and the sheep are auctioned off in the yard in front of the church to raise funds for the church. 

Samaria and Savana primary schools, the schools that are part of our sister parish partnership, recently received the results of their standard seven exams and for the first time there was a drop in test scores. When asked why this happened, the head teacher told the church committee that there has been a change in the required curriculum and there is now work that must be completed via print outs. Without access to a printer, a laptop, and a scanner, the students were unable to complete all of the work necessary to be prepared for their exams. They have asked for our support with this, and the cost is just under $2000.

At Ascension, May is the month where we typically raise funds to cover the cost of lunches for the children at our two sister parish schools. There are 400 students at Savana primary school and 552 students at Samaria Primary School and the school year is 197 days long. The cost of a lunch is just over 6¢ per meal, but with 952 students to feed for nearly 200 days, plus the technology needs, we are hoping to collect $14,000 in May. Donations may be made via check to Ascension or online. Please mark “Tanzania” in the note/memo line.

Holy Week in El Salvador

In the early morning hours of Sunday, March 27, El Salvador was declared in a state of emergency after a violent Friday and Saturday. After a couple of years of decreased violence, the country was shocked when 67 people were murdered on March 26. In the weeks that have followed, the government has been arresting anyone with a hint of gang affiliation. The arrest of over 14,000 people in a short amount of time has been met with relief that the government is doing something, but also fear that the government is recklessly locking people up without regards to guilt.

While the entire country has been impacted by the state of emergency, fortunately our brothers and sisters in San Jorge have been spared from the violence. Most of the violence has been centered in San Salvador, hours away from Usulután and San Jorge. In San Jorge, the barrio were all of the church members live, there is almost no issues with gangs.

In San Jorge, there was worship on Maundy Thursday and fasting on Good Friday. Traditionally, Easter morning worship begins at 4 a.m., but with the government orders, they had worship at 6 a.m. Worship on Easter tends to be a simple service, more in-line with the early morning visit to the empty tomb.

They are grateful that Covid numbers have decreased and, as of the end of April, masks are becoming optional.

Welcome to Resurrection

Well, my friends, we do not always get to choose the timing for the work God calls us to do. We are neck deep in the season of Lent. At the same time, we are neck deep in the second phase of our remodel as walls and kitchen are demolished; asbestos is abated; and flooring is being prepared to be installed. So much chaos. Welcome to the wilderness, and if I am being honest, welcome to the story of the resurrection.

The key word for all of us in this season of Lent is flexibility. Please take a moment to thank staff who are redesigning worship, meetings, storage areas, and tending ministry on-the-fly. If the pandemic has taught us anything: even when we have made all the preparations, anything can change with a moment’s notice.

There are times when the wilderness is something that happens to others, and we watch from afar. Like the people in Ukraine. The wilderness they find themselves in was not of their choosing. At other times, the wilderness is the place we go to find a new road. When we choose a new relationship, career, vacation, retirement – all are wilderness moments that we can often choose for ourselves.

The wilderness, even when we enter by choice, can be a place of chaos. We can be fearful. We can be optimistic. We can be emboldened. We can be discouraged. In the wilderness, we can meet all those emotions and much more.

The season of Lent invites us to explore the faith we hold on to while also nurturing the relationships we hold so close. Our relationship with God, with stories of faith, with family and friends, and with strangers as well. These long forty days call us to remember who we are while at the same time releasing our grip from what we hold onto. And yes, these days can sometimes feel chaotic but God does not leave us to figure things out on our own. God is with us, even when we have difficulty believing God is present.

The season of Lent moves us to the holiest of weeks when Jesus enters Jerusalem to crowds gathered to welcome him. An upper room on Maundy Thursday gathers friends for a Last Supper and a cross overshadows the “good” of Good Friday. There will be upset in the temple grounds when Jesus turns over tables of the moneychangers. Chaos. There will be darkness and an earthquake to blot out both the light and our hope for a time on Good Friday. Chaos. A stone will be rolled in front of a tomb and the story of God’s one and only Son will come to an end. Chaos for all who believed.

Perhaps the chaos is just one more opportunity for God to reveal God’s self to us.

Come Sunday, there will be rumors of a stone rolled away and an empty tomb where Jesus once laid. Chaos. Roman guards will not be able to tell the story with much clarity. Chaos. Disciples will question the validity of the stories of three women who believe Jesus has risen from the dead. Chaos. Jesus, himself, will appear to Mary in the same garden where he was laid to rest, and Mary will question his identity. Chaos.

And the days of Easter will reveal Jesus to disciples in a locked room; on a beach; on the road to Emmaus; and on a mountain before his ascension into heaven. Chaos. I love that God uses the chaos of Easter resurrection stories to balance the chaos of our days in Lent and our journey through Holy Week. The same chaos that cause us to struggle and to doubt becomes the chaos that offers us the miracle of God’s resurrection power and the stability and grounding of our trust in God’s promise of eternal life through the death and resurrection of our Savior Jesus, the Christ. Thanks be to God!

On a personal note…I would invite you to not let the chaos of these last two years of pandemic planning keep you from remembering that on Easter Sunday in 2021 we did not have the opportunity and benefit of praising God with our voices through the journey of Holy Week and into Easter Day. Perhaps, you will not take worshipping our God in such simple ways for granted ever again. Come, join us for the journey of our Savior. Find your way to worship, if you have not been for a time. We will be glad to welcome you home. See you in church!

Pastor Chris

Prepare the Way of the Lord

During fifty-one weeks of the year, when the church is decorated, it is the altars and the walls we adorn to enhance our worship experience. But during Holy Week, sometimes the ground receives most of our attention. At Ascension, like churches of all denominations around the world, on Palm Sunday we recreate the actions of the early disciples of Jesus by covering the ground with palm branches. On the original Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem on a humble donkey, but the Passover celebrants recognized him as the potential Messiah. They threw their robes and branches on the ground to prepare a path worthy of a king.

Jesus walked a far different path later that week when he was paraded through the streets on the way to his crucifixion. I imagine it was the ugliest of walks, filled with fear, humiliation, and pain. In Central America, we spend Holy Week covering the streets with colorful alfombras that are part of the Good Friday processions that take place in every town. In recent years at Ascension, on Palm Sunday afternoon we begin to create our alfombras. The walk of our worshipers over the alfombras on Good Friday is a reminder of the beauty of God’s love being darkened for those three days.

This year, without a sanctuary for Holy Week worship, the pathway for our alfombras is less obvious. In spite of the fact that we won’t have our usual Spanish Sanctuary for our alfombras, we will look for creative ways we can maintain the theology of the alfombras, and our culture.

Advent may be the season of preparing our hearts for Jesus, but Holy Week is the season of preparing our feet to walk the walk of Jesus. Preparing the way of the Lord is such an important idea, that the verse is mentioned twice in the Bible. “A voice is crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, Make straight His Path.” ~Isaiah 40:3 & Matthew 3:3. For those other fifty-one weeks of the year, the weeks when we are not decorating the floors of the narthex and sanctuary, how will you prepare the path for Jesus?

 Edwin Aparicio, Pastoral Intern

The Wonder of Worship

Join us for Holy Week, in-person or live-stream

This year, we’re excited to offer live-streaming on our You Tube channel for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday (6:30 p.m.) and Easter Sunday (8:30 and 10:45 a.m.) worship.

Holy Week Begins April 10

Holy Week will be all the more powerful this year due to the opportunity for us to sing together to worship our God. We will move through the events of Holy Week remembering the last days and moments Jesus spent with his disciples.

Sunday, April 10 — Palm Sunday

A day of celebration marking the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem where palm branches and an explosion of colors allow us the opportunity to experience the joy of the crowds in Jesus’ arrival. Shouts of “Hosanna!” will fill the sanctuary. Worship times are our normal 8:30 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. in English and 10:45 a.m. in Spanish.

Thursday, April 14 — Maundy Thursday

Making our way to the upper room, we will gather with the disciples around a simple meal of bread and wine as Jesus gives us the gift of holy communion to give us strength for the days ahead. We will give thanks for a meaningful word of forgiveness from our Savior and then watch as the altar is stripped as we remember Jesus’ betrayal and arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. We worship at 6:30 p.m. this night.

Friday, April 15 — Good Friday

“Why is this day called good?” Because without Good Friday we would not have the joy of celebrating an Easter resurrection. We will gather at the foot of the cross to hear the seven last words and rest in our weariness after these long days of Lent. Worship at 12 p.m. is the traditional time of worship to remember Jesus’ sacrifice. The noon service will be quiet and reflective. Our 6:30 p.m. service will offer the gift of choirs to bring powerful offerings of music to give us pause as we hear each of the seven last words of Jesus from the cross. Our Spanish congregation will worship at 6:30 beginning with the procession of alfombras in the Memorial Gardens.

Sunday, April 17 — Easter Sunday

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! The story of God’s love knows no end. We hear whispers of resurrection and then see the empty tomb for ourselves. It has been two years since we have gathered to sing songs together in praise of our God on Easter Day. Worship is at 8:30 and 10:45 a.m. in English and 10:45 a.m. in Spanish. So much to celebrate!

Learning Spanish

We have been having a good response from our simple Spanish learning lessons that are in the announcements. We believe it is part of our mission to have some basic words to communicate with our Spanish speaking brothers and sisters and to know basic worship words.

We will continue to add to the words and phrases and learn some simple songs each week. If you have questions about pronunciation or the meaning of a word or phrase, ask one of our Spanish speakers. You can then practice your emerging Spanish with them. You will see that not all the translations are word for word but more phrase by phrase or thought by thought.

To see a list of recent/ongoing translations, visit our website. https://tinyurl.com/ALCspanish

This is a great way to show support for our Spanish speaking members and to grow a little yourself with a minimum of work.

God’s Temple

This year for Lent, I am thinking of reducing rather than giving anything up. I plan on reducing my carbs, fewer snacks, smaller portions at meals. As part of my faith journey, I actually started these changes in February. If I am being truthful, I’m not actually doing any of these things for Lent. My reasons are not about piety, but rather vanity. I got on the scale and realized that I’ve gained 15 pounds in the past three years. I guess when you switch from a job of doing physically demanding work for 12 hours a day to sitting in front of a computer screen for 12 hours a day, you gain weight if you don’t change what you eat. I’m looking forward to spring weather more than ever so I can get back to landscaping between classes to work off some of those extra pounds.

For those that give things up for Lent, I think that duality is often common. We hear stories about people giving up chocolate, candy, beer, red meat and other less than healthy foods. Other people give up television or other screen time. These are all things that while sacrificial are also beneficial to our physical and spiritual health. We don’t hear stories about people giving up things like vegetables, although my daughter Marta would willingly give up the entire squash family for Lent. We don’t give up things that make us healthy. We tend to only “sacrifice” by making healthy choices. That isn’t a bad thing.

What if this year for Lent, we didn’t focus on giving anything up. What if instead we focus on taking care of ourselves and our physical and spiritual health. Make a goal to find time for prayer or meditation. Take the time to take a walk. Take time to connect with someone that you have been missing. Do an act of kindness for someone else. By taking care of ourselves, we are both honoring God’s words to us and strengthening ourselves to do God’s work. Let the Holy Spirit guide you during this season of lent. 

Edwin Aparicio, Pastoral Intern

What Are You Giving Up for Lent?

Each year about this time Christians around the world prepare to enter the holy season of Lent. And as far back as I can remember one common practice for many faithful followers has been to “give up something” – a sacrificial practice meant to honor the 40 days Jesus endured in the desert to pray and fast in preparation for his journey to the cross. However, I don’t hear as much talk about giving up things for Lent any more.

Throughout my life I have progressed from giving up simple things like chocolate, red meat, or TV to more significant things like anger, impatience, or selfishness. And as we approach this Lenten season, the idea of letting go of something that interferes with my relationship with God has me thinking more deeply about what to give up this year. It also has me wondering what you might be planning to give up this Lent. Well, if you haven’t come up with anything yet, and even if you have, I wonder if you would allow me to suggest something.

What if we all gave up division for Lent?

We live in a world where division and dissension are the norm. The cultural climate we find ourselves in today is one that’s highly polarized. It’s one that’s quick to divide people along lines of “us vs. them” over anything and everything. We find ourselves in the midst of conflicts, being pulled toward a particular side, and engaging in a dance to stake out the “rightness” of our positions and seek validation for our point of view.

And too often when we hear something that we don’t like or agree with then our first instinct is to get angry, offended, argue, or in some cases to just leave rather than engage in mutual dialogue centered in listening. We allow ourselves to get dragged into arguments about who is more right, which side is more valid, and even whose belief is more biblically accurate. This creates division and animosity, and it can lead to the tragedy of people who all belong to the family of God seeing those who think differently as an enemy.

These last few years have left me feeling deeply distressed about the many divisions in our world and even more confused about my role. I’ve wondered if this is how people felt during other times of social and political turmoil. I find myself hoping and praying that we could all just let go of those things that divide us.

But rather than taking a strong public stance on the various issues over which we’re divided, I’ve tried to listen, understand, and encourage others to do the same. Every day I encounter conflicting views regarding the pandemic, government policies, politics, justice, and morality. My discomfort arises from feeling uncertain if I am following God’s will or my own. I ask myself if I lack the courage to do more. I ponder how and why good people and followers of Jesus stand firmly on both sides of the issues. I wonder if this paradox is the result of disinformation that leads to false conclusions. Are we unable to accept the truth or even know what the truth really is? Or maybe too much information is suffocating us, and we simply cannot think clearly.

In this era of division, fear, and even hatred, I find myself constantly wondering what does Jesus want us to do? Because I see good people on both sides – people trying to do what they are convinced is the right thing. And it seems that choosing the right side isn’t always clear or easy.

So, as we step into Lent on our journey toward Easter, I’m asking if you will dream with me about a world where every person is able to embrace every other person as a beloved child of God and brother or sister in Christ. Then, and equally as important, I’m asking if you will join me in the sacred struggle of giving up division, and not just for Lent, but for life – because this is what God desires for all God’s children.

One of the simplest ways that we can accomplish this is by remembering that while there is much that divides us, the cross and the empty tomb are what unites all of us and therefore what we have in common is far greater than anything that separates us. And if they are the unity that centers us, inspires us, guides us, and moves us, then it really doesn’t matter how different we are from others in our faith practices, political views, lifestyles, or anything else because in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, there’s enough grace for all of us.

Pastor Tony

40 Days, 40 People

Never fear!
I would never give up coffee for Lent. I tried that one year and my wife and I still do not speak about it.

The Season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday. A day to gather to give thanks to God in worship for the promise and power of God’s love and mercy while reflecting on the fragility of life and the need to honor every moment in this life without taking anything for granted. After tending seven families since the end of December as they said goodbye to someone they loved, I am more convinced than ever of our need to cherish the people God places into our lives.

Perhaps we are unable to keep up the energy to cherish those we love at every given moment. I wonder what our lives would like if we would work towards cherishing the ones we love throughout these 40 days of Lent. An opportunity to seek out those we cherish and remind them that they are loved. How unexpected it is in our world today to call, text, email, or write a letter to someone just to share with them their worth in our eyes. What a gift those words would be to the person receiving them?

How quickly we are coming out of the pandemic wanting to return to normal routines while forgetting how much we have lost or given up over these past two years. Maybe, before we let go of the emotions we have carried since March 2020, we might take a little time to tell the people we love that they are important to us. The words we so often speak at funerals in memory of someone who has died would be much better said to someone who is alive to hear them, appreciate them, and enjoy the moment of being told they are loved.

Dear friends, give it a try – 40 days, 40 people. An intentional moment of reaching out to tell someone they are important to you. And then feel the power of God’s love in your own life as you are reminded of the gifts God gives to us each and every day in the people who love us and make our lives that much richer. To the glory of God.

40 Days – 40 People.

See you in church!
Pastor Chris