Holy Week Happenings

Palm Sunday, April 13
8:30a & 10:45a (English), 10:45a (en español)

“Hosanna in the highest,” will be our cry as we remember Jesus’ triumphant entry into the gates of the holy city. We will celebrate the beginning of this holy week with the reminder that our expectations and God’s expectations are not always exactly the same. Where the people want a powerful king, Jesus comes as a suffering servant riding a donkey. Through the events of day, we will be reminded of the coming of the promised Messiah – the chosen one of God. Between services and after the 10:45 services, all members are invited to share in the creation of the alfombras (sand carpets) for Holy Week.

Maundy Thursday Dinner, April 17

We will gather at 5:30 p.m. in West Hall to experience the foods of the Passover and learn about the meaning of each of the foods and then celebrate with a potluck dinner before worship at 6:30 p.m. This will be a reservation event as we only have space for 80. To reserve your spot, you can call the church office, 262-547-8518, or email Tamie Greenwood.

Maundy Thursday Worship, April 17
6:30p (English), 6:30p (en español)

We will gather in the upper room with Jesus and the disciples to celebrate the Last Supper. This year, we will hear words of confession and forgiveness and be reminded of the powerful image of the Savior washing the feet of the disciples. As is tradition, we will honor the memory of Jesus’ humiliation at the hands of those in power before he is led to the cross to be crucified by the stripping of the altar.

Good Friday, April 18
12p and 6:30p (English), and 6:30p (en español)

The ancient title for this day is “the Triumph of the Cross.” A reminder for us that the church gathers not to mourn this day but to celebrate Christ’s life-giving passion and to find strength and hope in the cross as a symbol of new life. We will share in the unfolding drama as Jesus is led to the cross. We will hear the stories of the day and give witness to the closing of the tomb.

Easter Sunday: The Day of Resurrection Joy
8:30a & 10:45a (English), 10:45a (en español)

First we hear only hoped for whispers on the wind. Resurrection? Are you sure? Yes! We gather to celebrate the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus, the Christ. We will hear the story of that first Easter day and be surrounded by the joyful sounds of songs that have been sung for generations and songs that new generations are singing. Join us for a continental potluck breakfast reception between services. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

The Gift of Resurrection

In March, I preached in Spanish on the Gospel of Luke (13:6-9). These verses tell the story of the fig tree that bears no fruit. The landowner had planted a fig tree in his vineyard, and when the supposed harvest time arrived, he arrived at the land and realized the plants hadn’t produced any fruit. The landowner had confidence and hope that the plants would produce good fruit, but when he arrived at the land, he realized the plants on their branches didn’t have the fruit he expected.

This story made me think about these questions: What kind of fruit did the landowner expect? What caused the plants not to produce fruit? Could a pest have arrived and contaminated the plants? Were the roots weak? Could an intruder have arrived and stolen the fruit? What happened?

The wonderful thing about this story is the appearance of a gardener who pleaded for the plants and promised to take care of them. The gardener will not leave the plant’s salvation to chance. The gardener will do everything possible to remove the bad soil. The gardener will ensure that the plant receives the necessary water and fertilizer to strengthen its roots. The gardener’s intervention is what made the plants’ salvation possible.

During Holy Week, we hear, experience, and reflect on the work, agony, death, and gift of resurrection we received from this merciful, compassionate gardener who intervened, intervenes, and will continue to intervene for all of us. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.” This gardener not only came to save us but has also provided us with the tools we need to bear fruit in our lives. In John 6:35, our gardener tells us, “Whoever drinks of the water I give him will never thirst. The water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The gardener completed his mission and has given us the gift of eternal life. In Matthew 17:23, Jesus says, “The Son of Man will be handed over to the powers of this world, and they will kill him, but on the third day he will rise again.” On Sunday morning, a group of women went to the tomb and found it empty. The fulfillment of the promise of the resurrection had arrived. “He is not there, He has risen, hallelujah!

Sisters and brothers, the gardener has brought us and given us a new way of seeing life. Even if some powers of this world harm us, intimidate us, persecute us, humiliate us, make us sick, increase our anxiety, that is not the end. Now we live in the sure hope of the resurrection. Death no longer has power over us, not because of what I do, but because of what the gardener has done for us!

Happy season of resurrection!

Pastor Edwin 

Changed by the Resurrection

Our journey through Lent will soon be coming to an end. On Maundy Thursday we will gather in the upper room with Jesus and his disciples and be reminded of the incredible gift we celebrate in worship every Sunday morning as we hear, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” On Good Friday we will travel to the foot of the cross and hear Jesus utter a lonely cry of abandonment, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me.” We will hear the words of finality that Jesus spoke with his last breath as he paid the ultimate price for our sin, “It is finished!” And we will travel again to the empty tomb to hear about the group of women that traveled there early on the first day of the week only to find it empty. We will hear once more the words of the angels at the empty tomb, “He is not here, but has risen.”

But once that final, culminating event of the Resurrection is complete. Then what? What are we supposed to do then? Well, I think it’s important for us to remember that Easter is more than just a day. Easter is an every day celebration of the cross and resurrection of Jesus – the forgiveness of sins and the certainty of eternal life with God. Easter is also an every day celebration in which we live each day trusting in God through Christ, knowing that Jesus is “the resurrection and the life” for us.

So what do we do as we go forth from the empty tomb? Perhaps it would be best for us to start by following the example of the first witnesses of the empty tomb. After the two angels reminded the women that Jesus had risen, St. Luke tells us that “then they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest.” They went forth from the tomb changed by the resurrection of Jesus. They went forth from the tomb to bring an “every day” witness of God’s power over sin, death, and Satan himself.

And where then are we to go once we leave the empty tomb? Well, perhaps it would be best for us to follow the example of Jesus’ first disciples. After Jesus walked through locked doors to appear to the eleven disciples and to show himself to Thomas, seven of the eleven disciples went back to their fishing business. They went back to their everyday stations in life and took the witness of the resurrection with them. They lived in the joy of the resurrection of Jesus while carrying out the ordinary, daily responsibilities given to them.

Like the women at the empty tomb and the eleven disciples, we too are every day witnesses and participants in the resurrection of Jesus. We believe. We have the hope of eternal life. We have the joy of the resurrection living inside of us. Also, like the women at the empty tomb and the disciples, we have stations in life that God has given to us as gifts. Most of us aren’t fishermen, but all of us have one or more of these callings: mother, father, partner, wife, husband, daughter, son, sister, brother, grandparent, employee, retiree, caregiver, friend, and neighbor. Each of these callings comes with a set of duties and responsibilities.

And as followers of Jesus, redeemed by God’s grace we are called to wrap the daily duties and responsibilities of our lives in the joy, love, peace, and forgiveness of Christ. And when we do this, more than likely, others will take notice, and God will bless our faithful work by giving us more opportunities to “tell all these things to all the rest.”

So, what are we to do then?  My friends, we are to respond to God’s grace, love and mercy by going forth from Easter Sunday and the celebration of the empty tomb as every day witnesses, freed to live and love and serve as God’s forgiven children in Christ Jesus. And as we go forth empowered by God’s Spirit, living and active within us, may we live in the joy of the resurrection so that everyone, everywhere will see just how great God is! Happy Easter! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Pastor Tony

Ready for Easter

I am ready for Easter!
I am ready for every word of resurrection joy.
I am ready for every celebratory trumpet sound.
I am ready for a stone to be rolled away.
I am ready for a sunrise that is blinding in its glory.
I am ready for the fragrance of Easter lilies to fill the space of worship.
I am ready for the promise of new life in the green shoot from the earth.
I am ready for Easter!

Don’t get me wrong! Lent has been a wild journey in the wilderness. If I am being honest, the journey has gone far better than I expected. I have walked through dry valleys with some of you. With others, I have celebrated moments of renewal. I have sought my own still waters to find rest. It did not hurt that Lent encompassed Spring Break for all three of our children at the same time. I was unaware of my hunger to have our college age son home for a time. I even celebrated extra cooking and baking and laundry just to hear his voice in the house again. The Church Council and other ministry leaders gathered to begin the journey towards our 2035 vision for ministry. New members are filling out membership forms as they have come to find Ascension to be a place of welcome, a place to call their spiritual home. Alfombras are being traced as we prepare for Palm Sunday when the vibrant colored sawdust will once again tell the story of the last week of the life of Jesus. Musicians are practicing – so much practicing – so that choirs and instrumentalists will offer their very best to the glory of God.

All this leading us to the waving palm branches to welcome a Savior to the holy city of Jerusalem. An upper room will be prepared for a dinner with friends where disciples and teacher will gather to rest, relax, tell stories, and be reminded that that greatest among us must be a servant to all. A garden will serve as a cathedral of prayer until a betrayal and an arrest. A mock trial will claim truth and the powers of this world will be manipulated in order to pass a sentence of death for the Savior of the world. A cross will stand empty until nails are hammered through flesh. Seven last words will call us to weep, reflect, and remember. A newly carved tomb will become the final resting place for the one we called, Immanuel, God with us. And we will leave the graveyard with little hope left among us.

That is, until some women go to visit the tomb. They will go to the tomb to leave spices that will mask the scent of death – myrrh and aloes. Yet they will leave it behind for the shock of the stone rolled away and the tomb found empty. A shock to be sure. A trick? A crime of theft? Or the unimaginable possibility that what their teacher said would happen, actually took place. Resurrection.
Still in disbelief, May will weep outside the empty tomb. One last insult for her teacher and friend. A body stolen from its grave. Until – she hears a voice. One, she does not recognize at first. Then – she hears her name. “Mary.” Instantly she knows. Only one person in all the world speaks her name with such love and affection.

And the rest of the story will be told again and again to all who would listen because we never tire of hearing the story of resurrection joy on that first Easter day. It will begin with the words Mary never thought she would ever say again. “I have seen the Lord!”
People of God, I am ready for Easter! What joy awaits us. Come join the story and the song in the days ahead.

See you in church.

Pastor Chris

Easter Reflections

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

We are just a little past the midway point in our Easter celebrations. It has been a glorious season. From lilies and trumpets and music to lead us in praise of our God to baptisms, baptisms, baptisms. A ministry fair and pupusas to purchase and a final trip to New Orleans before the 2024 ELCA Youth Gathering this summer. There is a lot going on and I, for one, am wondering when I can step down from the merry-go-round for a moment.

The school year is quickly coming to an end, which means a graduation to prepare for in our house. Fourteen years ago, when I arrived at Ascension, my oldest child was four years old and now he looks to a new chapter at University of Wisconsin at Madison. This is my moment to say thank you to all of you for helping to shape my son; for providing a place of welcome and hospitality and for allowing him to become his own person in your midst. Sometimes the children of the pastors must deal with a good deal of judgment and pillar balancing. I am grateful that you have allowed my oldest to be himself and know this faith community as a place of welcome and love for most of his life. All that being said, this pastor/dad is learning to balance all the pieces that come with preparing for the first of his children to make his way in the world. I confess, I am not sure how I feel about it. There are a lot of unknowns and several of you have already offered advice and honestly, thank you. Some of it makes me laugh and some of the advice is pure gold and somehow, it will all work itself out.

That is exactly how I am feeling about this summer and preparing to welcome 15,000 high school students – all of them for the very first time – to New Orleans and the Youth Gathering. In some ways, I have it easy this time around. It is my job to entertain and teach faith formation for about 3 and ½ hours each night of the event and make sure closing worship goes off without a hitch and everybody gets communion. Pastor Tony has to keep everyone safe. I think I will stick with my job, thank you very much! As I fly home from New Orleans, I am reflecting on all the work that has been done and the work still to do. Work, I can do because of your support and willingness to allow me to serve the national church in this way. It is no small task, and I am only able to balance the youth gathering and the ministry of Ascension with the partnership of Pastor Tony and Pastor Edwin and the amazing people who I work alongside each day. Amy, Ben, Sarah, Tamie, and Vicki tend to so many moments of ministry alongside the pastors – please thank them when you see them. Ascension runs as smoothly and provides so much to so many because of their dedication.

And then there is this incredible community of people. All of you who show up, step up, and stand up when there is a call to serve in some way to share in the ministry of this community of faith allowing all of us to grow and flourish. It is because of your commitment and faithfulness to the story of God’s love and your willingness to give of yourselves in leadership and love and in sweat and tears and laughter all along the way walking your individual journeys of faith as well, that Ascension becomes more and more of who God is inviting and leading and pushing us to be. Who we are, as the community of Ascension, a place of welcome and multi-cultural ministry, is because of who you are as God blesses you and invites you to share in the story and ministry of this community of faith.

In the season of Easter, as much I want to celebrate the resurrection and give praise to God alone, I am also filled with deep gratitude for the ways in which God inspires you to serve; to care for the other; to walk alongside each other and serve the world around us all to the glory of God. I am humbled to serve as one of your pastors and grateful for the ministry we share.

See you in church.

Pastor Chris

The Gift of Resurrection

It seems like a week ago that we gathered together for Ash Wednesday to begin Lent. We begin the journey of Lent with this phrase “You are dust and to dust you shall return.” A phrase that reminds us that this journey of earthly life is temporary, but the promise of eternal life is firm for all.

Throughout the season of Lent, we listen and reflect on the clues Jesus gave before his death. He said “the kingdom of God has come near, but that same kingdom would also be destroyed and rebuilt on the third day.” Messages that anticipated his persecution, the contempt he would face, and his suffering on the cross with these words “If anyone wants to be my disciple, let him deny himself, carry his cross and follow me” Mark 8:34. “The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified… unless the grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it produces much fruit.” John 12:24. “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man also be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” John 3:14-15.

This year, the forty days passed quickly and we soon found ourselves in Holy Week. A time in which we remember and reflect how our Lord in the midst of his agony on the night he was betrayed, washed the feet of the disciples, instituted Holy Communion and told us “a new commandment I give you: that you love one another.” “Just as I have loved you, you also love one another.” On Good Friday, Jesus is abandoned, scourged, crowned with a crown of thorns and sentenced to death on the cross. His death put an end to the beauty of his messages and his presence among the people.

But is this how it all ends? In no way, three days later the gift of the Resurrection occurs. The purpose for which our lord had been sent had been accomplished. Death was defeated and no longer has power over us. We have been freed from slavery. The temple that had been destroyed was rebuilt on the third day just as the Lord had mentioned to his disciples. With the Resurrection, the persecutions, contempt and agonies have been left behind, it takes us to a space where there is only joy and peace.

Last summer, a month after my installation and ordination, as you already know, my father went to enjoy the gift of the resurrection. Although his absence left a void in our lives, my family and I hold on to the hope of the promise of eternal life. His death brought an end to his earthly suffering, as I have peace knowing that my father was at peace at the moment of his death. The pain of my father’s death was tempered with the hope that gives us strength, comfort, joy, love and peace. In some of you there are probably gaps in loved ones who came before us, that just as Jesus died and rose again, so we will also rise to eternal life.

Brothers and sisters, my wishes are that the empty tomb fills us with Hope, comfort and peace as we walk on this new journey of resurrection. Happy Easter!

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” (Peter 5:10)

Pastor Edwin 

Christ Is Risen!

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

I never get tired of hearing those words. They offer praise. Bring peace. Extend comfort. Reassure troubled hearts. And even raise the dead. Okay, maybe not in the literal sense, but for many of us who know someone who is in a season of their life that is painful, difficult, hopeless – these words of resurrection joy can lift someone from their suffering, if only for a momentary glimpse of the Kingdom of God and the joy to be found there.

I have often wondered why our funeral liturgy does not include this resurrection announcement. I imagine the mood would change for those who gather to remember a loved one, if the first words they heard and said included: “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!”

I am all for: 

  • John 14 – Let not your hearts be troubled;
  • Psalm 23 – The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want;
  • Matthew 11 – Come to me all you who are weary and carrying heavy burdens;
  • John 11 – I am the resurrection and the life.
  • Romans 8 – What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who is against us?
  • Job 19 – I know that my redeemer lives.
  • Psalm 118 – Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter them; 

And yet, none of those words fill me with the power of belief like, “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Who among us has not known the sting of death or felt the bitter wind at graveside? Even in the warmth of the summer sun, to stand at the edge of the grave of someone we love, there is a known sense of loneliness, regardless of the gathered crowd around you. So again, I ask, why do we not include the resurrection announcement at the beginning and end of every funeral we attend? For that matter, why is the story of resurrected Savior and empty tomb not reminded to us again and again at the entrance to the sanctuary and the gate of the cemetery? It is as if the celebration of Easter is not enough for us. AND YET THIS EASTER NEWS IS ENOUGH! It is all we need. If we had no other words of Scripture but this story of resurrection of the Son of God, it is enough. 

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’s head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed, for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not touch me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

I invite you to carry the story and these words of resurrection joy and promise with you into each new day – long past these 50 days of Easter celebration. Carry this resurrection joy deep within you, write it on your heart, and speak it in greeting to remind yourself and others of the good news of our God. “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! 

May the joy of Easter carry you into each new day.

Pastor Chris

God of the Resurrection

Over the past few months in our Monday Adult Education classes we’ve been exploring our faith by way of the Chosen video series, the Bible, and many wonderful and engaging discussions. Throughout our time together I’ve noticed an openness, energy, and excitement welling up in many of those participating. And this has led me to see that the Holy Spirit is up to something else beautiful and amazing here at Ascension. Coincidently, just last week a friend of mine shared the following poem, “Watered Gardens” by Joyce Rupp. And I feel like it does a great job highlighting the same openness that Easter and the gift of resurrection joy call us toward.

God of openness, of life and resurrection,
Come into this Easter season and bless me.
Look around the tight dead spaces of my heart
That still refuse to give you entrance.
Bring your gentle but firm love.
Begin to lift the layers of resistance
That hang on tightly deep inside of me.
Open, one by one, those places in my life
Where I refuse to be overcome by surprise.
Open, one by one, those parts of my heart
Where I fight the entrance of real growth.
Open, one by one, those aspects of my spirit
Where my security struggles with the truth.
God of the Resurrection , God of the living,
Untomb and uncover all that needs to live in me.
Take me to people, events and situations
And stretch me into much greater openness.
Open me. Open me. Open me.
For it is only then that I will grow and change.
For it is only then that I will be transformed.
For it is only then that I will know how it is
To be in the moment of rising from the dead.

My friends, I pray that the God of the Resurrection would continue to inspire us and open us to discover the gift of a new life in Christ. And as we do, may all our days be filled with hope! 

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Pastor Tony

Holy Week 2024

Holy Week will once again offer us the power of the story of God’s love for us.

Palm Sunday, March 24

8:30a & 10:45a (English), 10:45a (en español)

Hear the story of the entrance of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem to shouts of “Hosanna. Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord!”

Maundy Thursday, March 28

6:30p (English), 6:45p (en español)

Remember the Last Supper in the Upper Room, prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus’ arrest, and trial. This worship service ends with the meaningful “stripping of the altar” to remind us of the humiliation and suffering of our Savior.

Good Friday, March 29

Worship: 12p and 6:30p (English), and 6p (en español)

Hear the story of the crucifixion of Jesus along with the seven last words of Jesus from the cross. We will gather to remember and offer worship to the One who saves us from our sins. The sanctuary will be open with candlelight from 1-3 p.m. for those who desire a time of quiet prayer.

Good Friday Procession: We invite you to participate in our Latino Ministries’ Good Friday procession. We will start our procession from the three crosses in the memorial garden. We will lower the cross and the participants will be able to pass the cross to the people who will carry it on our trip to the tomb (Latino Sanctuary). In the sanctuary, we will, as always, have the experience of walking and experiencing how the beauty of the alfombras/carpets disappears.

Easter Sunday: The Day of Resurrection Joy

8:30a & 10:45a (English), 10:45a (en español)

The story of the power of God overcoming the power of death. The story of the power of love overcoming the power of death. The story of Jesus defeating the grave. It is our story. Come and see what God has done. Be reminded of the promise of God’s unimaginable love for you. This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Preparing for the Beauty of Holy Week

While we just celebrated Ash Wednesday, preparations for Holy Week at Ascension are already underway. In the Latino Ministry, we have begun coloring sawdust to prepare our traditional alfombras for Good Friday. During Journey to the Cross, families began the first alfombra.

Some of you have asked me where all that large amount of sawdust comes from. Sawdust is not just from one place, last month, I had to visit Bliffert, Waukesha, Home Depot, Waukesha and Bliffert, Germantown. We have enough material to make all of the alfombras for this year. The sawdust that those stores collect is put in the trash, but for the month of February, they invite us to use and do wonders with material that is normally garbage. I showed them photographs of last year’s alfombras. They said, “Wow! Thank you for inviting us to be part in some way in this project!” Yes, everyone is invited to participate in some way in the alfombras during Holy Week.

In previous years, I have colored all the sawdust by myself. This year CRASH students were invited to experience the colorization of sawdust. The students really enjoyed it and learned a new skill. This was not only a time of work, but it was also a time for fellowship, sharing and continuing to learn about what Ascension is and what God is doing in our multicultural Christian community.

As we continue to walk this Lenten journey, let’s think about God’s call to us to pass the good news to others. In Holy week, we invite you to participate in our Good Friday procession. We will start our procession from the three crosses in the memorial garden. We will lower the cross and the participants will be able to pass the cross to the people who will carry it on our trip to the tomb (Latino Sanctuary). In the sanctuary, we will, as always, have the experience of walking and experiencing how the beauty of the carpets disappears.

The beauty of the savior living among us dies, but that is not the end. Three days later, beauty returns never to disappear from our lives. Jesus continues to reveal the beauty of the kingdom of heaven here on earth through us and others. We are invited to spread the message of the kingdom of God from where we are.

May God open your eyes this Lenten season to help you find the beauty of the kingdom of heaven in your lives.

Pastor Edwin