The Holy Gift of Rest

“So then, a Sabbath rest still remains for the people of God, for those who enter God’s rest also rest from their labors as God did from his”. -Hebrews 4:9-10

As many of you know, in just a few weeks I will be stepping away for a three-month sabbatical. Sabbaticals are gifts – holy invitations to rest, renew, reconnect, and rediscover the rhythms that help bring life, clarity, and joy. I am deeply grateful to our church leadership and congregation for making this time possible, and I head into it with excitement, anticipation, and deep gratitude.

Part of this sabbatical will include traveling with my family to Europe for adventure, exploration, and much needed time together. We are excited to experience new places, wander through historic cathedrals, summit majestic mountains, hike beautiful trails, eat incredible food, and yes…consume our fair share of Swiss chocolate, along with so much more. One thing I anticipate greatly will be fulfilling my lifelong dream of seeing the Tour de France cycling race in person. Then, midway through sabbatical, I’ll return to Europe for a 110 mile bucket list run and traverse Mont Blanc exploring the beauty of Italy, France, and Switzerland along the way.

While some of this sabbatical will involve travel and adventure, much of it will also happen right here at home. I look forward to slowing down enough to spend meaningful time with family and friends. I plan to tackle projects around the house, reflect prayerfully, and train diligently for my ultrarun as well as two Ironman triathlon races coming this fall. For most of my life, physical fitness, endurance challenges, and being in nature have been the primary places where I encounter both joy and God’s presence, and I am excited to immerse myself deeply in those experiences during this time away.

At its heart, this sabbatical is about renewal. Ministry is a sacred calling, but like all callings, it requires rhythms of both pouring out and being filled again. I hope this time of sabbatical helps me rediscover what makes my heart sing: adventure, reconnection, rest, wonder, curiosity, laughter, challenge, and time with the people I love most.

I also hope this season serves as a reminder to all of us that rest is not weakness; it’s holy. Throughout Scripture, we see God inviting people into rhythms of Sabbath, renewal, and restoration. Jesus himself stepped away to pray, rest, and reconnect with the Father. We were never created to run endlessly without pause (I know, I know …listen to this myself).

Please know that as I step away from my day to day ministry responsibilities I carry each of you with me in my prayers and heart. I am thankful for this community and for the many ways you continue to love and support one another. I leave knowing the church is in good hands and trusting that God will continue to move powerfully among all of us while we are apart.

Thank you again for this incredible gift of sabbatical. I cannot wait to return in October renewed, refreshed, and ready to step into a new season of ministry together.

Pastor Tony

Reprinted from the May 2026 newsletter.

Ministry Memories

Our high school ministry, CRASH, wrapped up our program year ministry in the middle of May. It was a really great night of games, conversation, food, and time together. Pastor Edwin invited the incoming freshmen to join for the night and as is often the case at Ascension – the welcome was easy and maybe a little overwhelming.

One of the great things about high school ministry is that community happens pretty easily if students are willing to show up and step out of their comfort zone. True for most of us, I believe. What always surprises me, at church stuff, is how easily the grade level division disappears. All of a sudden 8th graders are talking to sophomores and freshmen are connecting with juniors. It is a testament to Pastor Edwin and our adult CRASH leaders who navigate all the twists and turns of young people in these days. I imagine that Pastor Edwin could do CRASH all by himself, but it would be a lot more work and there would be young people who would probably fall through the cracks.

At the end of the night, after ice cream treats and new bruises had formed after one too many rounds inside the inflatable balls, Pastor Edwin asked each student to share what their favorite memory of CRASH was over the past year. Some said the Progressive Dinner in December, others shared moments of service or deep conversation, but one young person shared that “discovering Ascension” was her favorite memory of the past year. New to Ascension, this young person found a place of welcome and safety and community. Thanks be to God! It does indeed take a village to bring ministry to life in this community of faith, and I am grateful for all of it.

Our Children’s Ministry, JAM, BLAST, JUMP, and our junior high ministry, JOLT, also wrapped up in the middle of May. It is pure joy to watch the next surprise unfolding from the ministry team that dreams about ministry for our children and to simply keep up with the energy of junior high students. In the past few years, we experimented with new things in our children’s ministry to explore new ways of engaging our children and young families. Some things work well others not so much. And so we keep dreaming up new shenanigans to tell the story of God’s love and invite the children to make those stories their own.

In JOLT, it is always a game, a Bible verse or two, and the sharing of moments in the lives of young people. All three pastors commit to JOLT each week for the power of their presence and what it communicates. JOLT is important to the church. And when all three pastors show up each week – the students recognize that they are important. It is one of our strongest commitments, as pastors, to remind our 6th, 7th, and 8th  graders, on weekly basis that they matter.

There are so many stories of faithfulness that find life in this church. Property days, moments of prayer and reflection, love lived out in service to another. This place is really too much to keep track of at times. I do not think I want it any other way. When someone says, “I did not know we did that here,” I think some people hear that as “we don’t communicate enough” while I hear that comment as “there is just too much going on to know everything.” And my next thought is often, “Well, there is always next year if you missed it this year.”

Ascension is the community it is for the ministries that happen loudly and the ministries that happen with just a whisper. Pastoral assistants who share holy communion, Healing Hearts meals that are cooked and served, Hope Center breakfasts, lunches, and dinners served by members of this community. If you are looking for a place to serve, I will happily meet to hear your hopes and point you in the right direction. There is no shortage of need. Thank God, there is no shortage of ministry opportunity to tend. And if you are new to this church and are looking for a place to serve – if you see a need that you believe Ascension can meet – let me know – just be ready to jump in and don’t be surprised if someone else wants to jump in with you. This is Ascension. It’s what we do.

We are preparing to bless Pastor Tony with a sending on Sunday, June 28, as he begins his sabbatical. How wonderful it is that this community of faith sees the value in tending your pastors with a time away after a long season of ministry. Sabbaticals are simply one more way that we tend this church, in this time and place, to the glory of God. Lighting in the sanctuary, confetti for big celebrations, campus tending to reflect the beauty of God’s creation and the sacredness of the space we call our spiritual home. And the three amigos. So much joy to serve together and to walk alongside all of you in these days of summer. My prayer is that you will each find moments for rest, renewal, and reflection while remembering this church barely slows down in the summer. Mission trips are coming. Your prayers are appreciated. See you in church!

Pastor Chris

Reprinted from the May 2026 newsletter.

The Power of Presence

On Saturday, June 27, my day began at 3:30 a.m. as I made my way to the Milwaukee airport to fly to Seattle because my oldest friend invited me to preach at the worship service at which she was being installed as a new pastor. Flying to Seattle via Chicago meant there would be no time to change clothes before the worship service, so I wore my clerical collar through the airport, on the plane, and at lunch before finally getting to the worship service at 2 p.m.

I do not usually notice the stares, and sometimes glares, of people who see me approaching when I wear my collar. On this day, I traveled with a friend whose dad is a pastor. Several times, Jordan mentioned the stares pointed in my direction. I smiled as I remembered I was wearing my collar; after I put it on, I sometimes forget I’m wearing it. What was surprising to both Jordan and me was the deer-in-the-headlights look that so often confronts me when I travel in my collar. I imagine people have three main reactions: one offers respect and often a smile or head nod; a second is one of disdain (usually because of an experience with the Church where the person was mistreated, judged, or ignored); and the third reaction, which is the most fascinating because it speaks to our world as it is today, is one of complete and utter helplessness. As if some far off memory reminds them that they might know the collar represents something but they are unsure of where to place it or how to interact with it so they give me a wide berth. The symbol of the collar can be both an invitation and a distraction for people. I struggle to find a balance between the two, but I like to believe that the invitations outweigh the distractions.

I joined my friend at the service of installation and preached a message about new beginnings and hope for futures resting squarely in the grace of God. I shared a message that spoke to my friend’s gifts for the ministry and her hunger to share God’s love. And I promised the congregation she is now serving that she would love them but also push them out of their comfort zone. I asked them to consider the future as an adventure to share with their new pastor to the glory of God. At the end of the sermon, I reminded them that God is faithful – that they should feel blessed for being the “luckiest congregation in the ELCA” and invited them to “be at peace.” It was a wonderful day to worship God and to share in the journey of my friend as she begins a new chapter in ministry. The funny thing is – after wearing my collar all morning, through airports, plane rides, and lunch on the beach – it was so hot at the church that my friend invited me to choose to continue wearing my collar or to cool off by changing into a different dress shirt. I chose the cooler shirt, which did not make me that much cooler but did remind me that the journey we travel as people of faith is one that calls us to be wholly present for the good and the not so good moments of this life.

So, my friends, look for the moments in these summer days and remind yourself to be wholly present, so you might share all of who you are with a friend, a child, a parent, a spouse, and especially your God. Perhaps, in these summer days, you might even consider giving your whole self to yourself as a gift – to rest for a quiet time of reconnection with who you truly are and not who think the world expects you to be.

Peace be with you,
Pastor Chris Marien

(This article was taken from Ascension’s August 2015 newsletter)