Walk With Me

Earlier this year, a new song came across my Spotify app. The song is entitled, “Walk with Me.” The lyrics at the beginning go like this:              

Walk with me, Lord. Walk with me. Walk with me, Lord. Walk with me.
While I’m on this road, I don’t want to go alone. I want Jesus to walk with me.

The song goes on, but those are the words to carry us in the month of October and beyond. Some of you will no doubt recognize the same theme in one of our hymns in the red hymnal, “I Want Jesus to Walk with Me.” As a community of faith, we have organized our ministries into three areas: Worship, Grow, and Serve. After living with these three umbrellas for a season or two, those involved in the Serve area of ministry asked for some reconsideration of our branding for our third umbrella.

We have worked with intentionality and integrity to develop and design our ministries outside our walls to encompass the model of accompaniment – the idea of walking alongside our ministry partners instead of “bringing our ideas to their doors.” In earlier days, this area of ministry was called “Mission Outreach.” In the month of October, we are redefining and reforming our meaning and purpose once again to align our ministry with the important work of accompaniment. Those involved in the hands-on work of accompaniment asked us to consider rebranding this area of ministry under the umbrella of “Walk.” It makes sense. The renaming allows us to focus our ministries outside our walls on a parallel track alongside those who invite us to “walk” with them in our local, national, and global ministries.

As we look to the dreams of our Arise 2035, our Ten-Year Strategic Plan and Vision, your voice and your dreams for your church are important contributions to the days ahead. Beginning in October, you will have the opportunity to add your dreams to the “action items” on the posters in the narthex/lobby of the church. As you dream, consider sharing your ideas on those posters, so that we can offer the greatest imagination to the work God will lay before us in our future.

The hymn in the red hymnal begins with these words:

I want Jesus to walk with me. I want Jesus to walk with me.
All along my pilgrim journey. I want Jesus to walk with me.

I believe that is all any of us ever want in this life. I, for one, am happy to have each of you to walk alongside me on this journey of faith and life. To God be the glory.

See you in church,

Pastor Chris

Welcome to September

I confess – September is a welcome respite from August.

August began with the mission trip to El Salvador. It was spectacular. Pastor Edwin and Sarah were amazing in their planning and tending as we walked alongside our sister church, El Milagro de Dios (Miracle of God) Lutheran Church in San Jorge. It was pure joy to finally meet Pastora Blanca and the members of the congregation. We were fed more than we could possibly eat. There were stories to tell and time for prayer through the expert translation of Pastor Edwin and laughter and games alongside the children of the church and the entire community of San Jorge. Bumpy roads and deep water-traced ruts reminded us that we are blessed to complain about potholes in Wisconsin. The heat was, well, hot! But the air conditioning and cool water offered us respite at the end of the day. We visited historical sites and were often overwhelmed by the beauty of the country and her people. We spent time with Pastor Edwin’s family who hosted all 24 of us for dinner – no easy task in any country! We were graciously welcomed by the newly elected Bishop of the Salvadoran Lutheran Church – Bishop Guadalupe Cortez. She and her staff shared greetings, reflections on the church in El Salvador, and a meal with the most amazing plantains cooked with a pudding in the center. We prepared a lengthy beach for sea turtle nesting and somewhere along the way my wife and daughter became stuck in an elevator. It was a very good trip to build relationships with sisters and brothers in the body of Christ.

We returned to Wisconsin for a brief six days before my family traveled to California to say goodbye to my larger-than-life father-in-law. He was indeed one of a kind. The funeral was full of loud Easter hymns, and big feelings, and well lengthy preaching (guess who preached) and all those things reflected my father-in-law perfectly. Two days after the funeral, we returned home, where we packed up my oldest child and returned him to the University of Wisconsin – Madison for his sophomore year. One daughter is neck deep in volleyball tryouts and the other is tackling volleyball and soccer practice simultaneously. And my mother-in-law was here for the rest of the month – so if you see her in early September, please say hello. All that to say that August was full – completely full – and somewhere in those days were also several meetings preparing us for the fall here at Ascension. Deep breath!

September at Ascension is pure joy and all life to the glory of God. Worship returns to our program year schedule on September 7th, with worship in English at 8:30 and 10:45 a.m. and worship in Spanish at 10:45 a.m. JAM, BLAST, JUMP, JOLT, and CRASH all return the week of September 7th. And if you are unsure of one or more of the acronyms for ministry among our children and junior and senior high school students – keep reading – all is explained later on in this newsletter. We are preparing to launch a young adult ministry as well this fall – for those in the 18-30 year age range because they have asked and the Holy Spirit is moving – but an acronym is still in the dreaming phase – have any ideas?

We return to Monday morning and evening Adult Study gatherings with season 4 of the CHOSEN. I am so excited to see how this next season unfolds as we gather to reflect on the stories already deep in our bones. By the time you read this article, our music ministries will already have begun rehearsals to bring glory to God in our worship life – have you thought about joining the choir or ringing a bell – there is still room for you. I promise Vicki will find a place for you.

In late September and/or early October there will be listening sessions available to help the pastors and church council reflect and dream about our future. Ascension Arise 2035 will be available for review and comment in the weeks ahead. Your input, about your church, is important and welcome as we look to all that God has in store for the days ahead. And there are ministries waiting for your “yes.” Healing Hearts of Waukesha County, the Hope Center, and the Food Pantry of Waukesha County are all supported by our congregation and in need of our hands-on ministry as well as our financial support. If you are considering joining our community of faith, we will host conversations in-between services later this month and early in October as we prepare to welcome new members on Sunday, October 19th. I am ready for all of it and more. I hope you are too!

See you in church.

Pastor Chris

Reprinted from the September 2025 newsletter.

Time Flies

I have heard from more than one of the wiser, experienced members of Ascension that the days go by faster than one expects. Honestly people, how are we already entering the month of August? Easter was just last week, and the last day of school was yesterday, right?

Summer seems to have a mind of its own. In earlier days, summer was rest and restoration. Now, summer feels like a fourth quarter of programming with just a little less ministry at night. My wife and I used to say that Wisconsin had a slower pace of life than California – perhaps that was true when our children were young and uninvolved in anything except running through the sprinklers and chasing the dog. But the times they are a changing. Now, summer just continues a pace of chasing after kids who drive cars and stop in for food before they are off to the races again.

These summer days are my reminder to set time aside to rest the rhythms of my spirit. There is a deep longing for time to breathe, reflect, and savor the longer span of daylight that lets the sun linger on the horizon just long enough to enjoy the breeze and a conversation about the events of the day without gasping for the next breath. I have found a few of the moments in these summer months, granted, they are moments captured between mountain climbing with junior high students and worship preparations for Sunday mornings and last-minute details before our travel to El Salvador. I, sometimes, need to remind myself to enjoy these moments for what they are, “gifts within the gift” of all that God grants me in this life.

Here, at Ascension, the rhythms of life are only a little slower. Our worship life is full of joy with just a seasoning of irreverence at times – especially when the pastors take a jab at each other. We have been the Grateful recipients of the sharing of special musical gifts from a variety of individuals and ensembles. Our Amen ministry completed a summer book study; the Knit Wits continue to work their magic as their hands create offering after offering from balls of yarn; countless members show-up to tend flower beds all over the campus; ashes are scattered in the ash garden thanks to greater access through the gift of the path; small groups continue to study God’s Word and nurture faith; visitors are welcomed again and again and again; coffee is served; companion synod committees continue to meet and plan; meals have been served at the Hope Center; calendars are planned and prepared for the fall; new ministries are preparing to launch; visitors and members alike are inquiring where they might serve in the ministry of this community of faith; our average worship attendance is up over last year at this time; our financial support of the ministry inside and outside our walls has increased; and I believe the Holy Spirit is just preparing us for more to come.

Summer might be a time to find a little rest, but as the psalmist says, “God will not let your foot slip—God who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, God who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.” I am grateful for this promise of God’s care and grateful still more for your faithfulness in sharing this journey of life and faith to the glory of God. Blessings on these continued summer days.

See you in church,

Pastor Chris

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

Welcome to the Resistance

When Pastor Edwin was ordained, I offered these words: “My friend – to hope and to believe is to resist all that is wrong with the world. Resistance is the path of the Christian. Resistance to oppression, injustice, silence, apathy, loss, even to the power of death. Welcome, Edwin. Welcome to the resistance. What does the prophet Isaiah say to us: “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!”

Welcome to the season of Lent. Truthfully, welcome to the resistance my friends. To participate in the season of Lent in worship on Sundays, soup suppers and worship on Wednesdays, a book study on Thursday mornings, worship on Thursday mornings, or any practice that turns your face towards our God and away from the world and our own selfish desires is an act of resistance. To be a follower of Jesus is to resist the things of this world that exploit, abuse, neglect, mistreat, disregard, ignore, or dismiss another human being made in God’s image. What does Jesus ask of us?

Love God

  • Love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. (Matthew 22:34-38; Mark 12:28-30; Luke 10:25-27)
  • Do things because you want to serve God; not because you want to impress other people. (Matthew 6:1-18)
  • Humble yourselves. (Matthew 18:4; Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:11; Luke 18:14)
  • Follow Jesus. Don’t wonder about other people.  (John 21:20-22)
  • Pray – and keep praying.  (Matthew 6:5-14; Luke 11:1-13; Luke 18:1-8)
  • Don’t worry. God knows what you need.  (Matthew 6:25-34; Matthew 11:28-30; Luke 12:22-32)
  • Trust God – not earthly treasures.  (Matthew 6:19-21; Matthew 6:24; Luke 12:33-34)

Love Others

  • Love your neighbor the same way you love yourself.  (Matthew 22:39; Mark 12:28-34; Luke 10:25-37)
  • Love each other the same way Jesus loved his disciples. (John 13:34; John 15:12)
  • Love each other – it is by your love for each other that the world will know that you are Jesus’ disciples.  (John 13:35)
  • Love your enemies.  (Matthew 5: 44; Luke 6:27)
  • Treat others the same way you like to be treated yourself.  (Matthew 7:12; Luke 6:31)
  • Be humble. (Matthew 23:11-12; Luke 14:11; Luke 18:14)
  • Pray for those who persecute you.  (Matthew 5:44)
  • Do good to those who hate you.  (Luke 6:27)
  • Bless those that curse you.  (Luke 6:28)
  • Serve each other.  (Matthew 20:25-28; Mark 10:43-45)
  • Don’t judge others.  (Matthew 7:1-2; Luke 6:37)
  • Don’t condemn others. (Luke 6:37)
  • Do more for others than they ask of you.  (Matthew 5:39:42)
  • Forgive others.  (Matthew 6:14-15; Luke 6:37; Luke 17:3-4)
  • Be merciful.  (Luke 6:36)
  • If someone has done something that upsets or offends you, go and talk to them about it. If they won’t listen to you, take someone else with you and try again.  (Matthew 18:16. See also Luke 17:3)
  • If you know that you have done something to upset or offend someone – go and talk to them and sort it out.  (Matthew 5:23-24)
  • Let your ‘yes’ be ‘yes’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no’.  (Matthew 5:34-37)
  • Give to anyone who begs from you.  (Luke 6:30)
  • Teach new disciples to obey everything that Jesus commanded his disciples.  (Matthew 28:20)

To follow Jesus is to follow love itself. To follow Jesus is to resist the very power of sin and death that so often pretends to be a voice of care and concern in the world today. 

May our prayers become protests. (Against everything that tells us that love is not the answer.)
Our worship become witness. (That we might tell the story of God’s love through our words and our actions.)
Our faith become fuel for change. (So that more and more people may come to know or be reminded of Jesus.) 

Welcome to the resistance. Welcome to the season of Lent. See you in church.

Pastor Chris

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Happy Epiphany!

Depending on when you are reading this article, we might still be in the 12 days of Christmas which ends on January 5th; or you might be celebrating the new year; or possibly January 6th Epiphany celebrations have finally arrived to celebrate a star in the sky and the visit of the Magi to the Christ child. Whenever and however, you are celebrating, it is my hope you found a moment to revel in and reflect on the promise of God’s presence among us revealed in starlight and baby cry and the turn of the calendar to 2025.

The gift of Epiphany is the opportunity to rest in the story. There are almost ten weeks of Epiphany this year. A glorious opportunity for reflection as we enter into this new year together. One of my favorite authors is a gifted woman, named Jan Richardson. She offered this blessing for the new year. I have decided to move in.

The Year as a House: A Blessing

Think of the year as a house:
door flung wide in welcome,
threshold swept and waiting,
a graced spaciousness opening and offering itself to you.

Let it be blessed in every room.
Let it be hallowed in every corner.
Let every nook be a refuge and every object set to holy use.

Let it be here that safety will rest.
Let it be here that health will make its home.
Let it be here that peace will show its face.
Let it be here that love will find its way.

Here
let the weary come
let the aching come
let the lost come
let the sorrowing come.

Here
let them find their rest
and let them find their soothing
and let them find their place
and let them find their delight.

And may it be in this house of a year that the seasons will spin in beauty,
and may it be in these turning days that time will spiral with joy.
And may it be that its rooms will fill with ordinary grace and light spill from every window to welcome the stranger home.   —Jan Richardson

Wherever you make your home, may it be blessed, and may you enter this Epiphany and the coming year in peace. People of God, welcome home! See you in church.

Pastor Chris

Advent Arrives

Advent has come! “Advent,” as one author writes, “is a season of the heart, a time when our hearts are warmed by the love of family and friends, and especially, the love of God. Advent is also a time for heart work, a time to address straying of the heart from God’s purposes, hardening of the heart to the people around us whom God has called us to love, and dulling of the heart to the joys and wonders of life.”

Advent has sometimes been called “the little Lent,” but Advent is so much more! A time of preparation and anticipation for the One who makes all things new. Candles are lit each Sunday around an Advent Wreath to help us prepare. Words like Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love are announced to remind us of what the coming Savior of the world will offer to us. There is a joy in the waiting for Christmas because we know what is to come. The labor pains of Mary will give way to the cries of a newborn king. The world will not even take notice. But animals close by the manger and armies of angels in heaven will bend their knee in worship. Emmanuel, God with us, has come to be among us. 

We so often wait with worry, frustration, fear. We expect that the end of our waiting will bring news that is difficult to hear. Even in moments of joyful anticipation, there can be moments of cautious hesitation expecting something bad to happen. It is the broken world that seeps into our hope. It is only by the arrival of Jesus that our hope can be restored and with that hope – we find peace, joy, and love to sustain us in this life. 

Who could believe a baby in a manger would change the world forever? Is it too much to hope for in this life, with all of its struggles and moments that weigh us down, that our God comes to us to be present with us in the valleys and celebrates with us on the mountaintop? Perhaps, most days it is too much to believe that God cares so much as to take notice. Yet, I am convinced that the God who comes to us in every vulnerability, is the same God who comes to us with every strength to carry us through these days and one day, will carry us home. 

So this Advent, join us on our journey to the manger. Seek out the star in the sky, follow the shepherds, hear the cries of a new born baby, and kneel down, with all creation, in worship and reverence for the arrival of the newborn king once again.

People of God, Merry Christmas! (if just a bit early)

Pastor Chris

Thankful for You

Well, friends, I am just a week past my hernia surgery. It has been a journey. No doubt in the month of November you will hear Pastor Tony or Pastor Edwin yell at me for preparing to pick up a chair or move a table. God forbid I move a candlestick! I am not a fan of being dependent on another person. Ask my wife! Though I am very content to ring a little bell so that my wife will know it is time to refill my coffee cup. In my dreams…at least.

It has been a glorious October – Green Meadows worship on the farm, new member brunch and the joy of 27 new members sharing in the gift of this community of faith, CRASH cooking and serving breakfast to the teachers at Hawthorne Elementary, and Reformation Sunday celebrating the public profession of faith of our confirmands. And I thought September was a full month with our 75th anniversary celebration weekend and the kick-off to fall programming. None of this was done by one person alone. The ministry and mission of Ascension is the power of God lived out through the energy and faithfulness of so many of you that make Ascension the community of faith that it is.

November brings the gift of All Saints Sunday and the remembering of those who have died in our community in the last year as well as lifting up the memory of loved ones who still rest in our hearts even as they enjoy the Kingdom of God. Young at Heart will take 50 people to an event to hear the sounds of Christmas a bit early while enjoying the gift of fellowship and community. Ascension’s annual meeting will be on Sunday, Nov. 17, at 9:45am in-between services. An opportunity for us to gather to celebrate where we have been and where God may be leading in the year ahead. Christ the King Sunday celebrates the end of the church year on Sunday, Sept. 24, and the season of Advent will be right around the corner. Again, all of this takes place, with your passion and partnership in the ministry of the body of Christ.

It turns out I am dependent on all of you – though not for my coffee. As one of your pastors, my ministry is encouraged, enriched, and inspired by your ministry and presence in worship, study, and in serving each other and those outside the walls of Ascension. In this month, where we celebrate the day of Thanksgiving, I want to take a moment to give thanks to God for all of you and to thank you for all that you do to share the story of God’s love throughout the world. What joy it brings to walk together in this time and place.

See you in church,
Pastor Chris

Into the Mess

I have spent much of the summer reading a book entitled “Into the Mess & Other Jesus Stories.”

The introduction to the book begins like this: “I don’t like messes, in life or in faith. I doubt I’m alone; no one chooses Christianity because they crave unruliness or disruption. In fact, many of us embrace religious faith for the opposite reason; we assume – and our churches encourage us to believe – that our spiritual commitments will keep life neat and orderly. At the same time, many of us twenty-first century believers are tired of religious language and imagery that skirt the messiness of our lived lives. We’re weary of platitudes, easy answers, and quick “fixes” that fix nothing. We might want tidiness, but we also want a faith with hard edges – a robust and relevant faith that integrates the hard stuff of our days and still makes possible transcendence and joy.” And that was enough to capture my wondering. Few of us enter into a new day wondering what mess we can find ourselves in by the end of the day. More often than not, the messes come to us not the other way around. Which led me to the road I have walked more than once – mess or method, interruption or invitation.

In his book “Life Together,” Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes: “We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God. God will be constantly crossing our paths and canceling our plans by sending us people with claims and petitions. We may pass them by, preoccupied with our more important tasks. . . It is a strange fact that Christians and even ministers frequently consider their work so important and urgent that they will allow nothing to disturb them. They think they are doing God a service in this, but actually they are disdaining God’s ‘crooked yet straight path.’”

I know some of you are probably tired of stories from the 2024 ELCA Youth Gathering, but I am afraid there will be a few more along the way this fall. For all of the organizing, coordinating, planning, preparing, contracting, praying, celebrating – I am ALWAYS glad when it comes to an end. It is a mountaintop moment that cannot last and I am convinced I do not want it to last beyond the five days of the event. It is glorious in almost every way, and yet, returning to life in Wisconsin, prepping for the fall at Ascension, dreaming about what is next for this community of faith I deeply love – those moments are just as important, and I miss this place when I am away too long. Prepping for the fall; dreaming about ministry; celebrating 75 years of ministry; collaborating on our 2035 Strategic Plan can all be moments of messiness and at the same time little mountaintop moments to lift our eyes to the hills and to the glory of God as the psalmist says.

One might believe that the work of the Youth Gathering can be exhausting. Of course. And also, the work inspires me to return to my call at Ascension to live, to lead, to discern, and to dream alongside you. Fall programming is always exciting. What will work for us? What will fail? What are we hungry for? What will spark interest for people outside our doors? How will new members enter into our patterns of life and ministry? Who believes they are ready to grow in their faith in a new way? Yes, it gets messy AND even the mess can be a mountaintop moment when we trust that our God leads us into the mess and up to the mountaintop and promises to stay with us all along the way. 

So my friends, welcome to the mess that is life and ministry and new chapters of new school years, new chapters of empty nesting, new chapters of ministry for our community of Ascension and for each of us to the glory of God. Holy God, bring on the mess, it is where we are able to see your hand leading us most clearly into the future you have planned for each of us.

See you in church…

Pastor Chris

PC & the Youth Gathering

Dear People of God,

What an amazing journey we have traveled over these past two weeks. I could fill this entire newsletter with images that tell the story of God’s love unfolding in the lives of high school students. However, I would rather you ask a high school student at church the next time you see someone and hear their own story. As much as we have been to the mountaintop in New Orleans, we are already looking ahead to 2027 in Minneapolis. I am hopeful that Ascension takes twice as many students. The church is indeed alive and well as these pictures share witness. And now back at Ascension, we are already praying for the safe travels and relationship building continuing to happen as members of Ascension travel to El Salvador. It will be exciting to add their stories of how God is at work in El Salvador to the stories told of serving in New Orleans. God’s richest blessings to each of you as these summer days continue to move swiftly towards fall.

See you in church…

Pastor Chris