The Speed of Summer

Mercy! Summer! Do not fly by too fast!

It appears we were just preparing for the end of the school year and already the first full month of summer has come to an end. I remember rhythms of summer as a child when the days were easy and made for sleeping in and exploring and adventures and last-minute plans and long evenings playing outside.

At our house, summer evenings are often spent in the backyard around the patio table. There are dinners and drinks and appetizers. Long conversations while the dog explores the yard, or the kids decide to play volleyball. In Wisconsin, our yards have no fences, which means we actually talk to our neighbors. I love it all. If the days are still full, at least the nights are a little slower. When summer breezes and the smell of flowers hang heavy in the air. I still want someone to take care of the dishes inside the house while we linger outside but if that is the worst consequence to the lazy evenings, it is worth it.

I wonder if you have shifted into summer rhythms or are still going full speed as July begins. I can only invite you to take advantage of a cool evening sitting next to people who bring you joy. I know this is a privilege for most of us – I try not to take the time for granted.

At Ascension, summer means a slower season of ministry though book studies, bible studies, and small groups continue. Worship has been glorious. Celebrations, music, and the joy of being together as community. I am hopeful we will be back in the Memorial Gardens for worship in July – the grass is slowly starting to grow with the heavy rains over the past weeks. The new cement pour around the pavilion is beautiful and will be a beautiful addition to outdoor activities. Keep your fingers crossed for July 7th worship at 10am outside.

Outside of Ascension, the ELCA across the nation is preparing for the 2024 ELCA Youth Gathering in New Orleans beginning on July 16 and ending on July 20. Students of color begin on July 13 and end a pre-event on July 16. Ascension has groups going to both events for the first time. Pastor Edwin is doing amazing things with our CRASH students preparing them for New Orleans – for worship, service, interaction, and life-changing possibilities to the glory of God.

I am grateful for your hospitality during the third week of June as Ascension hosted some 45 speakers, musicians, and gathering leaders who were helping us prepare for New Orleans. I ask for your prayers for Pastor Tony and myself who plan and prepare to welcome the 16,000+ high school students, youth leaders, pastors, and bishops. We do not get a lot of sleep, but we are strengthened by the prayerful support of so many of you. Thank you. Your prayers are felt and a strong reminder of this community of faith and the support you offer to young people in the formation of their faith. July will be a glorious month of crazy for myself. I would not change one moment. But I will be ready to return to summer rhythms after July 22!

Blessings to you in these summer days. Take a moment and give thanks to God for summer nights and moments of joy to fill your spirit.

Pastor Chris

Summer Rhythms

I love the rhythm of summer, especially it’s slower pace. And I think we can all agree that we could all use a slower pace once and awhile. But the world doesn’t stop and there’s certainly no shortage of things happening or needing to be done. Just ask my wife who has what the rest of our family refers to as “The List.” The List seems to grow by the day if not the hour regardless of how many things we check off of it. I’d ask to see yours, but I’m already overwhelmed by our own, so maybe another time. Still, I remain hopeful that each of us would try to be intentional about taking advantage of the slower summer moments as they become available.

Coincidently, I’m actually writing this article on the first of a few days of “stay-cation” as I try to catch a breath before heading to New Orleans along with Pastor Chris and our planning teams as we prepare to welcome Pastor Edwin and adult leaders and students from Ascension as they join the almost 17,000 others who will come to participate in the ELCA Youth Gathering.

As I sit on our patio I’m reflecting on the past six weeks that were filled with our son Zach graduating from UW-Madison and moving back home, four days of crazy fun with JOLT students at Adventure Camp, our daughter Bella graduating from high school and preparing to go to UW-Stevens Point in the fall along with hosting a shared graduation party and then there’s also preaching, joining our Young at Heart group on a day trip, counseling people in need, and many other pastoral duties. The pace over the past few months has been anything but “slower,” but it has nevertheless been exciting with so many wonderful things to experience and celebrate.

Life, both inside and outside the church can be busy, painful, chaotic, stressful, and full of things that pull us in countless directions. I’m certain that each of you could provide a list just as long if not longer, and this is precisely why peace from God is such a gift. Peace is something we all crave and desperately need, but often we are clueless how to find it or achieve it. And yet, our gracious God continues to endlessly offer it to us.

Throughout these summer months I pray that each of us will be intentional about seeking, creating, and enjoying the peaceful moments God offers us for renewal and reconnection. Moments not spent just frantically moving from one scheduled thing to another or trying to accomplish one more thing. Soak up the sun, take a walk, read a book, go out for ice cream. Whatever it is I hope all of us will take time to recharge, refresh, and renew ourselves.

For the next several months as we journey through summer, I invite each of us to take advantage of much needed opportunities for rest and reconnection but also to welcome new possibilities for connecting more deeply with God and serving our neighbors. I am deeply grateful for your partnership and your willingness to journey together wherever God is leading us. May you know the peace of God today and always!

Pastor Tony

Summer Worship at Ascension

Summer Schedule

  • 8:30 and 10 a.m. English Worship
  • 10 a.m. Spanish Worship

Senior Toweling

  • Sunday, June 2
  • 8:30 & 10 a.m.

Vicki Taylor Celebration

  • Celebration and reception for Vicki Taylor’s 40th anniversary of Music Ministry
  • 9:30 a.m. Sunday, June 2

Pastor Edwin Celebration

  • Celebration and reception for Pastor Edwin’s 1st Anniversary of Ordination
  • Sunday, June 23

Outdoor Worship (English)

  • June 23, July 28, Aug. 11, Sept.

El Salvador Delegation Blessing

  • Blessings and sending of El Salvador Mission Team
  • Sunday, July 28

Sing for a Sunday

  • Singers of all ages are invited to sing in an intergenerational choir on Sunday, June 23. We will meet for one rehearsal on Thursday, June 20, from 6 to 6:30 p.m., followed by singing in 8:30 worship on Sunday, June 23.
  • The song can be easily learned by listening and all are welcome!
  • Email Vicki Taylor and say you’ll join us!

By the Strength and Grace of God

What joy it gives me to share summer greetings with you!

To be honest, I am a little overwhelmed. The month of June did not disappoint with outdoor worship services, baptisms, senior toweling, JOLT Adventure Camp, the delegation from our sister parishes in El Salvador, the ordination and installation of the newly-minted Rev. Edwin Aparicio, and the blessing and sending of our delegation of members to renew our relationships with our sister parishes in the Meru Diocese of Tanzania.

And now – Pastor Edwin running the world of Ascension. It is as it should be. “Let the new guy do it,” I said as I stepped onto the plane for Tanzania. The time in Tanzania is about renewing relationships and celebrating the education ministry of our partner schools as well as tending the grief of members of our sister parishes who have been forced from their land and repatriated to other land in the area in the government’s eminent domain landgrab. Crops are still struggling, which means livestock is struggling, which means our sisters and brothers are struggling and yet they are so very excited to welcome our return. They are also hungry to share their appreciation for your generosity in gifts to provide food for our three or four partner schools – so much to be grateful for as we return to Usa River and the people of God who gather to worship and minister in and through the Samaria, Neema, and Galilaya parishes. Your prayers are deeply appreciated for safety, health, smooth dirt roads and no impromptu rivers flooding our vehicles. The adventure continues.

Closer to home, I give thanks for so many who offer their hands and feet as the visible work of God in tending the needs of Ascension and our partners in the community. From continuing to tend the landscaping and maintenance needs of the church campus to volunteering to help out at the Hope Center to renewing our partnership with NAMI (the National Alliance of Mental Illness) to preparing for fall programming while we are still rejoicing in the days of summer. The great wonder and beauty of who we are as the community of Ascension is the reflection of God’s love in the gathered community as we serve each other and the world outside our doors. So many of you tend so many moments behind the scenes without recognition or reward. Let me simply say, “thank you.”

Someone outside Ascension sent me a note. It was handwritten which is the reason it stands out in memory. They shared their gratitude for a moment of ministry offered to them in the past couple of months and wanted me to know that it was a testament to the “flourishing” community of Ascension that they felt moved to write the note. Flourishing is a word I do not use very often. My wife’s garden is flourishing with the heat and the added water as long as I stay away from it. The junior high students at Adventure Camp were flourishing in their willingness to step out in faith and courage and face their fears. In response to my request, so many of you offered to help with the welcoming of our brothers and sisters from El Salvador and with the ordination of Pastor Edwin – which invites all of us to flourish when the Word of God is preached and our God is praised and the story of God’s love is shared. Wherever, whenever we gather together to walk together we flourish as the community of Ascension and in our own flourishing we invite others to flourish. After all, the tagline of Ascension is not simply a tagline for us – it is a way of life. It is our way of life. Remember?

Juntos nos levantamos … together we rise.

Yes, indeed, we do. By the strength and grace of God, together we rise. Thanks be to God!

See you in church.

Pastor Chris

Moving at the Pace of Summer

Pastor Tony at Adventure Camp

I love the rhythm of summer. In some wonderful ways, it’s a slower pace and Lord knows we could all use a slower pace once and awhile. But life being what it is these days – the world doesn’t stop and there’s certainly no shortage of things happening or needing to be done. Still, I remain hopeful that each of us would be more intentional to try to take advantage of these slower summer moments as they become available.

By now we’re a few weeks into our shared sabbatical journey with Pastor Chris and since my newsletter article this month didn’t start out with panic and worry, I think you can rest assured that everything so far is going smoothly. We are all beginning to settle into new patterns and the quieter pace of summer planning.

That said, for some time now the following scripture from John 14:27 has been swirling around my head, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” Ever since Holy Week back in April it has felt like we’ve been going non-stop – Holy Week, Easter, First Communion, Graduate Toweling, renovations, BLAST end of year activities, CRASH service projects, JOLT Adventure Camp, worship schedule changes, and on top of that baptisms, weddings, funerals, and preparing for this Sabbatical time…it has felt like a whirlwind.

Life, both inside and outside the church can be busy, painful, chaotic, stressful, and full of things that pull us in countless directions. I’m certain that each of you could provide a list just as long if not longer, and this is precisely why peace from God is such a gift. Peace is something we all crave and desperately need, but often we are clueless how to find it or achieve it. And still, our gracious God continues to offer it.

Throughout these summer months and this sabbatical time, amid the uncertainty of ongoing renovations and all the things we will each experience, I pray that each of us will find and be intentional about seeking, creating, and enjoying the peaceful moments God offers us for renewal and reconnection. Moments that are not frantically moving from one scheduled thing to another or trying to accomplish one more thing. Soak up the sun, take a walk, read a book, go out for ice cream. Whatever it is I hope that we will all take time to recharge, refresh, and renew ourselves. Sabbatical is a journey for the whole community of Ascension, and I think there are many wonderful gifts we can receive from this time if we are open to it.

So, my friends for the next several months as we journey through summer and sabbatical and learn new patterns and practices, I invite each of us to take advantage of much needed opportunities for rest and reconnection but also to welcome new possibilities for connecting more deeply with God and serving our neighbors. I am grateful for your partnership and your willingness to journey together wherever God is leading us. May the peace of God be yours today and always!

Pastor Tony

Renewal

In just a few weeks, Pastor Chris will begin his 3-month sabbatical leave and this has some wondering what this means for Ascension. Allow me to share a little bit about what this gift can mean both for our faith community and for Pastor Chris.

First, a sabbatical is a wise and healthy investment not just for pastors but for all involved. It provides opportunities for pastors and congregations to explore new opportunities and responsibilities and open themselves to experience growth and renewal. Let me also be clear about what a sabbatical is not. It is not an extended vacation. Although a pastor’s time away is likely to include travel and fun, it is centered mostly around rest and reflection for body, mind, and spirit. And although the pastor on sabbatical and the congregation will have different sabbatical experiences, the time apart is nevertheless a shared endeavor that presents a priceless gift of renewal for all.

Here are just a few of the ways this time apart can impact us here at Ascension. On a pastoral team level, it affords me increased opportunities for leadership and to let my own pastoral identity and imagination flourish. And it will do the same for Edwin as he continues his internship and edges closer to the completion of his own seminary journey. New responsibilities and opportunities also arise for the staff in various areas of congregational activity. And while the increase in these opportunities and responsibilities does come with some additional challenges, I assure you that Edwin and I and the rest of the staff and church leadership have been diligently preparing for this time and we remain confident that our faith community and our mission will be well tended, and we are excited about wherever the Holy Spirit leads us.

On a congregational level, Pastor Chris’ time away allows the community of Ascension to recognize and appreciate many of the things Pastor Chris does that often go unnoticed and unappreciated. Some things will be picked up by Edwin and I and the other staff, but there are still other things that will be necessary for congregation members to step up and step in and assist with these tasks. Take coffee hour on Sunday mornings for instance. We are all aware of Pastor Chris’ affinity for coffee but because we don’t have a full-time barista on staff…yet (certainly on his wish list), and no congregation member currently willing to prep coffee for Sunday mornings this is one such instance congregation members will need to consider how God might be calling you to step up and help take on new responsibilities in Pastor Chris’ absence.

That said, in the days and weeks to come I am inviting every member of Ascension to take some additional time to watch, listen, reflect, and prayerfully consider where God might be calling you to jump in. Then, I encourage you to talk to myself, Edwin, a staff member or other church leader about the ways you could volunteer and be helpful. 

This time of separation is also a time to welcome experiencing things differently. Now, I’m not saying we’re suddenly making all kinds of changes to things and Ascension will look and feel completely different. But what I am saying is things will feel and seem and be a bit different than when Pastor Chris is in the mix, and this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. As a matter of fact, you can rest assured that the way the chairs in the sanctuary are set up today you can expect them to be the same throughout June, July, August, and into September until Pastor Chris returns. These any many other differences are neither good nor bad, they are just different, and they invite us all to pay attention, reflect, grow, and experience renewal throughout the sabbatical process. I’m not making any promises but who knows, maybe by the time Pastor Chris is about to return I’ll be making coffee and moving chairs around in the sanctuary. The bottom line is, God is calling all of us to open ourselves, to make space, to listen and trust and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit wherever that may be.

The opportunity for Pastor Chris to step away makes space for others to step in, and in doing so it offers him the blessing to reconnect with his family and friends, to rediscover his passions both in life and in ministry, it is a time for him to receive rather than to give, to focus on his own mental, physical, and emotional health and that of his family, to nurture and cultivate his life as a husband, father, son, brother, friend and follower and servant of Jesus. It provides him time to get away, to discover, to play, to wonder, to imagine, to listen, to follow and to do all this in different ways that renew him and his commitment to God, to his family and friends,

and to the people of Ascension. Throughout this sabbatical time I invite you to keep Pastor Chris and his family along with the rest of our Ascension family in your prayers.

My friends, I am excited for our continued and ever-changing journey, and I simply ask that you continue to open your heart and your mind to God’s leading. And then I humbly ask that before you question or complain about something that might look or feel different, you consider how God might be calling you to use your gifts to enhance and improve and enliven the ministry entrusted to us.

What a wonderful gift it is to be the people of God together in this place, and what a blessing we have upon of us with this sabbatical time of renewal. May the peace of Christ be upon you today and always!

Pastor Tony

A Future Unfolding

By: Rev. Christian W. Marien

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt – a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ~ Jeremiah 31:31-33

Counting down the days to summer used to be a joy in the season of spring. In grade school, summer vacation meant long leisurely mornings and playing outside. In high school, summer days meant getting to my summer job by 8:30 a.m. and working until 5 p.m. if I wanted to fill my wallet and savings account. Now, as a parent, counting down the days to summer means navigating childcare, day camps, and new routines for drop-offs and pick-ups. Needless to say, I do not count down the days to summer vacation with the same enthusiasm as I did as a child.

The days are surely coming says the Lord, prophesies Jeremiah, reminding us God is not finished with God’s people. It is a word spoken of a future yet to unfold. I am grateful for church council under the direction of Council President Nada Draeger as Vision ARISE 2025 begins to bring focus to the future direction of Ascension. Church council, staff, wing and leg leaders, and other ministry leaders gathered in May for the first substantial piece of our new vision of the future for the glory of God. The excitement was palpable. We are indebted to Craig Greenwood who lead the retreat and laid the groundwork for the months ahead. 2025 might be ten years away but soon enough we will welcome 2024 and look to the next ten years of ministry of Ascension. Daunting? Not at all! Exciting? Absolutely! The Church of God seeks new expression even as we love and live what we now know.

The days are surely coming says the Lord. Let them come, Lord God. A new covenant – yes! A renewing of your promise to be among your people – yes! As the Holy Spirit moves among us, may we seek out those places and people where we realize the Lord’s presence.

In the next few months, I will extend invitations to you to share in listening sessions to help shape ARISE 2025, Ascension’s vision for the next ten years. The church council, wing leaders, and members serving in ministries of each of Ascension’s butterfly wings are beginning the next step of the visioning process. So the excitement grows!

Where will the Holy Spirit lead? How will we be moved by the tending of our God? Interested in joining in the conversation? Let me know. Give Nada a call. Talk to any council member. We would all love to have you join us in this second leg of the journey towards the future.

Counting down the days to summer used to remind me that the school year was over. Now as an adult, the summer days find different shape and purpose. I am glad to share in this journey of faith with each of you. Join in worship inside and outside this summer. Find your summer days marked a by a moment of prayer – giving thanks to God for a day of rest or a time of renewal with family and friends. Finally, ask God to help you recognize the presence of God in those around you and in yourself. And instead of counting down the days to the end of summer, imagine counting down the days towards a fresh fall and a future filled with hope for our church and our world to the glory of God.

Peace be with you!

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