Wellsprings Congregation

In this week's message, lay preacher Bev Fox shares the story of her brother who died after a years-long struggle with addiction. She tells us how the slow processing of his death led to her own struggles with mental health. A NOTE FROM OUR WORSHIP LEADER: “Before we move forward, I want to let you all know that in this morning’s message, our preacher Bev shares a personal story that might be difficult or triggering for some folks to hear, about suicide and self-harm. Please take care of yourselves in whatever way you need to, this morning. If now is not the time for you to listen to this type of story, you can step away... or maybe plan to listen to this service another time.”

Rev. Lee begins this week's message by talking about a new framework for the stages of grief, including an added a sixth stage: “finding meaning.” Of course, that’s a very hard concept to accept, especially if we’re in the early stages of grief. She also talks us through the conundrum of how we can all support each other when we’re all going through the same thing. She shares the “Parable of the long spoons,” where the answer isn’t to feed yourself, but to feed each other.

Rev. Lee begins this week's message by mentioning a meme about an imaginary coworker, "Cheryl," on whom to blame things. She explains that what we're actually doing in these moments is making space to protect our relationships. There's a lot of grief right now with the pandemic, and many of us are feeling that if this had never happened, our lives would be different. But when things don't turn out the way we want, maybe we can make a practice of saying "It's not you, and it's not me... it's grief."

Quarantine has led us to new forms of entertainment, and this week, Rev. Ken begins by talking about a "table read" of the Princess Bride which the original stars reunited for recently. One of his main takeaways from that movie is that when life doesn't turn out the way we want, maybe we can then open ourselves to a different kind of story. Rev. Ken also talks about unique experiences of grief, and how the "stages" aren't always linear.

Rev. Ken begins this week's message by offering the Mourner's Kaddish for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. He talks about a videogame he's playing now where a being called "Stella" guides souls to the afterlife, and how surprisingly touching it is. He also talks about how we can help each other through our collective mourning process by honoring the connections between us.

Rev. Lee opens this week's message with a story about a friend who lost her home in a fire. In those first panicked moments, her friend reached for the things she thought she'd need, only to find out later that what she really needed was never in that house. This week's Spiritflix series asks us what and who we reach for in a crisis, and shows us how sometimes the things we thought we'd need aren't what we wind up needing later.

Lay Preacher Chris Chepel talks to us this week about the Star Trek series, Picard. After taking us through the history of the various Star Trek series, and how they always seem to hold up a mirror to the current time. The Picard series seems more informed by trauma than its predecessors, and that feels very important in our current situation.

Rev Ken. Continues our Spiritflix series with a message about the Netflix series "The Midnight Gospel." He reminds us that it's okay if we're not okay right now.

This week, Rev. Lee opens with a story about a man being filmed by a helpful bystander during a traffic stop, and how looking out for one another like this is a new way to show love. Love requires unexpected things from us right now, just like in this week's Spiritflix movie, The Farewell. She also ponders the nature of truth in a stressful environment.

Lay preacher Rodney Whittenberg shares a story of growing up Catholic, and his amazement at people who are able to be nonviolent in the face of adversity. His Spiritflix movie is The Camden 28 - a documentary about a group of devoted Catholics who planned to break into a federal building and destroy the draft cards of hundreds of young men.

This week, Rev. Ken continues our Spiritflix series with a message about the movie Blinded By the Light - a film where the main character is asking the question "How do I fit in?" Rev. Ken talks about how this film reminded him of the eulogy President Obama gave for John Lewis, calling us to a "Vibrant, big-hearted, tolerant America of perpetual self creation." He also reflects on the importance of the Bruce Springsteen lyric "No one wins unless everybody wins."

This week, Rev. Lee preaches about the Ava Duvernay documentary, "13th." She begins by talking about her family's experiences, both spoken and unspoken, which led to her growing up in the suburbs. It's important to realize that the racist ideas that allowed slavery are still operating in our politics and criminal justice system today, but she reminds us that our actions have power, even if it doesn't seem to "work" in the moment.

This week, Rev. Ken discusses the Netflix series "Dead To Me." In discussing it's themes of grief, he reveals that he has an app on his phone that reminds him about death five times a day. He talks about the five stages of grief and how complicated they are - especially now when so many Covid deaths might be the result of a rush to get back to normal.

Lay preacher Beverly Fox continues our SpiritFlix series with a message about the film Garden State. Her message explores the concept of home. What does that mean to you? Where can you find home? If you enjoyed this message and would like to support the mission of WellSprings, go to our website at http://www.wellspringsuu.org

For this week's SpiritFlix message, Rev. Lee preaches on the Netflix movie "The Willoughbys." This movie is about a group of children who are mistreated by their parents, until a person with a higher standard of care shows up in their lives. What if we all held ourselves to a higher standard of care right now? It just might save someone's life.

This week, lay preacher Josie Waldman shares the movie Troop Zero with us, and what the film meant to her, as a girl who was picked on in school. She shares some of her personal experiences and wonders what it is that makes some kids act the way they do. She asks us to consider the essential question of the movie: "What kind of world would it be if every homely, strange little girl thought she could do whatever she wanted?"

Rev. Ken continues our SpiritFlix series with the award winning documentary film, "I Am Not Your Negro." He begins his message with a story about an uncomfortable moment at a baseball game, before getting into the subject matter of the film. This unfinished memoir by James Baldwin is about his relationships with slain civil rights leaders. Now, more than ever, this film and message offer us a chance to wake up to the realities of being black in America.

Rev. Ken (appropriately) brings us a second SpiritFlix Message about Groundhog Day where he addresses the repetitiveness of our days right now. How do we break the cycle of "Groundhog Day?" We can do it by being of service to others, but also by fully inhabiting our own lives. Even if you don't know where your life is going right now, Rev. Ken emphasizes the importance of keeping after your pursuits, and your spiritual practices. That's how we finally make it to the metaphorical February 3rd.

Rev. Lee kicks off our summer SpiritFlix series by talking about the 1989 Spike Lee "Do The Right Thing." Even though this movie is over 30 years old, it's incredibly pertinent to the police brutality we're still seeing today. This film shows us imperfect characters interacting over the course of a single day, and asks us to consider what it means to do the right thing - both in small ways and in larger, society-changing ways.

Lay preacher, Kathy Burke-Howe, concludes our “Love the Hell Out of This World” series by asking us to consider what love looks like today, during a pandemic. How have our definitions of love changed with the rapidly changing and evolving situation around us? What can dogs – both real and animated – teach us about caring for one another?