This week the nation learned the verdict handed by a Philadelphia jury in the trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell, who ran an abortion factory in a poor Philly neighborhood. The doctor was found guilty of three counts of first degree murder in the deaths of three babies who survived abortion procedures that had been performed at around 24 weeks of pregnancy. The children were brutally killed after having been born alive. The testimony in the case was especially chilling in describing the practices of that clinic/abortion mill and cannot appropriately be repeated in a family newsletter. The testimony almost did not make the national news at all, as the pro-abortion media virtually covered it up until one brave reporter from a Washington blog shamed them into covering the story. Now found guilty by a jury of his peers, Dr. Gosnell has bargained for his life by deferring his legal option to appeal the verdict. He will spend the rest of his life in prison. His name will live on in infamy.

Dylan Knapp is a name that will not make the national news, though it is well known in our congregation. Dylan is in the final days of what has been a years-long struggle with a horrific disease that has attacked his brain and robbed his body of many of the senses and functions we take for granted. He has been racked with seizures time and again as his brain erupts under the effects of this condition.

Dylan’s mom and dad, Laura and Chris; and his siblings and extended family have done an amazing job of caring for him, loving him, valuing him and celebrating his life, diminished as it has been by this disease. They are all to be celebrated and honored; as is the entire Wellspring family for your support and love and prayers for them and Dylan.

Dylan is now in his final days and hours on this earth. He is being kept comfortable by medications, prayers and the love of his family. He will soon go home to heaven to be with Jesus. I guarantee that his name is known there. So many of you have been interceding for him over the years, his reputation will proceed him.

The value of life. The value of innocent life. The value of a vulnerable life. How a society values human life defines that society. When human life is treated as disposable, we all are diminished. When the image of God in even the most weak or distressed or diseased physical frame is honored and valued, then we are all ennobled. It is costly to care for the weak, the vulnerable, the defenseless. But there are also huge rewards. Love is always its own pay-out; and nobility comes as a bonus. However, it is even more costly not to care for each and every human life. We pay for that with our very souls; as our humanity is lessened.

Continue to lift up the Knapp family in your prayers. And continue to pray for our nation that a spirit of repentance will fall across the land; that we might embrace the value of life and the goodness of our gracious Creator.

-Pastor Rick

by Linda J. Maynard

“When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” Luke 9:1-2 NIV

This morning I was looking at a picture of a police officer, thinking about the authority he has been granted. He didn’t one day decide he has the “right” to arrest people, stop speeding drivers etc. No, he joined the force, received training, passed the requirements and was given a uniform and a firearm. His uniform is an outward sign of authority, which is backed by the laws of our land. We acknowledge his power and authority to carry out his duties.

But what if He woke up every day put on his uniform and did nothing?

Like the police, authority has been given to all believers by the ultimate authority, Jesus Christ. He has given us ALL authority to trample on demons and to cure diseases (Luke 7:8…Matt 10:11).  And where did He say His authority comes from? He said it’s from His Father (John 10:18).

 My question is this:  Are we believers in agreement with what the Word of God says about our given authority?

 I have to admit, when I first read about the authority of the believer, I skimmed over it. I thought, “I am not reading this right.” However, in the process of accepting God’s Word as truth, I  made a decision to press into ALL that the Lord has given to me through His death on the cross.  I don’t want to just “wear the uniform” of a Christian, I want to exercise all the authority I have been given by Jesus Christ. I want to say with confidence and with faith, “I am Linda, a child of the Living God. And like  Jesus, do what He did, by His Father’s authority.”

This messes with me – my set ways of thinking – and I wonder, “who am I to be given such authority?”  But the Lord stretches me – stretches all of us - so that our knowledge of the Truth expands until we see things from God’s kingdom perspective. It ‘s scary to see things God’s way, sometimes. But today, I submit to His truth about my authority. How about you? Are you willing to believe and walk in the authority given you by Jesus himself?

“‘Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father’” (John 14:12).

To learn more about Linda, please visit our Contributors Page.

Come join us Sunday morning at 8:30, May 19, for light refreshments in Room 6.  The class will begin at 9:00am.

We Are Wellspring is a series of 12 classes designed to orient you to the core values and major beliefs of Wellspring Church.  This is the backbone of everything we do at Wellspring.  It is the perfect opportunity to learn about Wellspring, to meet leaders in the church, and to connect with others in the community.  This is who we are, what we do, why we do it, and how you can get involved.

For more details on the class, visit the We Are Wellspring page or contact Mike McKinniss (mike@wellspring.net, 860-225-0661 x121).

Last week we heard Lesson 1: Denial. This week we will hear a Testimony from Mike G. I encourage you to come join us this week, particularly if you are not sure if Celebrate Recovery is for you. If you are thinking, “I don’t have an addiction, so how can Celebrate Recovery help me?” this is an ideal week to try it out.

Doors open at 6:30p for Coffee and Fellowship
Worship and Testimony at 7:00p

Sermon for May 12, 2013 – Mandy Adendorff

Each year Wellspring has participated with other area churches in a “Purpose” event.

This year we are joining forces again as a body of believers to reach the City of New Britain. When we began in September 2012, we made contact with another organization called “Convoy of Hope.” The opportunity to partner with Convoy of Hope opened up Purpose (now known as “The Convoy New Britain”) to become a large-scale event. With the goal of reaching the poor and eliminating hunger for one day in the city, the churches of New Britain have been energized and the City of New Britain has joined with us to reach over 4,000 people on August 17 at Rock Cats Stadium.

What is Convoy of Hope? (http://newbritain.convoyoutreach.org/) It is an outreach that is intended to empower the church to meet the spiritual and physical needs of families who are living with human suffering. It is a collaborative effort between churches, businesses, and community organizations to do together what each one cannot do alone. As a result of the outreach, recipients are connected with the churches and community organizations that have the resources and programs needed to help.

On August 17, the day of the outreach, we will need about 1,000 volunteers to distribute free groceries to all of the attendees and provide health services, community services, job fair, haircuts, family portraits, live entertainment, games, activities for children, prizes, and, of course, much more. Recipients will also have the opportunity to hear the gospel and receive prayer for personal needs.

In addition to the day of the outreach, a long-term commitment will be made to the new converts through the prayer tent (known as the Connections Tent). Our church, along with the other gatekeeper churches, will implement follow-up in order to disciple new converts, and connect them to the churches, resources, and programs that can continue to help them.

Wellspring will be overseeing the prayer/connections tent, under the coordinator, Lucy Snow. Wellspring has also taken on the distribution of new shoes donated from a large company under the direction of Valerie Vujs. These two areas will need volunteers, but that’s not the only two places to volunteer. You may also want to volunteer at community services, family portraits, food services, grocery distribution, guest services, haircuts, health services, the kids’ zone, or site entertainment.

If you want to be a part of this amazing event, then contact our office and leave your name and contact information and we will make sure you have a place to give a hand in showing God’s love to the City of New Britain. If you would like to volunteer for a specific area, then make sure to mention that when you call or e-mail the office.

We have been blessed with the full cooperation of City Hall and New Britain services to help make this event a complete success. But we still need to raise money to fund all 35,000 pounds of food, promotion, and equipment that needs to be available for that day.

We have two fundraising opportunities on the horizon. The first is a kickoff concert and drama. This drama and concert will be held on Saturday night, June 8, at Trinity on Main. This is a ticketed event and we would like to sell it out. Tickets are $10 each if purchased before Sunday, June 2, or $12 at the door.

The second event is Wednesday, July 31. It is a home game at Rock Cats Stadium, and 50% of every ticket sold will directly go to “The Convoy New Britain” to help support the additional costs that this opportunity comes with.

You can contact Wellspring office or visit the above mentioned website to volunteer or make a donation.

Our paths steered clear of one another until Saturday morning when I went searching for my husband. I found him outside, steeped in conversation—you guessed it—with our neighbor. Yes, that neighbor! It was only a few days post-Boston explosion, and again he asked tough questions, but the toughest of all came after he shared that he’d been battling prostate cancer throughout the winter.

He didn’t ask if heaven was real, or if we believed in life after death. Rather, after giving us permission to pray that God would heal him from prostate cancer, he asked, “What if God disappoints me? What do I do if the doctor tells me on Tuesday that my PSA levels have increased instead of decreased?”

It was easy to pray for him, but I was shaking in my boots from those questions! Not only was my faith on the line, but his was, too. What if God DIDN’T come through for him? What then? How would he ever believe God loved him?

So, I confessed my fear to my fellow Firestarters and that’s when God challenged my own faith. James Allen shared how he stomps out fear through fasting and prayer and suggested I consider the same. Know this: I read his challenge when I was physically the hungriest I’d been all day. I didn’t want to fast. My heart wasn’t ready and neither was my stomach! So I ate.

After dinner, God broke me.

God led me to the story of the epileptic boy in Matthew 17: 14-20. The disciples were unable to drive out the spirit causing his convulsions and when they asked Jesus why they couldn’t, but He could, Jesus replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you” (v. 20). The same story appears in Mark 9:14-32 and Jesus’ reply differs a bit, “This kind [of spirit] can come out only by prayer [and fasting].”

As I sat there, totally broken, holding onto faith smaller than a mustard seed, God whispered, “No greater love has a man than to lay down his life for his friend” (paraphrase John 15:13). He impressed on my heart that fasting was a way I could lay down my life—lay down some convenience—for the sake of my neighbor’s faith.

For three days, joined by my husband and other Firestarters students, we fasted from something and spent that time worshiping the Lord and praying healing over my neighbor.

My neighbor and his wife joined us for dinner that Wednesday night, after his doctor’s appointment and gladly announced his PSI levels were at 0.13. That’s about the lowest they can be after radiation. Yea, God! God not only lavished his love on him, He’s opened his heart just a bit more, and grew my faith.

Will you join me and continue to pray for continued healing from this cancer, but most importantly, that my neighbor and his wife continue to open their hearts to receive God’s love and salvation?

Dawn Aldrich

The-Big-Hairy-Outrageous-God-Sized-Goal:

Children’s Ministry + YOU.

The God we encounter in services every Sunday isn’t contained to the sanctuary. In their classrooms, our children are growing, learning, and being raised up as dynamic leaders in the Kingdom every week.  This is where you come in.

Every member of the children’s ministry team has been commissioned to recruit one new team member by June 9th.  This will double the number of children’s ministry helpers for the fall.  Our current team is out looking for their +1 invites to the awesome party that is children’s ministry.  You can be the +1.

No doubt, this is a BiHOGG (big-hairy-outrageous-God-sized-goal), but it is God-sized for a reason. It’s a need, our God can meet it, and you can help.

Teams of parents, teens, grandparents, and single adults greet our children and welcome them into an atmosphere of worship and learning. They teach, they supervise, they protect, they serve, but most of all—they love.

To celebrate the achievement of our BiHOGG, we’re having a party on Sunday, September 8th after the second service. You are invited to help make this dream a reality and to celebrate with us.  RSVP by June 9th.

Psalm 102:28 says, The children of your people will live in security.
Their children’s children will thrive in your presence.

We want to see our children thrive in God’s presence! Please pray for an increase of people to be drawn to minister to kids.

–Want to learn more about the specific children’s ministry opportunities available?  Our volunteers rotate on regular basis and range from teachers to tech assistants and registration helpers.

–Ready to accept the invitation now? Contact Jenn@wellspring.net

Serving opportunities range from once every six weeks up to every week (for the 9 or 11 a.m. services).

Wellspring Kids Team – Position Descriptions:

Adult Child Caregivers:
Opportunities available in Nursery (0-2) and Kingdom Kids (2-3):
• Provides a safe and secure environment for the children.
• Knows and follows all safety guidelines and nursery procedures.
• Help parents to be comfortable leaving their babies and toddlers in your care.

Teen Helpers:
Opportunities available for 0-12 in Nursery, Kingdom Kids, Well Diggers, Go Fish, and The Rock:
• Follow instructions of adult leaders in the classroom.
• Help the children participate in the activities.
• Be a positive role model for the children to follow.

Registration:
• Greet families and assist them in the checking in process.
• Give instructions to new families about the check in process.
• Act as security ensuring safety measures are properly enforced.
• Check tags during checkout process.

Technology:
Opportunities available in Go Fish (grades 1-4)
• Assist teacher in delivering technology portion of each week’s lesson.
• Utilize technological equipment, and troubleshoot when necessary.
• No experience necessary, training provided.

Teachers:
Opportunities available in Well Diggers (ages 4&5), Go Fish (grades 1-4), and The Rock (grades 5-6)
• Prepare weekly lessons using materials provided.
• Engage children in lesson activities.
• Guide children as they grow in their understanding of themselves, of God’s Love shown through Jesus Christ, of God’s church, and of the church mission.

Teacher Helpers (Adult and Teen):
Opportunities available in Well Diggers(ages 4&5), Go Fish (grades 1-4), and The Rock (grades 5-6)
• Welcome children, and help them engage in lesson activities.
• Give assistance to teacher (no preparation involved ahead of time).
• Help teachers when children need comforting or extra attention.
• Help with checking tags during checkout process.

Ministry Leader:
Opportunity available in The Rock (grades 5-6)
• Oversee, shepherd, and encourage teachers, children ministry volunteers.
• Ensure quality and efficiency of the ministry.
• Help achieve ministry goals as they equip the other volunteers serving the ministry.