Unity on the North Shore

06/08/2026

Last Sunday we had the privilege of hearing from Mark Montana and learning more about the extraordinary work being done at Soaring Eagle Academy.

What struck me most was not a statistic or a program—it was a commitment.

At Soaring Eagle Academy, students receive an incredible level of individualized support, including a two-teacher-to-one-student ratio. That means children who may struggle in traditional educational settings are not left behind. They are known. They are understood. They are given the opportunity to learn in ways that honor who they are.

As autism diagnoses, learning differences, processing challenges, and other unique educational needs become increasingly common, more families find themselves searching for places where their children can truly thrive. Not simply attend school, but flourish.

Every child deserves the chance to experience success. Every child deserves educators who can see beyond challenges and recognize potential. Every child deserves to feel that they belong.

That is the heart of Soaring Eagle Academy.

Schools like this exist because people care enough to invest in children who need something different from the traditional model. They exist because communities come together and say, “These children matter.”

If this mission speaks to you, we invite you to support the life-changing work being done at Soaring Eagle Academy. Your gift helps provide individualized education, specialized support, and opportunities for students who learn differently and deserve every chance to succeed.

Donate here:
https://forms.donorsnap.com/form?id=ca74c9b5-b6e1-4c50-9283-f01b155c2732

When a child is truly seen, understood, and supported, something remarkable becomes possible. Confidence grows. Potential unfolds. A future that once seemed uncertain begins to open.

Thank you, Mark, for sharing your vision and your unwavering belief in the unique gifts and possibilities within every child.

06/08/2026

06/07/2026

On the first Sunday of every month, after service, we gather for a potluck.

It’s a simple tradition, but I’ve come to appreciate how much happens around those tables.

Each dish represents someone’s care. Someone took time to prepare something that would nourish another person. There is a quiet kind of love in that.

What I notice, though, is what happens after everyone fills their plates.

The conversations deepen.

On a typical Sunday, there is time for a greeting, a hug, perhaps a brief exchange. But once a month, we have the opportunity to linger.

To catch up on a month of living.

To learn something new about one another.

To discover that the person we see each week carries joys, challenges, dreams, and stories we may never have known otherwise.

In that way, we are nourished twice.

First by the food.

Then by the relationships.

And perhaps that second nourishment is what keeps a spiritual community alive. Little by little, conversation by conversation, meal by meal, we become less a collection of individuals and more a community. More connected. More known. More one.

Thank you to everyone who prepared, served, shared, and stayed awhile.

What a beautiful way to begin a new month together.

06/07/2026

Most of us have been taught that fear is something to conquer.

Push through it.
Ignore it.
Hide it.
Pretend it isn’t there.

But what if fear is not the problem?

This Sunday, Rev. Kurt Condra invited us into a deeper possibility: fear may actually be one of the soul’s most honest messengers.

He shared the remarkable way horses respond to humans. Horses are not disturbed by fear itself. They don’t react when someone is nervous, uncertain, or vulnerable. What unsettles them is incongruence—the gap between what a person is feeling and what they are pretending to feel.

The horse senses what is true beneath the surface.

Perhaps life does the same.

Perhaps our anxiety, anger, exhaustion, and fear are not signs that something is wrong with us. Perhaps they are invitations to become more honest with ourselves.

Beneath the fear of speaking our truth may be a longing to belong.

Beneath the fear that freezes us may be a wound that wonders if it is worthy of love.

Beneath the urge to run away may be a soul crying out for rest, renewal, and care.

Beneath the impulse to fight may be a sacred value we are called to protect.

Fear often appears to be the issue. But fear is rarely the deepest layer.

The spiritual journey asks us not to stop at the surface reaction. It asks us to become curious enough to ask:

What is this fear trying to show me?

The biblical prophet Elijah experienced this. After extraordinary triumphs and miraculous demonstrations of faith, he collapsed in exhaustion beneath a tree in the desert and declared that he was done.

God did not offer a lecture.

God offered rest.

Food.
Sleep.
Care.

Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is stop demanding more from ourselves and begin listening more deeply to what we need.

And then there is the courage of Bayard Rustin, the brilliant strategist behind the March on Washington. Facing prejudice, criticism, and immense personal risk, he chose not to be ruled by fear. Not because he lacked fear, but because he had found something greater than fear: purpose.

His life reminds us that courage is not the absence of fear.

It is devotion to something more important than fear.

Perhaps that is the invitation for all of us.

To notice where we freeze.
To notice where we flee.
To notice where we fight.

And instead of judging ourselves, to ask what sacred truth is trying to emerge.

What if every difficult emotion carries a doorway?

What if fear itself is not an obstacle to spiritual growth, but one of its guides?

There is always more beneath the surface than first appears.

And perhaps the deepest spiritual practice is learning to listen.

✨ Where is fear inviting you into greater authenticity, healing, or courage right now?

06/07/2026

What if a short film could open a doorway to a deeper understanding of yourself, your spiritual path, and the possibilities within your life?

Join Rev. Kurt for a transformative 6-week journey exploring spirituality through the lens of cinema. Each evening begins with a thought-provoking short film, followed by engaging conversation and reflection on the deeper themes woven into the story—identity, awakening, forgiveness, courage, connection, possibility, and the unfolding of our highest selves.

Some films will inspire. Some will make you laugh. Some may surprise you. All offer an opportunity to see life—and yourself—with fresh eyes.

Come experience the wisdom, wonder, and transformative power of story in a welcoming spiritual community.

📍 Unity on the North Shore
📅 Tuesday Nights • June 2 – July 7
🕡 6:30–8:00 PM
💲 Free

Bring a friend and discover how the stories we watch can illuminate the stories we live.