July 10, 2018
by Eric Stillman
It was a little over five years ago, on May 24th, 2013 that I received a call from one of our elders to let me know that Michael and Sarah McCoy had woken up that morning to discover that their four month old son Henry had stopped breathing in his crib. As quickly as I was able, I drove to Manchester Hospital to join the McCoys, but despite our cries and prayers, there was nothing that could be done. Tragically, and without warning, Henry had passed away....Keep Reading
Tags: Discipleship, Death
June 26, 2018
by Eric Stillman
Nine summers ago, I began meeting weekly on Friday afternoons with a couple of men who were struggling with addictions and looking for accountability. After a few weeks of meeting informally, we decided to invite a few more guys, put a little more structure to it, and give the group a name ...Keep Reading
Tags: Death, recovery
June 19, 2018
by Eric Stillman
In Matthew 12, Jesus is speaking to a crowd, and someone tells him that his mother and brothers are outside, wanting to speak with him. In reply, Jesus says, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Then, pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother” (Matthew 21:46-50).
One of the most beautiful things about the church, when it is done right, is that you gain a whole family of spiritual brothers and sisters, parents and children....Keep Reading
Tags: Discipleship, Death
June 12, 2018
by Eric Stillman
My first exposure to Ray Labbe happened unknowingly as a student at UConn back in the mid-90’s. I had begun to attend a church in Hebron called The Worship Center, and I kept seeing cars with bumper stickers that said “Pray for Ray.” I assumed that “Ray” referred to Ray Allen, the All-American UConn basketball player, but I wasn’t sure why he needed prayer. It was only a few years later that I learned that the prayers were for Ray Labbe, a member of The Worship Center who was fighting cancer....Keep Reading
Tags: Discipleship, Death
June 5, 2018
by Eric Stillman
An important part of the Prayer Wall that I include with every Pulse of NewLife (our weekly e-newsletter) is the “prayer focus for the week,” which is typically based on a verse or passage of Scripture and is often in line with whatever I have written in my article. Every time I write that prayer focus, I am reminded of the woman who encouraged me to add that to the Pulse, Eve Christie. Eve was a woman of great faith and prayer who was a long-time member of NewLife before dying of cancer in June of 2010. Her trust in the Lord through many difficult circumstances was a testimony to the power of faith and prayer....Keep Reading
Tags: Discipleship, In memoriam
May 29, 2018
by Eric Stillman
Yesterday was Memorial Day, and we rightly paused in our lives to remember those who gave their lives for our country. The day before, however, was a different kind of Memorial Day, as I preached on Jesus’ death on the cross, remembering how the eternal Son of God gave His life for the world. In last week’s Pulse article, I referenced Brennan Manning’s autobiography, All is Grace. This week, I wanted to share one of my favorite quotes of his, from his book The Signature of Jesus:...Keep Reading
Tags: Brennan Manning, God's love
May 22, 2018
by Eric Stillman
I recently read Brennan Manning’s autobiography, All is Grace. Manning is a former Catholic priest and traveling speaker, best known for his book The Ragamuffin Gospel, which is still my favorite book outside of the Bible. I heard him speak in 1995, when I was a new believer and he “opened” for Rich Mullins at South United Methodist Church in Manchester, and have read most of his books. Manning has an ability to communicate the love and grace of God in a way that is profoundly beautiful and always reminds me that “Jesus loves me just as I am, not as I should be, since none of us are as we should be.”...Keep Reading
Tags: Grace, Love
May 15, 2018
by Eric Stillman
This past week marked the end of an era for me. For the past ten years, I have spent part of the second Wednesday of every month leading a worship service at Glastonbury Health Care Center. Due to my changing schedule, I won’t be able to continue there for the foreseeable future, and with the recent move of one of two of our church members to an assisted living facility in Glastonbury, I am looking at beginning a new ministry in that facility. As I move on from GHCC, I wanted to share a few lessons I’ve learned in my ten years there....Keep Reading
Tags: Service, lessons learned
May 8, 2018
by Eric Stillman
In 1721, 18 year-old Jonathan Edwards, one of the most brilliant American minds as well as one of the most influential preachers, preached a sermon that addressed the question, “What is our hope in Christ?” His answer, in good preacher form, was in three points: our bad things will turn out for our good, our good things will never be taken away, and the best is yet to come. I want to briefly address these three reasons for our hope....Keep Reading
Tags: Suffering, hope
May 1, 2018
by Eric Stillman
In Christian Smith’s 2006 book “Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Eyes of American Teenagers,” the author coined the phrase Moralistic Therapeutic Deism to summarize the religious beliefs of the majority of teenagers in America. As Smith puts it, Moralistic Therapeutic Deism consists of five core beliefs: ...Keep Reading
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