Ecclesiology

I ordered a book this morning called Face to Face: Meditations on Hospitality and Friendship, by Steve Wilkins. The reviews of this book have me anxious to get it in the mail. Ecclesiology is my favorite practical doctrine, probably because it is so practical. We all-even those of us who live in the Midwest-relate to other people, in our neighborhoods, in church, in the supermarket. I love reading about how God has always intended for His chosen people to relate to each other in a special, familial, way. I am so comforted to read in the Bible about God's special concern for orphans and widows, and His repeated commands to care for them in their loneliness and see to their needs. I am also glad to read in the Psalms that, "He sets the lonely in families."
Just thinking about this beautiful doctrine, this family God has created for us to be a part of, made me take my old copy of The Crisis of Caring by Jerry Bridges off the shelf. It is about true, Biblical fellowship; the kind of fellowship that not only shares and smiles together, but also suffers and serves together.
I can't wait to read Face to Face, and naturally, you will be reading my thoughts on the book before too long.