We have a crisis on our hands today that is, at best, heart-rending and, at worst, soul-damning--I refer to the disrepair of church*. The New Testament idea of church has been laid waste to make room for solo-Christianity. "I don't need church," one says. Another clarifies, "Well, church is good for some, but I'm content with my religion. After all, Christianity is about a personal relationship."

The Church** desperately needs a sense of unity. The Church desparately needs a sense of eternality. Many speak as though the Church is an antiquated idea that has lost its utility. Praise God the Bible soundly refutes this: the Church is the solution to man's inability to live the Christian life in isolation. The Church is God's idea, not man's.

May we cherish our fellow Church members as Jesus cherishes the whole body of His bride-to-be. May we find a wellspring of life through the mutual ministry of the Church. May we fall in love with the Church, for by our doing so the world will know that we are Christ's disciples.

*church, lower-case when referring to the institutionalized church
**Church, (to me, properly) capitalized when referring to Jesus' fiancee