Today’s Readings:

I John 4:7-21
John 1:1-4
Let us love one another, because love is from God;

(I John 4:7)

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7)

Dearly Beloved,

After the past few years when social distancing has been the needed norm, I want us to think instead about our connections with one another. Early in the 20th century, a theory of “six degrees of separation” was proposed. This theory posits that we are connected to every living person on this planet by six or less people. A play by John Guarre was written about it and it then became a game related to Kevin Bacon (here you can connect Mr. Bacon to any other celebrity by six people or less. For instance, Lucille Ball was in the Fuller Brush Girl with Eddie Albert who was in the Big Picture with Kevin Bacon:- try it yourself at: https://oracleofbacon.org/)

James Fowler & Nicolas Christakas proposed that there are “three degrees of influence” – meaning that our words & actions can have an effect on people that we might never meet (friends of friends of friends). Think about those random videos or posts that go “viral” from non-celebrities. There is also a new category of celebrity of people who are social media influencers. These are folks who offer recommendations connected to particular industries, products and the like.

All of this is to say that all that we do, say, post, etc. has an impact on the world around us – often in ways that we might never know.

What does this mean for us as people of faith?
Are we more influenced by the God’s love or what the world says is important?
Who or what influences us?
Who and where is our own influence felt?
How is our faith and trust in God reflected in the ways in which we interact with others – friend, family and strangers alike?

Join us for worship this Sunday as we reflect together on these questions and see how God is inviting us to be faithful stewards of all people.

peace in Christ, Pastor Jen