In the July 26, 2007 edition of USA Today, the newspaper ran two articles about how obesity is contagious. One article said, "One person's obesity can significanlty increase the chance that his or her friends, siblings and spouse also will become heavy, according to the first study done on how weight gain spreads through social networks. And if a person slims down, the people around him or her also may lose weight. Both obesity and thinness are socially contagious... At the heart of the matter is the sharing of acceptable norms for weight, not just sharing the same eating and exercise habits... If someone you care about gains weight, your notion of an acceptable body size may change. You may decide it's OK to go up a couple of sizes."
The article goes on to quote some findings reported that day in the New England Journal of Medicine which stated that:
- When people become obese, the risk of their closest friends becoming obese over the next two to four years increases by 171%.
- The reverse is also true. When one person sheds pounds, it has a ripple effect and increases the chances by similar percentages that their friends, siblings, and spouse will trim down.
- If one person gains, it can affect social ties with three degrees of separation, so a friend of a friend of a friend also is affected. One person's weight influences dozens of other people they are connected with both directly and indirectly.
- Surprisingly, the obesity risk is not affected by geography. If you have a close friend or a sibling who lives a mile or a thousand miles away, that person's weight gain can have the same affect on your weight.
One of the report's conclusions is that you should pick your friends carefully. You may not want to be around people who are gaining weight or who are too heavy. Another implication is that if doctors can get even a small number of obese people to lose weight, it might have a ripple effect, and could contribute to reversing the obesity epidemic.
If you've read Malcolm Gladwell's book The Tipping Point, this will sound familiar. As I read this article, it got me thinking about the gospel, the church, and our culture. How does Christianity spread from person to person? Does it spread in the same way as obesity? If one person becomes a Christian, or if one part of a family or one part of a social network becomes Christian, will it spread to the rest of the family or social network? It's not 100% guaranteed to do so, but the conditions are such that it can.
What if there are a small number of people in a congregation who have a heart and passion to be missional? Can the missional virus spread throughout the rest of the congregation like obesity does? It is not 100% guaranteed to do so, but the conditions are such that it can.
What if there are a small number of congregations in a presbytery or in a denomination who have a heart and a passion to be missional? Can the missional virus spread throughout the rest of the presbytery and the rest of the denomination like obesity does? It is not 100% guaranteed, but the conditions are such that it can.
Since the missional virus is contagious, why do so many people automatically assume that it is not? Why do so many people have a knee jerk reaction that God cannot transform a denomination? Why do people resign themselves to defeat and failure before they ever make this attempt? Maybe its because we have not experienced it or seen it happen. Maybe we don't understand how new ideas, new attitudes, and new behaviors become contagious. Maybe we don't understand how to spread a missional virus from one person, congregation, presbytery, or network to another? Maybe we have a lot to learn from obese people?
Up until now, I haven't known anyone who thought obesity was contagious. They all thought obesity was the result of genetics, diet, exercise, and stress. Now, we have learned something new. Do we need to learn something new about how the missional virus can spread throughout a denominational system? The God of the Bible is the God Who surprises us, calling people to follow Christ and lead God's people that we never would have expected. Could God be getting ready to surprise us in regards to the missional future of the denomination?
Clark Cowden
Clark -- Great comments. We are shaped by the company we keep. God intended for it to be that way. So it should be no surprise that when we hang out with missional people, we will become more missional. Values are contagious. Commitments are contagious. And this is one "virus" which I want to catch. Thanks for this.
Posted by: Steve Hayner | July 29, 2007 at 05:31 AM
Thanks for writing!
One of the issues that we seem to be facing is the difficulty in leading change. I believe that we can see our churches change to become "missional". Much of what I have read indicates that it is easier to start a new work than try to transform an older work. I agree, but God has infected us with Jesus and I believe that His desire is for His church to take in His missional heart and act in His missional ways. This is not His desire for new works, bur for His Church (new and old).
Posted by: Don Vickers | July 31, 2007 at 08:59 AM
I think all kinds of social phenomena are contagious. 15 years ago when I moved to California from Pennsylvania in my early 20s, I started dressing like my new friends. And this happens all the time!
I believe a missional lifestyle can absolutely be contagious! Especially when churches, presbyteries, and denominations realize the Spirit's power behind it!
Posted by: Markus Watson | August 27, 2007 at 11:37 PM
I think all kinds of social phenomena are contagious. 15 years ago when I moved to California from Pennsylvania in my early 20s, I started dressing like my new friends. And this happens all the time!
I believe a missional lifestyle can absolutely be contagious! Especially when churches, presbyteries, and denominations realize the Spirit's power behind it!
Posted by: Markus Watson | August 27, 2007 at 11:37 PM