I am doing a lot of travelling at the moment; this week has seen me in Prague, at a consultation to reflect on the future of the International Baptist Seminary, and then Glasgow to take part in the induction of the first woman as sole pastor in a Baptisty church in Scotland - and pretty soon, I am off to share in the plenary session of the World Council of Churches, a meeting that will last for a week.
I will be glad when it all stops and I can stay in one place for more than two days at a time!
But one of the things that has been more and more evident in all the events I have been too is just how small the world is. Not simply because of the ease of travel (which, even if it is boring, is easy, if I am honest!) It's mroe the way there is always somebody who knows somebody. For example, at the consultation, we were told to go and form pairs with somebody we hadn't met. I knew most of those in the room, so I headed towards somebody I thought I had had no contact with - only to have him say, "Ah yes, I know your father".
And the man leading the consultation - brilliantly, and his work has been one of the delights of this week - grew up at the church where Seyan is now pastor.
And at the induction, I met somebody who asked me to take greetings to members here whom they remembered attending there some years ago.
So who knows who I will meet at the WCC meeting, and what links will be uncovered.
It is one of the experiences that make real, for me, what we mean when we talk about being the body of Christ. Physically, the sole of my foot does not often come into contact with my shoulder - seeing that I am no contortionist. But they are both my body. And they are linked through a series of connections. To go to places I don't know and discover people I don't know but with whom I have links, means that the language of the body of Christ is not simply pious talk, but reality.
Our website, and those of you who read this blog, are also part of this; we may not meet (though I know some of us do), but we belong together.
And, with this amount of travelling going on, it is something I am very grateful for!