While working in my yard last Saturday, I heard the sound of flight calls overhead. When I looked up, I saw geese flying north to Canada in a V-shaped formation. I was so intrigued that I went inside to do some online research on how geese fly together.

What I learned was fascinating.

When a major corporation conducted a study on the flight of geese, they found that while in the V-formation, one goose leads what experts call the “skein,” or the group in flight. After a period of time, this goose relinquishes the lead to another goose. Researchers found that during flight the leader often moves his head, which seems to signal to the other geese, perhaps letting them know how he is doing.

This made me think about how God has called us to be dependent on one another, which is contrary to the world’s messages. Scripture has a lot to say about the dangers of living life relationally independent. In fact, there are 54 “one another” verses in the New Testament that teach Christians how to interact in relationships.

Below is a partial list of verses for the Greek word, allelous, which is translated as “one another” or “each other.”

• A new command I give you: love one another. (John 13:34)
• Be devoted to one another with mutual affection. Honor one another above yourselves. (Romans 12:10)
• Live in harmony with one another. (Romans 12:16)
• Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. (Romans 14:13)
• Accept one another, just as Christ accepted you. (Romans 15:7)
• Serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:13)
• Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. (Ephesians 4:2)
• Be kind and compassionate to one another. (Ephesians 4:32)
• Therefore encourage one another. (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
• Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. (James 4:11)
• Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. (1 John 4:7)
• Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another. (1 Peter 3:8)

Sometimes we may not want to be dependent on others. I like what Os Hillman says about this: “The fact is . . . dependence on others is a good thing. It can bring us into a unity of spirit that accomplishes much more with less effort while meeting needs for each of us. By walking together we increase our strength. By going it alone, we must carry a load we were never intended to carry. God did not create us to go alone.”

We are living in unprecedented times, all doing our part practicing social distancing, but I want to encourage you to think about ways to stay virtually connected so we don’t have to go at this alone. Use your Smartphone to video call a friend or family member during this time. Just by having a conversation and staying connected could help relieve sad or anxious feelings.  Reread the one another passages and observe that a lot of them do not require us to be 6 feet from each other, it’s an attitude of the heart.