If the fire alarm goes off what do you do? Presumably you follow the procedure laid out, leave the building in a calm manner and wait for instructions. It may be a drill/practice so your biggest worry might be how cold the coffee on your desk is going to get. What you do not do is ignore it. People have been sounding the alarm about climate change for many decades.

There is a Hollywood trope where an alert goes off and our heroes pick up their grab bags, leap into their car and drive off into the wilderness until such time as the danger/war/asteroid/alien invasion etc has passed. Then they return home or set up a new civilisation. So what goes into that grab bag? The essentials for surviving in a wilderness, making fire, purifying water, essential food supplies and the means for camping out for a long time.

So we made sure that the smoke alarm has a fresh battery in it. Good. Now, if it goes off and there is an actual fire in the house (rather than burnt toast) what do we do? We have a plan of sorts, the main thing being that if a key is required to open an outside door it is to hand - but not available to a would-be burglar!

It has long been a truism that Britain does not have seasons, it has weather. But I think that this summer in the UK, and in Europe in general, we can no longer say that our weather is just doing its variable, changeable thing. Another hottest year on record and yet another even hotter one predicted for next year. In the long term we need to mitigate the climate change that is already happening, and in the short term we need to adapt to more extreme and less predictable weather.

I'm being sarcastic, of course. Where we live it is so easy to take things like gas and electricity supplies for granted. They are pretty reliable and the biggest complaints are about the cost rather than their reliability. The last power-cut we had was due to a faulty meter which was sorted out in a couple of hours. But in the event of a major power-outage what then?

Early one morning, soon after sunrise, a chirruping sound roused me from my slumbers. One chirp, and a pause just long enough for me to be annoyed, turn over, close my eyes and try to finish my essential beauty sleep. Approximately 60 seconds later another chirrup pierced the air. Slightly louder this time. I realised what it was: the battery in the smoke detector was going flat.

God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good. Absolutely, trust in God. But that does not mean taking him for granted nor treating him like Santa Claus. I take a leaf out of Joseph's play book - the one with that flamboyant coat. Through various trials, due to his own false modesty and false accusations, he ends up in a position where he can affect a whole nation.

Creation, the natural world, the environment: who owns it? Who's in charge? An important idea in the Bible is that human beings were told to take charge of the world that God had made. They are to be masters of it*. One problem with that idea is that idea of being a master. Do you mean someone who wields power over something or someone at will and at a whim?

Floods, droughts and heatwaves have very much been a feature in the UK this summer. So it seems appropriate that September sees the annual campaign to encourage national, local and personal resilience. A year ago it seemed more theoretical than real. But now the government is dropping hints about being prepared in case of being cut off and there are calls for the…

The other day we went to Alnwick in Northumberland. There's the castle, Aln Valley Railway, Barter Books and the Gardens to name but a few places of interest. So, where did we go first?The Poison Garden. In my defence it wasn't my idea but I have to admit I was intrigued and readily agreed. Well, I think I knew about several already.

The Christian and the secular notions of Easter share the same confusion as Christmas does. Many people start to celebrate Christmas in December while the Christian church is preparing for the feast, not celebrating it. I know of at least one person who puts their Christmas decorations up in November and then takes them all down on December the 26th. They're finishing just as we're just getting started.

The "I am" sayings of Jesus Jesus is a Jew. The gospels tell us that he was circumcised as a tiny baby, brought up in a Jewish family, was familiar with the Hebrew scriptures, quoted them, and taught in the synagogue. So when, at one of his trials, he says "Before Abraham was, I am" he was being controversial at least, if not downright blasphemous.

...and you are the branches The "I am" sayings of Jesus As it happens, today coincides with the Annunciation of Our Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary. So we have the idea of followers of Jesus being joined to him in order to bear fruit, alongside the idea of Mary bearing Jesus, the fruit of her womb. My first thought was to draw a picture of a grape.

The "I am" sayings of Jesus Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life" John chapter 14 verse 6 Jesus is not the yellow brick road. If you are familiar with the 1939 film, "The Wizard of Oz", you may recall how Dorothy and Toto begin their journey home. They are told by Glenda to "follow the yellow* brick road".

The "I am" sayings of Jesus Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life, Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live."John chapter 11 verse 25 (NRSV) In my naivete I thought I had the perfect picture to go with this saying. All I had to do was to find a churchyard and take a photograph of some daffodils next to a gravestone.

The "I am" sayings of Jesus If I ever were to be made a bishop (which is less likely than seeing Betelguese explode, not least because I have retired) I have decided that for my crozier I would get an actual shepherd's crook. I saw one a few years ago on an open farm. There was nothing fancy about it being basically a five foot (150 cm) metal pole with a large rounded hook on top.

The "I am" sayings of Jesus Jesus spoke to the Pharisees again. “I am the light of the world,” he said. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.” John chapter 8 verse 12 My intention had been to draw or paint something for each week but that has fallen by the wayside so I'm taking photographs instead for the time being.

First Past the Post can no longer deliver real mandates - only chaos. 60% of Brits want it scrapped. Yet the new Representation of the People Bill won’t even touch our rotten voting system, which lea...

The "I am" sayings of Jesus “I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “Those who come to me will never be hungry; those who believe in me will never be thirsty." John chapter 6 verse 35 It has been said that beans on toast is a healthy meal option. Between the beans and the bread you have a complete protein.

The "I am" sayings of Jesus in John's Gospel Starting this coming Wednesday, Ash Wednesday, I shall, God willing, post each week of Lent. For our Lent group this year at church we are looking at the "I am" sayings of Jesus. By looking I mean just that because our starting point will be art work by Hannah Dunnett. That means it will be pictures, more than words, which will inform my reflections.

The other day, as I was leaving a local car park near the shopping parade, I saw someone return to their van. Now that van boasted along the lines of "fresh and healthy meals" or words to that effect with pictures of wholesome dishes such as stews and salads and the company logo. I am guessing that the driver of that van was about to start their lunch break as I observed them leaving the local "Fish Bar" with a package of what I took to be chips.

So an "assembly banger" popped up on my feed and it bounced around my head. It's quite fun. Unfortunately, that video just gave one verse and chorus so I've had to cast around for another with all the words as well as the music. None of the others they came up in my search were quite satisfactory*, so I'm afraid I'm offering you the tune and lyrics separately.

Glad that I live am I (1909)Glad that I live am I;That the sky is blue;Glad for the country lanesAnd the fall of dew. After the sun the rain,After the rain the sun;This is the way of life,Till the work be done. All that we need to do,Be we low or high,

Note to self: it's 2026 (not that I write cheques very often) Here is a pearl of wisdom gleaned from a Fireman's Training Book*: Ensure you can stop within the distance you can see to be clear. Grant, O God, your protection; and in your protection strength; and in strength, understanding; and in understanding, knowledge; and in knowledge, the knowledge of justice; and in the knowledge of justice, the love of it; and in that love, the love of existence; and in the love of all existence, the love of God, God and all goodness. Amen. (Ancient Welsh Prayer) *As in driving a locomotive

(adjective noun)* It's been a poor year for Crhistmas cracker jokes chez nous. That's partly down to having fewer people this year at our Christmas tea table, but the quality of joke or motto doesn't seem up to scratch. In an effort to improve matters I even asked "Alexa"** to tell us a joke. It went thus: Q. Why do Christmas trees prefer the past?

Edit: apologies, this should already have been published. For some of us this is a jolly time of year, for some of us this is a jolly difficult time of year. And for many of us it is a bit of both. For what it's worth, I note that, thorough exegetical analysis notwithstanding, we are told that Jesus, the son of Mary and Son of God, was born at night.