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Remembering… At school ‘Oily’ Wakefield taught us chemistry, introducing us to Bunsen burners, test tubes and practical experiments. He taught us the chemical symbols for the elements – ‘H’ for hydrogen, ‘O’ for oxygen… Pb for lead. ‘The Latin for lead is ‘plumbum’’, he explained – hence ‘pb’. He made some joke about ‘plump bum’…Continue reading “Plumbline Certainty”

We sung this hymn in church last Sunday. I’ve been reflecting on it all week: Holy Spirit, living Breath of God,Breathe new life into my willing soul.Bring the presence of the risen LordTo renew my heart and make me whole.Cause Your Word to come alive in me;Give me faith for what I cannot see;Give meContinue reading “Holy Spirit, Living Breath of God”

I’ve been reading about King Hezekiah this morning… The Jewish nation was divided. Hoshea was king of Israel, Hezekiah was king of Judah. Hezekiah was seen as a good king, who instigated civil and religious reforms. The Jews were sandwiched between the superpowers of Egypt and Assyria. Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, is attacking Hezekiah. HisContinue reading “Hezekiah, Paul McCartney, and the Interrupting Cow”

On the car radio this morning I heard the old Stevie Wonder song: For once in my life, I have someone who needs meSomeone I’ve needed so longFor once, unafraid, I can go where life leads meSomehow I know I’ll be strong… My ‘just once in my life’ experiences include: starting school as a five-year-old,Continue reading “For Once In My Life”

In last night’s BBC documentary ‘Growing Up Jewish’ we followed four Jewish 12/13-year-olds preparing for their transition to adulthood – Dylan for his Bar Mitzvah, Ayala, Talia and Eve for their Bat Mitzvah… studying Hebrew texts, embracing their Jewish values, faith and culture. Although the influence of their families was clear, it was good toContinue reading “Don’t Make Excuses – Take Responsibility!”

Woody… The bird-feeders hanging from our apple tree attract a variety of birds to our garden. There’s a big bullying crow, stupid pigeons, friendly robins, cheerfully singing blackbirds, busy chaffinches, gregarious bluetits… each has its own character. Our favourites are the woodpeckers. At this time of year they’re frequent visitors. All are called ‘Woody’. WoodyContinue reading “Woody and Head-Banging”

Today’s 23rd April – St George’s day. In the legend of St George, a fire-breathing dragon terrorises a village. The villagers sacrifice their sheep to the dragon. Running out of sheep they sacrifice their children. They’re about to sacrifice the princess. George defeats the dragon and saves the village. Dragons speak of powerful evil forcesContinue reading “Dragons, Princesses and Heroes”

Yesterday was the London Marathon. We saw the huge spectacle of over 50,000 people running through London… we saw fridge-bearing runner Daniel Fairbrother proposing to his girlfriend Hayley; he’d kept an engagement ring wrapped in toilet roll; Daniel’s strength– running 26 miles carrying a 26kg fridge called Tallulah to raise £10,000 for Diabetes UK… metContinue reading “Where Love Meets Hope”

I heard this Zach Williams song for the first time this week; it resonated with me immediately… When he told you you’re not good enoughWhen he told you you’re not rightWhen he told you you’re not strong enoughTo put up a good fightWhen he told you you’re not worthyWhen he told you you’re not lovedWhenContinue reading “Fear Is a Liar”

In an excellent article ‘Rooting out the Narcissist’, Carrie Lloyd describes film producer Harvey Weinstein… It could make a good blog – the Greek myth – Narcissus falls in love with his own reflection, a narcissus from our garden, the narcissistic personality disorder, examples from Hollywood, politics and the church, quotes from Carrie’s article: ‘WhenContinue reading “Focus On Willow, Dave, Tamar…”