17 January

Today's the day when in 1985 BT announced the phasing out of the red telephone box. Originally designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott and painted bright red to make them easy to spot, they have been in use since 1926. Like double-decker London buses they have been widely recognised as a symbol of Britishness. When the action in a film moves to Britain directors just love to slip in a scene with a red phone kiosk in the background.

Such is the charm of these phone boxes that when BT announced they were to be phased out many local councils sought to prevent their removal and now over 2,000 have been designated listed buildings. Others have been snapped up by collectors or incorporated into works of art. Several are now in use as shower cubicles in private homes.

Much as they were loved, red telephone boxes have largely had their day. If they once seemed a fixture in the cityscape, they have now become a rarity. The Bible reminds us that change is an inevitable part of life in this world. In fact as we change and things around us change God's word is the fixed point we have to guide us. Listen to these stirring words from Isaiah:

All people are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall,
because the breath of the Lord blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands for ever.