The day before

by Shane Altmann

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After this David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?’ The Lord said to him, ‘Go up.’ David said, ‘To which shall I go up?’ He said, ‘To Hebron’ (2 Samuel 2:1).

Read 2 Samuel 2:1–11

Have you ever wondered what Martin Luther was doing on 30 October? We all know what happens on 31 October, right? But I wonder what he was thinking on the 30th. I suppose he was finishing off his 95 arguments, or maybe he had 92 and then tried to go to sleep, but kept waking up with another one. Probably fell asleep sometime around midnight. Woke again at 2am. You know the drill.

Or maybe he had the 95 theses lying around for ages, wondering, ‘Should I, shouldn’t I?’ Maybe he was pondering what to do and rummaging through the Old Testament and stumbled upon today’s Bible reading.

Or maybe it went something like this: And Luther inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I go up into any of the churches in town?’ And the Lord said to him, ‘Go up.’ Luther said, ‘To which shall I go up?’ He said, ‘To the Castle Church.’

Maybe. The rest is history, in any case.

It’s fun to think about. Certainly, Luther was a very gifted scholar, a talented musician, a brave and stubborn human and a man with a determined heart for God. A bit like David. Luther had his flaws like David, but that stuff doesn’t stop God.

God doesn’t need any of us to be amazing humans, brave battle-hardy leaders or university-trained medieval theologians. He just needs us to be.

Through God’s Spirit, in the water and the word, he works faith into our hearts. By his word and through his gracious action towards us, he strengthens and preserves us through the bread and the wine.

He is active, he is for us, and we say Hallelujah and Amen!

Lord Jesus, you were there when David slew Goliath, when he won victories in battle and when he ascended to the throne of Judah. Holy Spirit, you were there when Luther wondered what to do, when he prepared the spark that lit the world. Loving Father, you are with us even now. Bless us as we ponder; show us the way. Amen.

Shane Altmann is the principal of Faith Lutheran College Redlands in Queensland and has served in education for more than 35 years. Married to Monica and father of two children, Harry and Zoe, Shane has learnt that he is largely helpless without the love and support of the people with whom he lives and works. A pilgrim of multiple Caminos de Santiago, a Penrith Panthers tragic and a restorer of old stuff, Shane loves a project and, when he is able, fills his days tinkering with something.

That was a bit mean

by Shane Altmann

Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.

Then David called one of the young men and said, ‘Come here and strike him down.’ So he struck him down, and he died (2 Samuel 1:15).

Read 2 Samuel 1:1–16

I feel like David wasn’t very fair to that bloke, the young man, the Amalekite, you know, the one he had killed for bringing him the crown and the armlet. The one who put Saul out of his misery and basically created the space for David to be king. That guy.

‘You what?’ says David, ‘You killed Saul! Right. Kill him.’

Hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on, woah, what about the …

Gone.

I mean, the guy was there, Saul was dying, he pleads for him to kill him, Saul’s having convulsions and can’t die, probably from falling on his own sword. It’s messy. The guy does him a favour and, instead of taking off, brings the tokens of office to David and calls him ‘my lord’. He had a right to feel aggrieved by the sense of injustice there in his last moments.

But not King David. You don’t mess with Davo and the Big Fella Upstairs. Saul was God’s anointed, and regardless of what he thought of Saul, David was a man after God’s own heart. He had his own opportunity to kill the treacherous and selfish king in a cave but didn’t – he wouldn’t harm the Lord’s anointed one (1 Samuel 24:6).

It wasn’t about Saul – it was about God.

But then there was the Bathsheba thing, and the murder of Uriah.

What is going on with David? Why did God favour him so much, when one minute David was writing beautiful psalms, the next minute killing someone, one minute dancing for the Lord, the next minute committing adultery? He claimed to love God, but it feels like he kept putting himself first. Why did God even bother with him …?

Wait! What?

Oh.

Right.

It’s not about David, it’s about God.

God searches the heart, a heart in which he installs the very faith itself that connects us to his grace. We are saved by grace through faith, Ephesians 2:8,9 reminds us of our complete reliance on God, ‘… and this is not from yourselves so that no-one can boast.’

It’s always God’s work. Even our faith is a gift from God.

Good God of Giving, Lord of Life, thank you for our faith. Thank you for being the source and foundation of all that is good in our lives and our relationship with you. Thank you for your redeeming love. Move your Holy Spirit in our hearts and through your church to bring us closer to you each day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Shane Altmann is the principal of Faith Lutheran College Redlands in Queensland and has served in education for more than 35 years. Married to Monica and father of two children, Harry and Zoe, Shane has learnt that he is largely helpless without the love and support of the people with whom he lives and works. A pilgrim of multiple Caminos de Santiago, a Penrith Panthers tragic and a restorer of old stuff, Shane loves a project and, when he is able, fills his days tinkering with something.

And I’m starving

by Shane Altmann

Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.

Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and fasted seven days (1 Samuel 31:13).

Read 1 Samuel 31:1–13

It’s about 3.30 in the afternoon. Our college here in Redlands, in bayside Brisbane, is quietening down as the last of the kids slowly wander out to their busy afternoons. Teachers are poking around, tidying up and chatting with each other. Some kids are doing sport training on the oval; office staff are industriously toiling away as they do. The afternoon is settling in.

And I am starving.

Somewhere in the distance, a car horn honks, busy school traffic starts to thin out, and vehicles start moving more freely again. The phone rings, and our receptionist takes a call from a mum whose kid lost their hat. Tradies wander past in their high-vis gear, finishing up from building works they have been doing on-site. The afternoon is settling in.

And I’m starving.

Some brave men sneak up to the wall of Beth-shan, take down Saul’s body, carry it home under the cover of darkness, burn it and bury the bones. Then they fast for seven days.

And I’m starving.

Wait! What? Seven days?

When you say seven days, you mean they just skipped breakfast or something, right? Or were the days shorter in biblical times? Perhaps seven Old Testament days are like two of our days.

It staggers me that people could fast for that long. God bless the disciplined. The hunger and the fatigue must be dreadful.

In 2 Corinthians 12:10, Paul reminds us, ‘That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weakness. In insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. When I am weak, then I am strong.’

When everything has been stripped away, when there is nothing left, when our metaphorical king is dead and hanging on our enemy’s wall, all we have is God. What great sustenance that is. Christ’s power is made perfect in weakness. This is the upside-down God we worship. The God who dies. The God who lives again.

Don’t get me wrong, we are not called to be ascetics, to practice extreme self-denial and live miserably to get close to Jesus. We are freed from such things and freed for a life that is full and abundant, a life of joy, hope and love.

But when it’s tough, when we face misery and mourning, hardship and trials, right there in that space is where God is close to us.

Where he carries us.

Jesus, you know what it is to suffer, to be fully human, to feel grief and loss, anxiety and sadness. Be close to all who suffer. Bring them comfort by your Holy Spirit and through the connection and care of those around them. Grow in us hearts of compassion and care for those we meet. Amen.

Shane Altmann is the principal of Faith Lutheran College Redlands in Queensland and has served in education for more than 35 years. Married to Monica and father of two children, Harry and Zoe, Shane has learnt that he is largely helpless without the love and support of the people with whom he lives and works. A pilgrim of multiple Caminos de Santiago, a Penrith Panthers tragic and a restorer of old stuff, Shane loves a project and, when he is able, fills his days tinkering with something.