ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

 FALAITE ‘EPELELI 3, 2026

1 SAMIUELA 25-27; ‘EFESO 2:1-10

The Bible is a chronicle of divine interruptions, an account of how God intervenes to make a better way.

‘Oku hiki ‘i he Tohitapu ‘a e ngaahi founga ‘a e ‘Otua ‘oku ne fakafehalaaki’i ‘a e mo’ui ‘a e tangataa; ‘a ‘Ene hifo ke tofa ha hala lelei ange ma’a hono kakai. 

Because God loves us, he interrupts us. He interrupted the human story with the great flood, stopping the flood of iniquity on earth. God interrupted Jonah as he ran away from God's call. He interrupted Nebuchadnezzar's glory-obsessed reign. He interrupted Paul and his violent persecution of the church. And he will interrupt human history to usher in the new heavens and the new earth. God regularly interrupts the lives and plans of his children, and not simply because he has the power to do whatever he wants to do. Every interruption of the Lord is the result of his wisdom, power, and love. Sometimes God interrupts his children to set them on a new and better pathway. Sometimes he interrupts their lives to reveal his presence and glory to them once again. God often interrupts his children to protect them from themselves. At other times, God interrupts their lives to protect them from others. Every divine interruption is wise and good. Every divine interruption reveals God's constant attention to and interaction with the lives of his children. He is constantly watching, he never withdraws his care, he always knows what is best, and he exercises his power and authority to flip the script whenever he chooses. And his timing in doing so is always right. These interruptions are never a change in God's sovereign will, but are often a significant disruption of our plans for ourselves.

First Samuel 25 records one of those divine interruptions. David and his men need provisions, so he sends ten men to ask Nabal, a wealthy man, whether he will give them what they need. Nabal doesn't just say no; he is insulting and rude. David is angry, and he is tempted to take vengeance into his own hands. But God interrupts David in the person of Abigail, a woman of great wisdom. Abigail steps in between David and Nabal, seeking first to calm David's anger by saying she will take the guilt on herself, and reminding him that he cannot take the life of a woman traveling by herself. Then she reminds David that the Lord is restraining him from bloodguilt. Because of Abigail's intervention, David calms down and realizes that what he intended to do was not only wrong but also far from the kind of response a future king should have (25:23-35). God interrupts David and the wrong path his anger would have led him down with the words and generosity of one wise woman.

We all belong to the Creator, and he will interrupt our lives as he wills and knows is best. There was no bigger or better interruption than the incarnation of Jesus. God invaded human history to do for us what we never could have done for ourselves. He sent his Son to conquer sin and death, so that rather than being slaves to sin we can know the freedom of his grace and life now and forever. May God, in wisdom and power, continue to grace us with divine interruptions until his final interruption, when all things will be made new again.