Newsletter (13 October, 2023)

Today, we read about the Transfiguration. I can’t help but wonder what it would have been like to be there and how it would have felt. We know the three disciples were frightened, but to see Jesus in all his glory like that – what an amazing mountaintop experience!

Can you think of a time when you’ve had a mountaintop experience?

It’s a natural human inclination to want mountaintop experiences. It’s also a natural inclination to want to hold on to them. These amazing experiences are so good that we want to stay in that place forever – or for as long as possible – and to savour it.

Peter said to Jesus, ‘Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters – one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah’ (Mark 9:5).

Peter, of course, was being Peter, so he came up with a solution for this. He wanted to build three shelters: one for Jesus, one for Moses and one for Elijah, right there on the mountaintop. Then he could visit at any time to recapture this unique experience.

We might smile or even outright laugh at Peter’s suggestion, but did you know that the Crusaders actually did build three chapels on Mount Tabor? Now, there is the Church of the Transfiguration that contains them. The Chapel of Elijah is located in the south tower; the north tower holds the Chapel of Moses.

We want to stay there on the mountaintop, but we can’t. Sooner or later, we must leave the mountain and go back down to the real world, and the glory quickly fades. Life happens, death happens, we battle our own demons, we find ourselves in a valley, and the mountaintop seems so far away.

The wonderful thing is that Jesus is also there with us in the valley. He’s not just on the mountaintop. Jesus comes into our grief, fear, doubt, confusion and circumstances. When we look to him and at him, the other stuff fades away. We can experience a bit of the mountaintop in the wonder and joy of his presence and love right where we are.

- Devotion via https://www.lca.org.au/

by Verena Johnson

Then he called the crowd to himself along with his disciples and said: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’ (Mark 8:34).

Peter declares that Jesus is the Messiah, but after that, Jesus has some tough stuff to say to his disciples. He tells them about his death and resurrection.

Peter instantly loses whatever brownie points he may have earned by his declaration, when he begins to rebuke Jesus for saying this. Jesus even calls him Satan!

But then the rubber really hits the road. Jesus tells his disciples and the crowd with him that they will have to take up a cross if they want to follow him.

This was not a pretty, bland or inoffensive picture he was giving them. Everyone living during that time was well aware of what a cross was and what the Romans used it for. The image that would have come to mind was not for the fainthearted. I wonder what their reaction was. Maybe there was a gasp of horror from his audience. Peter was probably afraid to say anything after the last time he tried!

Following Jesus is not a picnic in the park, and Jesus never said that it would be, but this would have made people pause.

It still makes people pause today as well. For some people, it even comes as a bit of a surprise. We all like the good bits when it comes to following Jesus, but the hard stuff is not something anybody would want. The other thing is that our crosses come to us – we don’t get to choose them.

Imagine what it would be like if we could choose them:

’I want mine padded; I don’t want any chafing or splinters!’
‘I want the smallest one you’ve got – necklace-sized would be great.’
‘I want the lightest one.’
‘I want mine with wheels, so I just have to drag it.’
‘Could I get a cross app on my phone?’
‘You got any other colours? I hate brown!’

The good news is we don’t have to carry our crosses alone. Jesus doesn’t leave us all struggling with whatever cross we must bear. Jesus is with us to help us bear the burden.

Whatever cross you might be carrying at the moment, he will help you carry it, and he’s had plenty of experience in this area.

Dear Jesus, thank you for carrying your cross and dying on it for me. Please help me to carry my cross and look to you whenever I need strength, encouragement and comfort. Amen.

Black Ranges tennis

On Monday, a number of Year 7 and Year 8 students travelled to the Horsham Lawn Tennis Courts to participate in the Black Ranges Year 7 and Year 8 tennis competition. HTLC entered boys and girls teams for Year 8, as well as a boys team in Year 7.

The students played great tennis throughout the day, winning many of their matches. In fact, the Year 8 girls and the Year 7 boys team made it through the whole day undefeated, and have qualified to compete at the Greater Western Region finals later this month. The Year 8 boys also played well, reaching the grand final but unfortunately falling at the final hurdle.

Congratulations to the Year 7 boys team of Frazer S, Jesse J, Soren F and Archie F, who only lost two sets during the whole day. A special congratulations to the Year 8 girls team of Emma S, Hannah H, Victoria B and Serena J who managed to win the day despite having three Year 7 students playing in the Year 8 competition!

Information regarding the Greater Western regional finals will be released to selected students once the draw is finalised.

Black Ranges cricket

On Tuesday, students in Year 7 and Year 8 participated in the Black Ranges cricket. The Year 8 competition had some challenging bowlers and some explosive batters, but our boys acquitted themselves well, coming away with two wins from their four matches. Unfortunately, these results weren’t quite enough to secure progression to the next stage.

State athletics

Good luck to the following HTLC students who will be competing at the State Athletics Finals on Monday, 16 October:

Georgia F (100 m, 200 m, Triple Jump)
Brodie F (Shot Put)
Rhianna W (Javelin)
Phoebe W (Javelin)
Milla G, Hope F, Evie S, Kyah L (4x100m relay)

Events start at 10.0am and continue through until about 7.30pm. You can follow all the action from the School Sport Victoria Live Streams (https://www.ssv.vic.edu.au/sta...).

House Cup

Today coincides with the final day of official classes for the Year 12 students at Holy Trinity Lutheran College. This morning, a special assembly was held to announce the winner of the House Cup for 2023.

The House Cup is an event that celebrates all of the fantastic achievements and efforts of all of the students in the Secondary School. Throughout the year, students who participated in representative sport, extracurricular activities, inter-house competitions and the house athletics carnivals earned points for their efforts. Students who received nominations for the Spirit of Luther Award or won the Most Valuable Person award each term were also recognised for their achievements.

All of these points were added to the House totals, and despite the final results being exceptionally close, it was LOWAN who emerged as the House Champions for 2023!

Final scores: