Status Report: October

Sitting…on the couch in the living room. 

Drinking…a cup of coffee. 

Anticipating…my oldest granddaughter’s birthday party this afternoon. She turned two on Tuesday. 

Loving…the perfect fall we’ve had. I don’t remember ever having such colorful leaves in October. If only all falls were like this!

Still picking…carrots, lettuce, swiss chard, kale and brussels sprouts from the garden. I plan to get everything but the kale in over the next few days because the forecast says it’ll be quite cold overnight next week. I’ve been told that kale can survive (and even thrive) in cold temps, so I’ll leave it for a while. 

Collecting…swiss chard recipes to use up my abundance of swiss chard—like Cranberry-Orange Swiss Chard, Swiss Chard Bean Soup, and Roasted Butternut Linguine.

Not planning…a big Thanksgiving dinner this year because I still have only a makeshift kitchen. I’m not sure what we’ll be doing as a family to mark the holiday.

Reading…Covenantal Apologetics by K. Scott Oliphant. It’s interesting, and easier to understand than many works on presuppositional apologetics, but still, it’s not an easy read. And the arguments are not as linear as I expected. (You’ll notice I’m still calling it presuppositional apologetics. I’m not convinced that Oliphant’s term, covenantal apologetics, will become the new name). 

Thanking…God for bright yellow leaves, a two-year old granddaughter, and an abundance of swiss chard.

Wishing…you a blessed October with those you love.

Theological Term of the Week

twofold state of Christ
Christ’s two positions or statuses as God-man: his humiliation and his exaltation. Also called status duplex, estates of the Redeemer, or two states of Christ.

• From scripture:

… who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with Goda thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesusevery knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, andevery tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:6-11, ESV)

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Ordinary Women x 2

Things have been sparse here for a couple of days because I’ve been preparing two posts that are posted elsewhere this morning. First, I posted at Out of the Ordinary on what it means to worship In Spirit and Truth.

If God, as spirit, does not have a physical location, then those who worship him are not required to be at any one physical location to do so. There is no one right place to worship our God who is not himself limited to space. He can be worshipped everywhere.

While there is not one required place to worship God, there are indeed “musts” for our worship. Real worship, Jesus goes on, must be done “in spirit and truth.”

All the October post at Out of the Ordinary will be about worship. Read Kim Shay’s introduction to the topic.

And I  have a post on Lois and Eunice, Timothy’s grandmother and mother, at Theology for Girls, too.

Lois and Eunice were ordinary women in ordinary circumstances who were faithful in a rather ordinary way. Their situation was not ideal: They were raising a child who either had no father or an unbelieving one. Still, they taught young Timothy God’s word, and God’s word, as always, accomplished what he purposed for it.

It’s my addition this fall’s Women in Scripture Series. You’ve been reading all the contributions, right?

I may be back later today to finally post this week’s theological term: the twofold state of Christ, aka the two states of Christ.