Author: Chrisy

Something for Nothing

In our world today, you rarely find a place where you can get something for nothing.

You have to pay some kind of price to get anything at all.

It may be money, it may be services, or it may be something else, but you have to give something in order to get something in return.

Often this is also true in our relationships, and it may be that we even do certain things in order to receive certain outcomes.

But there is one relationship that didn’t begin with us having to do something to get something.

God sent His Son, Jesus, to earth, not because we did anything to deserve it, but just because His love for His creation (us) was so great that He wanted to give us the opportunity to be saved.

And this incarnation, this Emmanuel, God with us, isn’t something that we could have gotten because of anything we did or could do.

It is simply a gift. And yet, it is a bigger gift than any other we could receive.

We don’t deserve redemption. We don’t deserve a God who would sacrifice His Son so we could have a relationship with God Himself.

But we get it anyway.

And I would say that is the best something for nothing ever.

I pray that you would receive this amazing Gift this Christmas. Spend time with your family and friends, but mostly, be grateful for this free gift of grace that you have been given.

Merry Christmas!

The Value of Friendship

As things in my life are shifting around, one of the things that I have become very grateful for is the value of the friendship of others. This manifests itself in many ways. Sometimes that looks like someone who listens as I talk. Sometimes that looks like an encouraging word via text. Sometimes that looks like a card in the mail. Sometimes it looks like a conversation full of give and take where permission is given for authentic response on both sides.

I have been the recipient of all of this and more over the past weeks.

And today I hope that I am able to give that gift as I wait with my friends during their daughter’s brain surgery.

Because sometimes friendship looks like sitting in a waiting room and listening, laughing, crying, and supporting.

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Run, Mary, Run!

 

 

An Ennen Christmas Greeting

December 2013

Dear Friends,

As I sit here writing this letter I am struck by the two words reflection and anticipation – reflection on another year passing and anticipation of a year yet to come. And it is often only in the reflection that we see just how many of the things that we anticipated actually came to pass, and possibly in ways that we couldn’t have begun to anticipate.

Anne turns 13 in January and has kept us busy this year with tumbling and cheerleading. In addition to cheering for the Jr. Comets, the squad I coach in the late summer and early fall, she is also now a Greenville Junior High Bluejay Cheerleader. This means lots of time at practices, basketball games, and cheer competitions (and lots of running her around for Mom and Dad). Her squad qualified for state competition their first time out, so we will be traveling to Springfield the first weekend of January and celebrating Anne’s birthday with the state cheer competition! She is also doing very well in her 7th grade year and becoming more and more grown up every second. I keep telling her to stop, but she just won’t listen!

Ty turned 10 in October and is in 4th grade where he is thriving. As always, he keeps us laughing and shaking our heads at his silliness. Between knowing every possible fact about anything he can get his hands on, from Star Wars to Greek Mythology, building with his Legos, and playing outside with his neighborhood friends, he is always busy. He played  baseball again this summer and that seems to be his sport of choice, although if we would let him he would be on the computer, his DS or the Wii all that time.

The highlight of my year was completing the Goofy Challenge at Disney World in January, 39.3 miles across two days. It was the hardest, most exhilarating experience of my life. In addition to the rigors of training, being a wife, a mother, a taxi driver, and a concert-goer (Mike gave me the gift of a ticket to every country show in St. Louis this summer), my third year of coaching the Jr. comets Cheerleaders was a good one. I so enjoy spending time with these girls! I continue to blog and recently moved my blog to a new location, http://princesschrisy.com. You can sign up there to get notification e-mails for each post, or like Daughter of the King on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/princesschrisy1). I also continue to preach a couple of times a month at a six-church Presbyterian Parish in the area and I thoroughly enjoy doing that.

Mike continues his work of 9 years at Carlisle Syntec and is doing well there. But as you know, he would always rather be hunting or fishing and he got to do plenty of fishing with his dad and my dad this past year. He has worked hard this year to perfect his meat smoking technique, and the kids, my parents, and Jackie (our neighbor girl who is otherwise known as our third child) would tell you that he has the touch! Pulled pork and super thick pork steaks are the favorites.

I suppose the biggest news of the year is that December 20 marks the end of 13 years (plus 1-1/2 previously) as Church Administrator of the Greenville Free Methodist Church. While we don’t quite know what is next for our family, we do know that God is up to something and is moving us on to a new chapter in His story for us. We ask that you would be praying with us that we would hear His leading.

As we reflect on 2013, it was a year marked by accomplishments, joyful family times, moments of God moving, and even sadness at the end of a chapter in God’s story for us. Yet as we look to 2014, we are anticipating the good things that God has planned for us. We hope you have had a good year and have seen the ways that God is at work in your lives and that you are also anticipating great things in the coming year. To God be the Glory!

Mike, Chrisy, Anne and Ty Ennen

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Dreaming about Soup!

Ever find a recipe that you make once and then dream about until you can make it again?

Well I did a few weeks ago and I am dying to have a night when I am at home so I can make it again.

It is delicious. It is easy. It is vegan. What more could you ask for?

It is Carrot and Red Lentil Soup and I found the recipe on Pinterest. It came from this blog, Aunt B on a Budget, it is not my original recipe (italics mine).

  • 1 cup red lentils (I found mine at Whole Foods – I keep a variety of lentils in my pantry)
  • 1 cup diced onion
  • 2 cups sliced carrots
  • 6 cups stock (I used vegetable)
  • 3/4 teaspoon cumin

Combine all the ingredients in a pot and bring them to a boil. Skim any foam that forms on the top, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, covered, until the lentils are soft.  This usually takes about 40 minutes on my stove (I let it cook for about an hour and a half at this point, rather than cooking it longer after blending it in the next step).  It may take more or less on yours depending upon the temperature at which it simmers.

Working in small batches, purée the soup in your blender (I used my stick blender).  Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning (I added white pepper just before serving).  You can serve it right away if you want but I usually return it to the stove and let it simmer for another hour so that it thickens up a bit.

I shared it with my neighbors and they loved it. Even my picky daughter loved it. I’m thinking this may be tomorrow’s dinner again and would be great with some crunchy bread!

Unfailing Love > Feelings

Ever have those days where you feel like nothing is going right? Or those weeks? Or those months? And in the midst of the trials you wonder if God is there, if God is real, if God has forsaken you?

Consider King David, hand-picked by the man of God to be king and yet he spent much of the next part of his life running and hiding in fear of being killed by King Saul.

This man after God’s own heart felt abandoned by God. He talks about this in Psalm 13:

1 How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?

3 Look on me and answer, Lord my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

5 But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
6 I will sing the Lord’s praise,
for he has been good to me.

What I want you to notice about this Psalm is this, after questioning God in the first four verses, he comes to this place of peace in the last two and makes a decision to trust, rejoice, and sing of the Lord’s goodness. Even when he doesn’t feel like God is being good; even when he doesn’t feel like God is present; even when he feels like God isn’t listening; he knows the truth – God’s love is unfailing and He is present. He is able to look back and see how the Lord has been good, and trust that is still true and God is still good.

We have choices to make every day. Today, in the midst of whatever is happening in your life, I challenge you to choose to believe that God’s love is unfailing and He is good – no matter what you may feel.

Be Still

Update 9/7/16:

I am in the midst of a very busy week – starting fall seminary classes, prepping for Sunday School/preaching on Sunday, gearing up for fall church events and finalizing last-minute details for the Vine to Wine 1/2 Marathon and 5K on Saturday that I have been planning for the last 9 months and is bringing in over 500 registrants. Yesterday was a super-stressful day so this morning I spent my prayer time listening to this song and placing myself in God’s hands alone, because He alone is where I find my rest, my hope, my confidence, and in him I rest knowing that He will provide what is needed to accomplish the tasks at hand. Thank you, Lord.

 

As a part of the 2nd Sunday of Advent, with the theme of Peace, we spent the first 10 minutes of the service in silence on Sunday morning.

How often in our crazy-busy lives do we just sit in silence, much less sit in silence with the purpose of receiving the peace of the Lord?

I would venture a guess that the answer to that question for most of us is rarely, if at all.

As we came out of the silence, the first song we sang was Be Still My Soul (In You I Rest).

Have you ever really absorbed the words to that song?

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change, He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
To guide the future, as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.

In You I rest, In You I find my hope
In You I trust, You never let me go
I place my life within Your hands alone
Be still my soul.

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord.
When disappointment, grief and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

In You I rest, In You I find my hope
In You I trust, You never let me go
I place my life within Your hands alone
Be still my soul.

There is a very strong theme throughout the song of being still and trusting God in the midst of things that shake us up and bring anxiety rather than peace. Jesus tells us in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.” We have been given the peace of God, but the question is, have we received it? Do we accept it? Or do we look at our circumstances and allow them to steal the peace that we have been given?

We must choose to be still and accept His peace. We must choose to be still and receive His peace.

In the midst of the busy-ness of the holiday, in the midst of circumstances beyond our control, in the midst of grief and loss, be still.

 

 

Back at It and Goal Setting

November 1.

I was supposed to be recovered enough from my sinus surgery to jump back into exercise on November 1.

But I wasn’t, so I didn’t.

And then it became mid-November, but other circumstances prevented that from happening, too.

And then it became December 1.

And all day on December 1 I thought I needed to text my “exercise buddy” and say let’s walk Monday morning and about the time I was ready to text her, she texted me. Great minds… 🙂

So this week I got back on the exercise wagon, and as we walked on Monday we talked about our December goals. Mine is simply to get back in my exercise routine. My eating is under control, but I have to get moving regularly again. October 13 was the last time I worked out and August 27 was the last time I ran any distance, mostly because of illness.

And I also gave myself permission to NOT get on the scale this month. I need to focus on just being consistent with exercise, and there are enough stressors in my life right now that I don’t need the scale being another one.

I have two half-marathons scheduled for early 2014 already, and soon I will have to get back into training mode, but for now, consistency is what I need.

So for now, that is what I will shoot for.

Have you lost sight of your goals? Have you fallen into the “winter blahs” when it comes to eating and exercise? If so, think about a small goal that you can take on to get yourself back on track. Because staying on top of it now will help you not have to make (and break) the same old New Year’s Resolution in 2014.

Count Your Blessings

This morning, as I sit here following my morning walk, I am reflecting on the many blessings in my life.

The first of which is I wasn’t sitting on the floor in front of the Christmas tree when it decided to fall over at 5:20 this morning and that my heart didn’t stop when the falling of the tree scared me nearly to death as it fell right behind me as I was getting my headlight out for our foggy walk. (Only one ornament broke. I guess we’ll re-decorate it this evening.)

All joking aside, there are so many ways that the Lord has blessed me. And you. And I think that we should make a list of 10 of those ways today. You up for it? Here are my 10:

  1. My husband. God brought this man into my life who loves me, spoils me, jumps out of bed when the Christmas tree crashes to the floor to make sure I am okay, and so much more.
  2. My daughter, who checks on mom to make sure she is doing alright when she knows I am struggling, who smiles and laughs, and cheers with such joy, and who loves her brother even when he is annoying.
  3. My son, who makes me laugh multiple times each day. His natural intelligence and the amazing amount of information stored in that brain constantly amazes me.
  4. My parents, who are always there for me, even at a distance. Their encouragement and love keep us going.
  5. My home, the place where my family interacts and does life together.
  6. My sisters, who love me and are available to me at any point.
  7. My friends, every single one, near and far. Each one is a special gift to me and I am blessed by their place in my life.
  8. My health. After a sinus surgery that took longer than normal to recover from, I am so blessed to be healthy. There are so many people who are struggling with health issues and I recognize that it is a blessing to be healthy.
  9. Food on the table. We are blessed that the Lord provides for us.
  10. My life. Because Jesus came to earth as an infant to be Immanuel, God with us, and because He also was obedient to death on the cross, and because He rose from the dead, I have been given life. Not just life here on this earth, but life eternal. And that is the greatest blessing of all.

Your turn! Leave me a comment with your list! I would love to see what blessings you are counting today!

The Gift

Yesterday was the first Sunday of Advent, the first Sunday of the time of anticipation leading up to the celebration of the birth of Christ.

The birth of Christ that we celebrate as THE gift of Christmas. The reason for the season. The reason that we celebrate Advent and Christmas.

And this is a GREAT thing! I love Christmas! I love being reminded of the anticipation that the Jews felt for many years as they awaited the coming of the Messiah.

And as we celebrate Christmas and Advent one of the things that we celebrate is RELATIONSHIP with God through Christ sent to earth as God in human form.

What a gift that God has given to us, the ability to have a RELATIONSHIP with God without having to go through priests and animal sacrifice, but rather to come to Him through His own Son.

His Son that came to earth as an infant and grew up just like we did. His son that encountered temptation just like we do. His Son that was tempted in every way, just like we are, and yet remained sinless.

All so we can have RELATIONSHIP with God. Straight up. One on one. I can talk to Him without anyone else in between.

This is an enormous gift! The gift of RELATIONSHIP with God, with the creator of the universe, the creator of life.

And this RELATIONSHIP is the one that we use to guide us in our RELATIONSHIPS with all other people.

RELATIONSHIPS that are open, grace-filled, loving, accepting, and full of mercy.

What a gift we have been given – one that allows us to approach God with confidence and an open door, but also one that guides us as we build RELATIONSHIPS with those around us.

RELATIONSHIPS that allow us and those we love to be who we have been created to be, without excuse.

Every day I find myself being more and more thankful for those who see me as the woman I have been created to be, and who work to build RELATIONSHIP with me.

And I hope that I am as willing to see others as who God has created them to be and build RELATIONSHIPS with them along the way.

Turkey-Mania: Not a Vegan Holiday

Thanksgiving.

A day of food, family, and football.

And the food involved is not really a vegan’s best friend.

So, what do you do on a day full of non-vegan food at someone else’s house?

You get as close to vegetarian as possible and enjoy the day.

Because isn’t sharing time with family over the table more important than the food you eat on those few special occasions a year? I would say a resounding “YES!”

Today, I am back at the vegan diet.

But I don’t regret anything I ate yesterday (which was all in moderation), because that isn’t the most important thing in my life.

Relationships are.

And yesterday was an important part of maintaining those family relationships that are a key part of life in community.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day with your family and friends!