Author Archives: Chris and Michelle Benzinger

God Keeps His Promises – Part II

By | January 21, 2013

God loves to fulfill His promises!  Since the earthquake in Haiti on January 12, 2010, some of us in Life Teen have felt that God wanted us to open a Catholic mission base in Haiti. The more we learned about Haiti – poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, little or no youth ministry, some villages only receiving mass once or twice a year – the more we were drawn to using the gifts and blessings of Life Teen in Haiti. However, Life Teen representatives went to Haiti nineteen times in the first

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God keeps His Promises – Part 1

By | December 23, 2012

I have visited Haiti eight times since the devastating earthquake on January 12, 2010.  I had no idea that an earthquake in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere would change my life forever.  I shouldn’t be as shocked as I am since I know God is a Father who keeps his promises. When Michelle and I were married eleven years ago, the first reading at our wedding was Isaiah 58:6-12 which talks about fasting from the steady diet of selfishness we often feed ourselves and instead by reaching

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LifeTeen.com Blog

I Am Not Leaving.

By | October 2, 2012

2012-10_LT-NotLeaving

Then I thought, “This is for me.” Isn’t this what I long to hear from our Father in heaven “I will never leave you”? Don’t our hearts burn when we read the promise in scripture that God will be with us, He will never leave us, He will never forget us, He will never abandon us.

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Narnia: Lessons from Lucy

By | January 10, 2012

This weekend, we watched The Chronicles of Narnia:  Prince Caspian.  Soon after Peter, Susan, Edmond, and Lucy find themselves in Narnia, they are standing on the edge of a deep ravine with a rushing river hundreds of feet below.    They need to cross the river and the bridge that was there hundreds of years ago when they first became Kings and Queens of Narnia, was no longer there.  Peter and the others relied on themselves to figure out a way to cross the chasm.  Little Lucy, glanced across

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Jesus’ Personal Missionary Plan

By | January 6, 2012

Former Life Teen missionaries at Life Teen Camp Covecrest.

When you hear the word “missionary” what comes to mind? Let me guess…mission trips to Haiti, Mexico, Africa or China? Providing basic physical needs of food, clothing, and shelter for the poor? Someone moving to a third-world country to serve the poor and spread the gospel? All these examples are missionary, but I believe God’s missionary plan was more.  Let’s look at the example of Jesus feeding the 5000. As I reflect on the story of feeding the 5000, Jesus does feed the hungry,

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I Can’t Wait…Or Can I?

By | May 9, 2011

I can’t wait for Olguine and David to finally come home.  Actually, I can and I will since I don’t really have a choice but you know what I mean.  It has been over a year since the earthquake rocked Haiti on January 12, 2010.  Soon after, God brought Olguine and David to our attention and asked us if we would open up our hearts, our home and our family to these sibling orphans. God has worked miracles in our lives and opened our hearts not only to Olguine and David but to His constant, amazing

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Walk in his shoes

By | January 28, 2011

I’m judgmental.  After years of confession, penance and prayer, I have come to realize that I judge others when my focus is too much on me and not enough on God.  Tearing others down gives me the false impression that I am built up.  I know this is not truth and yet I fall into it way too often. Recently, Michelle and I went on a retreat in Florida.  We participated in an activity called sculpting.  In this activity, a couple who I know personally but to protect them I will call Greg and Julie,

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Introducing David and Olguin

By | March 25, 2010

The first time I met David and Olguin.  What a day!

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LifeTeen.com Blog

What is Life Teen Missions?

By | March 24, 2010

Being a “missionary” sounds exciting, radical and even exotic to some. But did you know that every Christian is called to be missionary? Regardless of our age, gender, job title, birth order, vocation or even denomination, Jesus commands us at his Ascension to “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Mt 29:18). Our families, our parishes and even Life Teen exist to fulfill this great commission. On World Mission Sunday, October 18, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI put it this way: The goal of

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