by RTF Staff Writer Judi Weiss

You’re the only one who doesn’t know about
The beauty that everyone else knows is there
You just can’t see it
No, you’re not aware (more…)

by RTF Staff Writer Judi Weiss

Your poison fills my veins
As you take me for a ride
It’s driving me insane
I need somewhere to hide (more…)

by RTF Staff Writer Judi Weiss

My almost first
My almost dance
My almost love
My almost romance

My almost dark
My almost light
My almost day
My almost night (more…)

Happy Retro Day! As I was browsing our archives, this really jumped out at me. I hope it encourages you to do something bold this week. Enjoy! ~ Halee

by RTF Staff Writer Judi Weiss

A bold move; handing out a tract to a stranger, being the wallflower and striking up a conversation with someone, helping an acquaintance cope with heartache.

Bold moves are all around, waiting for someone to take the chance and do something. The chronically ill teenager who spends countless hours in the hospital, searching for the answer; the child who no longer has a father; they live their lives on courage, strength, hope: bold moves. (more…)

By Staff Writer Judi Weiss

My mother once told someone that if the walls in our house had ears, they would hear a great big laugh. And it’s true. I was born into a family that loves to laugh.

From my older sister, who can make me laugh when I want to cry, to my younger sister, who juts out her chin while doing her flawless impression of Count Olaf, my family is the reason why I laugh.

When my oldest sister was at her graduation ceremony, my then eight-year-old sister was ready for it to be over. When the speaker took a pause in his long speech, my youngest sister jumped to her feet and clapped her hands together. A single clap can make a pretty decent echo in a silent auditorium. (more…)

By Staff Writer Judi Weiss

Father, I’ve been waiting
For you to reach down
And show them who you are
And turn this mess around (more…)

by Judi Weiss

Summer’s a great time. Youth activities, friends, or just sleeping in until noon. Summer is wonderful. But then it ends, with a flurry of back-to-school shopping. And some teens are heading to different schools. Maybe starting high school. Maybe starting college.

Even if you’re taught at home, the school year can be brutal. If you don’t have Jesus, it can be even worse. Going through the motions of school is tough, especially when you add on all the other teenage year horrors: Acne problems, crushes, teachers, and the other slew of problems. (more…)

by Judi Weiss

Has someone ever told you that they cared about you but you guys couldn’t be friends because of (fill in the blank)? Or have you ever been told by your girlfriend/boyfriend that you guys would never work out? It hurts, like a crushing kind of pain. Kind of makes you wonder if you’ll ever find someone who loves you unconditionally.

But when stuff like that happens, it reminds me of God’s words to Moses on Mount Sinai: “You must worship no other gods, but only the Lord, for he is a God who is passionate about his relationship with you.” –Exodus 34:14

That verse made me think. God, who built this earth, who made a man out of dust from the ground, who strung the stars up in the sky, wants to have a relationship with me.

There are things that go on, that make you think you’ll have to go through it alone, but you don’t. God is there, and he always will be. One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is Psalm 18. After the Lord delivers him from his enemies, David wrote words that everyone can relate to.

“I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” –Psalm 18:1-2

No matter how much this life throws at you, cling to the Lord. He wants that relationship with you. He’s so passionate about you. He’ll never leave you, forsake you, or abandon you. He’s the one who can love you unconditionally. All you have to do is let him in.