By: Josh Blackmer

Two men, Vizzini and Inigo, stand on top of the Cliffs of Insanity.  Vizzini cuts the rope that the man in black is using to climb. The man in black didn’t fall. Vizzini shouts, “He didn’t fall?! Inconceivable!” Inigo replies, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” We’ve all been there, not on the Cliffs of Insanity, but maybe using a word incorrectly or not understanding it completely—like literally, for example.

My family and I love to go to the symphony. We get a teacher's discount and prefer John Williams (Star Wars and Indiana Jones themes) to Mozart or Beethoven. But one of my favorite parts of the symphony is watching the musicians come on stage and do their warm-ups. One by one each musician takes their seat on stage and begins doing scales, tuning the instruments, and playing small parts of the larger pieces they will be playing later in the concert.

By Mike Riley

A Native American and his friend were in downtown New York City, walking near Times Square. It was during the noon lunch hour and the streets were filled with people. Cars were honking their horns, taxicabs were squealing around corners, sirens were wailing, and the sounds of the city were almost deafening. Suddenly, the Native American said, “I hear a cricket.” His friend said, “What? You must be crazy. You couldn’t possibly hear a cricket in all this noise!” “No, I’m sure of it,” the Native American said, “I heard a cricket.” “That’s crazy,” said the friend.

By, Mike Riley

In 2 Corinthians 10:12, Paul tells his opponents that one way to correctly measure spiritual growth is to discontinue using worldly yardsticks, and begin using God’s yardstick (2 Corinthians 10:13). By the world’s measure, Paul seemed a failure, but in God’s eyes he was a glorious conqueror (Romans 8:31-39). In this article, let us briefly look at four biblical standards by which we can accurately measure spiritual growth.

1) Spiritual Diet Meat vs. Milk (1 Corinthians 3:1-2). Are we studying and learning more about God’s Word, going broader and deeper than ever before, or are we satisfied with what we’ve known for years, or worse yet, not reading and studying at all? (2 Timothy 2:15).