How can a Christian fight spiritual battles in a world of trials and distractions? In this article, Jesse Randolph unpacks biblical meditation and why this spiritual discipline is the key to a vibrant Christian life.

Many lament, “I see the way false teachers assault the church and the way they undermine the truth. Should I be praying for them, or against them? If I feel righteous anger, how should that be applied in my prayer life? How should I be praying for false teachers? Should I pray for them at all?” In this article, Costi Hinn outlines several truths to help navigate this topic.

When the trials of life unexpectedly come knocking at our door, the last thing we may be thinking about is joy. Yet, the Bible calls us to have joy in life’s most turbulent moments (Jm. 1:2-3). How is this possible? Can a Christian really smile, pray, rejoice, and serve even as the weight of the world presses in?

There are many reasons why Christians often struggle to pray. Perhaps it is because prayer is hard work, or we fail to believe what the Bible says about prayer. It could be the result of a host of other reasons: biblical illiteracy, busyness, a lack of discipline, a lust for ease, worldliness, carnality, and the list goes on. Although there are many reasons why we find it challenging to pray, we must understand that prayerlessness for the Christian is an oxymoron. The fact of the matter is that Christians pray.

Have you ever heard that prayer is a two-way conversation? Perhaps you’ve poured out your heart to God in prayer, only to feel like God is ignoring you or that you are doing prayer wrong because you don’t hear anything back? I have great news for you! You’ve been taught wrong, but there is nothing wrong with you.

Growing up most parents tell their kids that God hears every prayer. When it comes to prayers, you seemingly just “throw” one out there and the “Big Guy upstairs” will put it on the list. Like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny, the one-liner that God hears every prayer is a lie found nowhere in the Bible. In fact, there are over a dozen examples of people and prayers that God completely ignores.

When the trials of life unexpectedly come knocking at your door, the last thing you may be thinking about is joy. Yet, the Bible repeatedly calls us to have joy in life’s most turbulent times (James 1:2-3). How in the world is this possible? Is it realistic that a Christian can still smile, pray, rejoice, and serve when the weight of the world is squeezing the last drops of joy from their heart? 

Have you ever prayed for something that didn’t happen? Perhaps you poured out your soul before God, begging him to come through, and your prayers went unanswered? That is not uncommon for Christians to experience.

How should a Christian respond when an “enemy” falls? Like any human being, a Christian is not immune to the temptations of gloating, celebrating, or even berating with an “I told you so” or two. Certainly we all will experience a heavenly moment when the wicked who have wronged us face a righteous judge (we will face Him too), but it is also possible that those who’ve wounded us will face consequences here on earth.

Have you ever wanted to become a prayer warrior? Do you want to get beyond the basic (not unimportant) mentality that prayer is asking God to “touch everyone, heal everyone, help everyone, and bless everyone?” What if you began to pray about God’s will even more than your will?

It was the great Puritan John Owen who said, “A minister may fill his pews, his communion roll, the mouths of the public, but what that minister is on his knees in secret before God Almighty, that he is and no more.” What John Owen had right almost 400 years ago still rings true today. Christian leadership is a public service that begins with private worship.