I was waiting for my knife to be sharpened at a gun shop. I couldn’t help eavesdropping on a conversation between the shop clerk and a customer who was enquiring on how to apply for a gun license. In South Africa we have some of the most intimidating gun control laws in the free world. The process can take over a year. One of the requisite steps is that you must provide a substantiated motivation as to why you want the firearm. The gun shop clerk was coaching the customer on how to craft his motivation using the exact wording that would improve his chances of a positive outcome.

As I was listening to all of this it occurred to me that people are willing to put a lot of effort and thought into making requests that are important to them. But often when people want something from God, they put no thought into how to frame their petitions. They assume God will accept any request, from anyone, in any format.

Well, they would be wrong.

God has very specific ways in which he wants us to communicate with him and make requests. And Jesus coached his disciples on this very topic. In Matthew 6 Jesus provides a template for prayer that has become the most famous and repeated prayer of all time, known as the Disciples’ prayer, the Lord’s prayer, or simply as the “Our Father.” Jesus taught how to pray on two different occasions, in Matthew 6:5-13 and Luke 11:1. And although the two prayers are as similar as fraternal twins, they are not identical twins. The dissimilarities prove that Christ never intended this as a formula or rote prayer. It was a model or pattern for prayer. Of course, it is not wrong to pray it word-for-word, but that was not the intended purpose of the prayer.

Let’s examine some of the wrong ways to pray. Six insights from wrong ways to pray:

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Our leaders need prayer. Whether we agree with them or not, all leaders are in need of prayer, and the Bible commands us to pray for them: "I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity" (I Timothy 2:1-2). Sometimes, however, it's difficult to know what to pray for. We don't often know the details of our leaders' lives like we know the details of our friends' and family members' lives. Below is a list of five different things that you can be praying for our leaders to have. They are things that all leaders -- and really all people -- should strive after and pray for.

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The U.S. -- and the world -- has been wrestling with issues of racial equality for centuries. In America in recent times, the issues of racism and equality have been particularly at the forefront of our national discourse, with many Christian leaders speaking out against racism and for reconciliation. Ultimately, many Christian leaders have acknowledged that there is much injustice to face and much work to be done, but that the Gospel is essential to true and lasting reconciliation. Here are 10 quotes from Christian leaders on the issues of racism, equality, and what the Church can do to work for justice and unity.

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The Great Commission is central to the Church Age. It is the last thing Jesus talked to his followers about before ascending back to heaven. Through the ages, believers have taken Jesus' charge to preach the Word to the ends of the earth very seriously. Whether they were missionaries at home or abroad, these particular 10 Christians are inspiring examples of people who knew what was most important in this life. They had experienced the forgiveness and love of Christ and were compelled to share this Good News with others. Hopefully their words will inspire you, whether you are called to be a missionary in your hometown or called to go to the far reaches of the globe.

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Since its opening in November 2017, the high-tech museum with thousands of artifacts and displays has since welcomed thousands to its doors. Founders of the museum say displays and exhibits are sparking more conversations about the Bible and Jesus.

Here are 10 things you need to know about the Museum of the Bible.

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With Earth Day approaching (April 22), it's a perfect time to consider God's plan for how humans are to care for the earth. From the creation of the world until today, the Bible gives us guidance on what God has to say about our duty to act as stewards of the earth and everything God created to inhabit it. Although God's good vision for the care of the earth has been marred by humans in many ways, hopefully looking back to Scripture will reestablish a right view of the role we as humans and as Christ-followers play in caring for God's amazing Creation.

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Editor’s note: This is the tenth article in a monthly series on what Christians should know about bioethics. To read the other articles in the series, visit ERLC.com.

It's important for Christians to be informed on issues of bioethics. Knowing about abortifacients is part of that. You may not even know what that word means, and that's what this article is for. It will help you to understand what abortifacients are and the concerns many Christians have about them. Read on to find out what you need to know.

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It’s one of the oft-talked about denominations and sometimes draws the most controversy, but Pentecostalism has a long history in Christianity.

While the church has spawned a variety of other belief groups, Pentecostalism is considered a renewal movement in the Christian church.

Here are 10 things to know about the Pentecostal church.

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America has now had 46 presidents in its history. Most of these men have been at least nominally Christian, and none have declared themselves atheists. Each President's Day, many Americans think back to the leaders we have had throughout the few centuries since the country's founding. A few presidents particularly stand out for their Christian faith and how they relied on God in times of personal and national crisis. It may be inspiring to read how these men knew that while they themselves had a great deal of power, they too knew who the ultimate authority was and knew they could only succeed in their responsibilities through His guidance.

Here are eight presidents who are particularly noteworthy examples of men of character and faith.

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You can always tell that Christmas is coming, even before it’s close. Radio stations start playing Christmas carols before we’ve even eaten all the Halloween candy, and commercials beckon us to start our shopping before we’ve even bought our Thanksgiving turkeys. Our nativity scenes are set up for weeks, and our advent calendars keep us counting down to the day baby Jesus entered our world. Christmas isn’t celebrated on just one day-- it gets a whole, long season.

Easter on the other hand? Usually, Christians dress up for one fancy Sunday service and forget about it all days later.

“Why do we spend an entire season of the year thinking about and celebrating Christmas, but just a weekend thinking about and celebrating the impact of the resurrection,” Trevin Wax asks.

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