<p>How is prayer supposed to be used or supposed to work, from your particular religious viewpoint? </p>
<p>I have never really understood it. Nor felt okay asking those who pray. </p>
<p>I do understand that when tragedy strikes, there is a strong need to be able to ‘do something’ and maybe do anything at all that might help. I know during my darkest hours I’ve been prone to pray and it feels comforting to do so, and I’m not even religious! It also seems like a wonderful way to connect to others for support, and also enable people to do something for the person in pain. </p>
<p>But to those who really believe prayer works in a divine intervention kind of way (when they aren’t in the foxhole), what is your understanding of this, from your particular religious perspective? And what are the rules of prayer in your tradition? As a non-religious person I am often feeling befuddled and these are questions that repeatedly come to mind:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>If God was going to intercede, why didn’t God do so to prevent the tragedy in the first place? Does it make sense to pray after the fact? </p></li>
<li><p>Doesn’t God already know what we need, so how does prayer make a difference? </p></li>
<li><p>Is more prayer better than less prayer? Does God somehow listen more or is more likely to act if you get more prayers? That seems like I have it wrong, because it’s too much like one of those competitions where those that get the most votes win. Likewise, I find it hard to believe that God is inclined to help less those that lack lots of connections so they couldn’t get enough people praying in to help. </p></li>
<li><p>Also what is within the reasonable realm of things to pray for? Health, your child getting home safely, those seem reasonable. New car in the driveway? Not reasonable. Where does the line get drawn? How specific can you be? How self interested? What are you taught about the role of prayer? </p></li>
</ul>
<p>I do not mean to be disrespectful or to create a big debate, I am just genuinely curious how it is seen by others but I always feel afraid to ask.</p>
<p>thank you for starting this discussion. I’ve always been a church goer, but felt “selfish” praying for “extra” consideration. I’ve joined a bible study and each week we pick someone’s slip to prayer for…so I am doing it… </p>
<p>my dh is a surgeon and here in the bible belt patients will ask him how God could let them get sick. and sicker. even tho they prayed. he says we can’t know what God meant - perhaps one person’s illness is to get someone else to believe…</p>
<p>others’ answers are really going to be interesting.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>As a hindu, I believe in the cycle of karma. You say that God doesn’t intercede amidst tragedy, but those suffering are paying for their previous sins. That is what I believe. God doesn’t want you to suffer, but punishment is due when sin is committed without repentance.</p></li>
<li><p>Prayer brings you up to the level of God - when you can ask him things in prayer, you are stepping up to his level with respect. It not only shows faith, but respect as well.</p></li>
<li><p>That isn’t true. If prayer is sincere, it is heard.</p></li>
<li><p>Prayer is prayer. Of course, to simply seek material things doesn’t get you very far - you become self-involved, overly self-assured and terribly materialistic. It is reasonable to ask God in prayer for good things, things that aren’t selfish, but the most important thing people forget is to thank God for the blessings that he gives us.</p></li>
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<p>Just my two cents. Not looking for any hate-filled responses.</p>
<p>I believe that meditation/praying opens our heart and minds up to the " positive energy" that is present in all beings ( well most), and that energy can lead us to find solutions or strength that will get us through.</p>
<p>I also believe that the act of meditation, includes opening up access to parts of our own being that we have perhaps hidden from ourselves and it doesn’t matter if it helps us to think that it comes from a Divine being or the Flying Spaghetti Monster as long as we receive comfort and guidance.</p>
<p>Praying to * ask for material things?* is like sending a letter to Santa- but I admit I have asked for help finding things I have lost- and have received assistance- often to look in places I KNOW I ALREADY LOOKED! ;)</p>
<p>No hate Audrey…but #1 doesn’t fly with me. A 9 year old dying of leukemia, a teenager being killed in a tragic car crash, or a baby born with horrible birth defects all haven’t accumulated a lot of sin to be repenting for, and the God I believe in is not punishing them for their actions. We may not know what plan God has for our lives, but those of faith trust and believe that their eternal reward awaits them after their time on earth. Those left behind, of course, suffer the most when a loved one passes…and in that suffering there are lessons to be learned, and hopefully, eventually peace.</p>
<p>Am waiting to hear what other posters respond with, but I always tell people God always answers prayers, just not always with the answers we want.</p>
<p>I think of prayer as accessing God’s Grace. Sort of like putting a plug into a socket. How does it work exactly? How could anyone know? I am always amazed at how often organized religions personify God, giving Him a personality like a human parent figure. </p>
<p>I do not believe that our prayers are “answered” by God, nor do I imagine that his form of communication is identical to ours. It is all open ended to me. Unknowable at the moment. I do KNOW that God exists, however. Not out of faith, but from direct experience. How do I explain this to someone who has not experienced it? Very, very difficult. If you seek contact with a Higher Power, which I call God, and if you make that journey your life’s priority, you will find Him (pronoun used for ease of relaying my message).</p>
<p>How does prayer work? Again, no clue. But I know it does. Aren’t there scientific studies which back this up? I don’t feel that we drum up voodoo magic by getting God to do what we want Him to do. But I do think God is in all of us in the form of Grace, and that when we access that Grace we can affect things. I do not believe we can create specific outcomes, but that Grace is pure love. We can generate a positive flow of love. While the effect may be emotional relief for those who are suffering (instead of lives saved), prayer is still a powerful and important thing.</p>
<p>A timely question. It is almost the first anniversary of the death of my friend…55 years old, previously perfectly healthy, died of complications of H1N1. Elder in the church; father of three I can’t tell you how many people were praying fervently for his recovery. Probably a thousand, on at least four continents. I know, the answer we were given at church is that God’s will is always done and his plan is always perfect. Okay, so even if I can accept that, why were all of us praying?</p>
<p>All of your prayers helped your friend and his family throughout their difficult journey. You also helped yourself and each other. </p>
<p>Perhaps sometimes the single set of footprints in the sand are our own, and we are carrying our friend in our arms. I think this is the way God designed it to be.</p>
<p>Prayer “works” to the extent it results in the one praying accepting that many things in life that happen are not in one’s control.</p>
<p>That’s really it. I think that praying for good things to happen to me or for magical cures to occur or for divine intrervention for what I think is important is asking too much of God</p>
<p>Acceptance (of God’s will/of life as it happens/of whatever life throws at me) is, on the other hand, a gift that is readly given to me on a daily basis . . . as long as I ask for it</p>
<p>so that’s really the deal: I can have a shot at peace of mind, but I have to ask for it first</p>
<p>memphismom - Your husbands job has to be emotionally draining for him at times. This is a part of being a Dr. most of us can’t imagine.</p>
<p>I have a dear friend who had breast cancer in her mid 30’s with a 2yo son. She was very, very ill. She did recover. She will tell you with complete conviction that her road was paved so that she could share her faith with someone else who eventually lost their battle with breast cancer two years later. She was with her every step of the way and offered support, physically, mentally, and spiritually, that no one else could. She left this world in peace. </p>
<p>The point isn’t if I believe it to be the case. The point is she does, as did the woman she gave support to, as well as the woman’s family. It was an answer to prayer for them in the form of acceptance, order, and understanding. From the outside looking in both families were given a terribly unfair situation. They didn’t see that. Who am I to judge that their prayers were not answered?</p>
<p>shellz - this is my interpretation. I think it all depends on your definition of sin. For me, it is the absence of purity. And as humans we are never, nor will we ever be pure. Newborns are born humans, with all the frailties that accompany the human condition. </p>
<p>When those tragedies happen (and I know this sounds harsh), instead of asking why does this happen to so-and-so, who was as kind, loving and giving as they come, maybe we should be asking why not. Who among us is so perfect that we should be spared from life’s struggles and difficulties? </p>
<p>I feel like I live a pretty good life, but I’m not perfect. I see lots and lots of people around me who I feel are just mean individuals, perhaps evil, but I never consider that because I choose to live differently, that I will be spared horrible suffering of any kind. And if it happens, I pray that God will give me the courage to face it and strength to endure it.</p>
<p>I totally agree with that. If a heathen and a deeply spiritual person both step in front of a bus, both are likely to have the same fate. But if what is going to happen *will *happen, why do we need to pray about the outcome?</p>
<p>I’ve come to the conclusion that, while the length of our lives is very important to us, it’s of little importance to God. When you’re looking at eternity, what difference does it make if a person lives to be 55 or 75? I can accept that, but if God has decided that a mother is supposed to die while her kids are still little, why do we feel like praying can change anything?</p>
<p>There was one very famous study out of Columbia University, that purported to show that infertile women in South Korea who were prayed for got pregnant more easily than a control group of infertile women not prayed for. Alas, the study has been withdrawn, as one of the researchers is now in jail for fraud. There’s simply no reason to believe that the group of infertile women ever even existed.</p>
<p>I always thought it was hubris to believe that among all the things in the Universe that God is tracking that God would decide to intervene in my l’il ol’ life.</p>
<p>Believers, what is your view on praying for something like a victory in a football game? And what is your reaction to an athlete announcing after a football game that his team won because they prayed harder? As an atheist, I find it hard to understand why anyone would think God would take sides in football, or why a football game would devolve into a prayer contest where the team with the most players praying would win.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Cardinal Fang, I am probably not enough of a believer to answer your question, but I question its premise. As troubling as I find the institution of ostentatious prayer at football games, I have yet to see anyone claim to have won a game because his team prayed harder. And indeed I have enough respect for the community of believers, even believing football players, to doubt that many (or any) of them pray to win a game. Pray that their efforts glorify God? Sure. That they do their best, that they rise to challenges? Sure. Pray to accept God’s will and to appreciate the beauty of the game? Yes. But that our team win and their team lose? Not really.</p></li>
<li><p>I commend Mark Twain’s “Letter To The Earth” to everyone, since it addresses the themes of this thread in manner that remains entertaining over a century after it was written: [An</a> excerpt from Mark Twain’s “Letters from the Earth.” DO read [Archive] - The Hypertribe](<a href=“http://thehypertribe.net/forum/archive/index.php/t-1498.html]An”>http://thehypertribe.net/forum/archive/index.php/t-1498.html)</p></li>
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<p>And c’mon, if you’ve never heard an athlete interviewed after his victory saying, “I want to thank God,” or “I want to thank the Lord Jesus Christ” you must not watch much sports.</p>
<p>On edit: Here’s another Christian prayer for victory (this is just shooting fish in a barrel):</p>
<p>OK, I’ll bite. I am a United Methodist pastor - not that my word carries any more authority than any of the other posters here. I just want to be upfront with who I am and my particular view point. I teach many classes in prayer and spiritual discipline, so here is the nutshell version of what I usually say…</p>
<p>Prayer is a means of grace, which means that it is a way that God has designated to channel God’s grace (love + forgiveness) into our lives in a direct way. We (and I mean all humans) are always recipients of grace, but when we pray we can open ourselves up to receiving it in a more powerful, meaningful way. Prayer is for “our” benefit - connecting us to God, enabling us to “hear” more plainly God’s desires for us. There are many forms of prayer - each having the benefit of focusing our thoughts on a particular aspect of God (thanksgiving, confession, petition, submission, etc)</p>
<p>Does our prayer change the outcomes in life? Probably not - but it helps us face the inevitable outcomes of life. I don’t believe our prayers “change” God’s mind (although there are a couple examples of it in the Bible) but prayer can give us strength we never knew we had, compassion in places we’d least expect it, wisdom for confronting lifes challenges, etc.</p>
<p>Why do I pray? Because I feel more connected to God when I do and it strengthens me for my journey. </p>
<p>BTW, when my kids were little, I explained that we ask Mommy and Daddy for things, we ask God for help (help me be kinder, help be bear this burden, help me reach out to others, etc.).</p>
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