The Power of Prayer

The power of prayer is a powerful tool, but what is it? How many deeply devoted people have prayed to win the lottery? How many have won? How many parents have prayed to the deity of their choice everyday by a child’s bedside for a full recovery only to have to bury their child. A religious person may say your not supposed to pray for money and that it was just that child’s time to leave this earthly prison. Well since I’m not a religious man I have looked elsewhere for answers.
I will say that I do believe in the power of prayer. I don’t believe that “God” is the one answering. Many of the things that we pray for are just stupid if God exists as in the Abrahamic (Christian, Jewish, Muslim) religions. You should not be praying to win the lottery, have your sports team win, for good weather for your vacation etc… “God” does not answer those prayers.

Now the way I see it many of the things that people contribute to praying is just dumb luck or coincidence. If its not then God has a sick sense of humor or judgement. The reason I say this is, take a look a some natural disasters. You can have a tornado level an entire block of houses but leave one house completely undamaged. Now everyone on that block is religious and goes to church and follows the bible to the best of their ability. What makes that one family better to where God chose to spare their house. I believe that prayer has no power to change tangible things. If the Pope lost a limb no amount of praying would bring that limb back. For that matter if anyone lost a limb no amount of praying would bring it back. Bringing back a limb is a tangible thing. The only thing praying seems to effect are things that also can be proven without prayer. Such as curing the sick, winning the lottery, getting a new better paying job. You cannot prove that prayer affected any of those senairos. Just as I cannot prove that prayer did not affect them. There are many medical “miracles” out there that have attributed to prayer but I say no, the majority of these miracles are performed by well trained doctors. The handful that are unexplained, that’s what I’m getting to.

It has already been proven that prayer has effect on the mind. It has also been proven that active members of any religion tend to be on the healthier side. I say this is the power of the mind. The same way monk can raise their body temp or slow their heartbeat to a near stop or a 90lb mother can lift a car off her child. This has to do with a focal point

http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2011/07/tibetan-monks-can-raise-the-temperature-of-their-skin-through-meditation/

http://www.occultcenter.com/2008/02/mother_lifts_car_to_save_child/

If you are sick let’s say with cancer you stand a better chance of survival if you have a spiritual family. This is because knowing or believing that you have a God by your side helping you through this trying time provides you with a focal point for healing. Knowing that you have others besides your blood family praying for your recovery provides you with not only a focal point but additional reasons to want to get better. These focal points allow the body to perform wonderful and miraculous things. This power is coming from within you but through your belief. This is why prayer works on things like healing, but not on things like regrowing a severed body part or fixing a deformed limb.

Some people say those who believe in God and miracles are delusional. I don’t believe that. I say they are misinformed.  I know God exist but I don’t believe that he exists the way the Bible says. I know that miracles do happen, but not how and why  most people  think or believe they do. The power of prayer is no different. It works, but not for the reasons people say it does.