Is there value in prayer? Can prayer heal us or help when we're feeling down? Does God really hear us and answer when we pray? Is there a way to scientifically prove that prayer works or is it just a colossal waste of time? These are the questions that fuel ongoing debates between the religious and scientific communities. Believers and non-believers grapple with these questions every day.
As a committed Christian I must confess that my view of the value and effectiveness of prayer has evolved over time. As a child my prayers were mostly memorized rituals. I prayed before meals and before I went to bed simply as a matter of course. As a young adult I tended to follow the "chicken soup" approach to prayer, as in, "I don't know if it really works, but it's like chicken soup. It couldn't hurt!" But as I've grown in my faith I have come to recognize that prayer can be effective both in helping me to cope with the stresses and strains of everyday life and in strengthening my relationship with God.
Scientific studies attempting to measure the effectiveness of prayer have been mixed at best. Skeptics point to the inconclusive results of many of these studies as evidence that prayer is useless, while some believers maintain that it is impossible to put God to a scientific test. Other researchers have found that there are observable health effects from prayer such as lowered heart rates and blood pressure, while critics will argue that similar results may be achieved through methods such as meditation, biofeedback, yoga or massage.
Non-believers might be surprised to learn that I don't disagree with them on this point. I believe in prayer and practice it daily, but I have also tried biofeedback, meditation and generally schedule a one hour, full body massage at least once a week. From a purely physical standpoint prayer does seem to produce results that are similar to each of these methods. When I pray I favor a quiet, private place. I relax and focus on my breathing and I try to clear my mind of outside distractions. The result is that I do begin to feel calmer and less agitated. I can't help but think that my stress levels are lower as a result. Do I experience similar results from meditation and biofeedback? Certainly I do, but I don't believe that makes the need for prayer any less valid.
I think the piece that is missing when researchers attempt to study the effects of prayer scientifically is that believers in prayer engage in the practice for more than just the superficial, physical benefits. The real power of prayer is that it allows the believer to develop a deeper relationship with God. It is the relationship that brings about the healing or the granting of the petitioner's request, not the act of prayer itself. Prayer isn't some "cosmic lottery" where answers or benefits are dealt out randomly. And God isn't Santa Claus, fulfilling requests on the basis of some super-sized naughty vs. nice list. God desires an intimacy with us similar to that which exists between parents and children, or among siblings or close friends. We are important to Him as individuals and He wants to be important to us. Prayer is one of the vehicles for achieving that intimacy.
EveryStudent.com gives a wonderful illustration of this in the article, "Does God Answer Our Prayers?" The article gives the example of Mike, just a random guy asking the president of Princeton University (whom Mike does not know personally) to co-sign his car loan. No one would be surprised if Mike's request was either turned down flat or just ignored completely. Prayer requests are very similar. If we don't know God very well; if we never talk to Him, never visit Him, only call on Him when we need to be bailed out of jam, and don't do much as far as helping the other members of His family, why are we surprised, disappointed or even angry when our requests seem to be falling on deaf ears?
Let's put it another way. If I'm feeling lonely, I could go out into the street and talk to strangers passing by or I could randomly dial numbers from the telephone directory and speak to anyone who picks up. But would these conversations really ease my loneliness? They might; but it's kind of a long shot. On the other hand, if I call a friend and invite her to lunch or out for a drive or simply spend some time talking and catching up, I'll probably have a much better chance of getting out of my lonely frame of mind. The ideal prayer relationship with God is like having a friend that you can truly call on anywhere, anytime. I don't have to worry that my cell phone isn't charged or that I don't have any minutes. I don't have to worry about waking Him up even if it is 2:30 in the morning. I don't have to worry that He is going to be busy or annoyed even if I call to share the same problem fifteen days in a row. And unlike visits to a therapist, I don't need an appointment; I don't have to worry about deductibles or co-payments and I'm not going to be unceremoniously kicked out of God's office after just forty-five minutes.
Daily prayer is more that just a laundry list of "Lord, I want" or "Lord, I need." It's an investment in a relationship with the Creator where the dividends are tremendous.
References:
Carey, Benedict. "Long Awaited Medical Study Questions the Power of Prayer," New York Times, March 31, 2006.
"Does God Answer Our Prayers?" http://www.everystudent.com/wires/prayers.html