The deceit of prayer
By darklady ~
Prayer is one of the most destructive lies of Christianity. Firstly, it promises much and delivers nothing. Matt 21 v 22 says ‘And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive’. Obviously this is a lie, the hours, the days spent in prayer, and not one supernatural intervention by god. How many times did I, did you, cry out to god, in desperation, in anguish, in belief. How many times was there an answer?
Image by alison scarpulla via FlickrSecondly, and perhaps most damaging of all, it traps a person into non action, into a pattern of passive waiting, of believing they are not able to control their lives, of waiting on someone/thing else to solve problems. To the extent that some people are unable to make any decisions without first ‘waiting’ on god. How many people are trapped in destructive marriages waiting for god to ‘heal’ their partners, to change their personalities, to ‘make’ things better. How many wait for years, praying for god to get them the ‘right’ job, and not taking control and going and doing whatever it takes? How many times have we read about children dying for lack of medical intervention - while parents pray and believe god instead?
We are the ones in control of our lives, the only ones that can change things.
So why have I recently found myself wishing (hoping. praying?) that ‘someone, something out there’ would wave a magic wand over my life? 99% of me knows better, but there is still that lonely 1% that ‘hopes’ instead of ‘does’.
Hope (prayer?) is not going to change anything, of course. Only I can change things under my control, and the things that aren’t under my control, well, I have no answer for those. I am not in control of who lives or dies, I am not in control of the decisions my children make, I am not in control of other peoples feelings or actions. What I am in control of is me and what I can do and what I can change. There is no one out there in heaven or hell ready to fight my battles, they are mine alone to control.
Prayer is one of the most destructive lies of Christianity. Firstly, it promises much and delivers nothing. Matt 21 v 22 says ‘And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive’. Obviously this is a lie, the hours, the days spent in prayer, and not one supernatural intervention by god. How many times did I, did you, cry out to god, in desperation, in anguish, in belief. How many times was there an answer?
Image by alison scarpulla via FlickrWe are the ones in control of our lives, the only ones that can change things.
So why have I recently found myself wishing (hoping. praying?) that ‘someone, something out there’ would wave a magic wand over my life? 99% of me knows better, but there is still that lonely 1% that ‘hopes’ instead of ‘does’.
Hope (prayer?) is not going to change anything, of course. Only I can change things under my control, and the things that aren’t under my control, well, I have no answer for those. I am not in control of who lives or dies, I am not in control of the decisions my children make, I am not in control of other peoples feelings or actions. What I am in control of is me and what I can do and what I can change. There is no one out there in heaven or hell ready to fight my battles, they are mine alone to control.
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