If god has a plan, surely then he would know the outcome of events well in advance.
Surely it would be interfering with God’s plan for us to ask for something.
If we were meant to get it, he would have given it to us. No point in asking.

God tells us in Malachi 3:6 that he is unchanging, so asking him to change his plan would be futile.
If our paths are set out before us according to god’s plan and that plan cannot be changed by god, then praying to him is pointless.

If there is no active God watching over us at all times, is there a need for prayer?
There are two important aspects of prayer to take cognisance of:

1. Prayer vs Wish
   what is the difference between a prayer and a wish, i.e. “Lord, please let it rain”, and “I wish it would rain”?
   Both can be uttered out loud or said in mind only and both are directed at some unseen, unknown force with the hope of a favourable outcome.

2. To answer or not to answer
   Many people claim their prayers were answered, but it could also be argued that many others would claim that their prayers were ignored.
   As for those who claimed their prayers had been answered, perhaps what they had wished for may have come their way whether they prayed for it or not.
   It would be impossible to know for sure.
   Another aspect to this argument would be that the great many people who don’t pray, for whatever reason, sometimes get what they want or need without asking for it.

Do prayers work?
Prayer, as with all aspects of Christianity, is designed that God always comes out looking like the hero; he can’t ever be wrong.

According to Christians, prayers are answered in one of three ways: ‘yes’, ‘no’ and ‘not now’.
I find these responses way too convenient. ‘Not now’ to me seems less of an answer in itself but more of an explanation for a ‘no’.
A ‘not now’ answer means ‘no’ for now – so ‘no’. Which leaves us realistically with either a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer.

This means that if you pray for something and you receive it – hallelujah, God is wonderful and granted the prayer.
If you pray for something and don’t receive it – God is wonderful; he has a plan and works in mysterious ways.
Either way God wins; He can do no wrong, even though the ‘yesses’ and the ‘nos’ happen at the same rate as chance – 50% Don’t believe me? Try this...

Choose an object from your house, any object – an ornament for example.
Now pray to that ornament every day for various things, needs and wants you have, the kinds of things you would normally have prayed to God for.
Would you be surprised to realise that the ornament grants the prayers at about the same rate God does? – 50%.

Sometimes the ornament says ‘yes’ – hallelujah, the ornament is wonderful and granted the prayer, and sometimes the ornament says ‘no’ – the ornament is wonderful, it has a plan and works in mysterious ways.
So, if God and the ornament both grant or deny prayers at the same rate, the rate of chance, what makes God any more effective than the ornament?
Or any more relevant?

Now, consider this.
How many times have you prayed for something and received it compared to how many times you have just received things without asking for them?
And conversely, how many times have you not received things you have prayed for compared to how many times you didn’t get what you wanted without asking for them? All of the above tend to happen at the rate of chance. It makes prayer redundant.

Prayers come with guarantees
There are several scriptures in the Bible where Jesus guarantees results in prayer.

• Mark 11:24 - Whatever you ask for, just believe you have received it, and it will be yours
• John 14:14 - Ask anything in my name and I will do it
• John 16:23 - Ask the Father anything in my name and He will give it to you.
• Matthew 18:19 - If two or more people agree on a request God will grant it
• Matthew 7:8 - For eveyone who asks shall receive
• etc.

Clearly, this is not true!
None of these verses specify any Terms and Conditions. All they say is simply ask in prayer and you will receive.

Even as a 'believing', 'active in the church', 'amateur apologist' I recognised that God (or Jesus) answered prayers in one of the three ways already mentioned.
No-one I ever met, including pastors, priests or clergy have had every prayer answered simply by asking in prayer.

Surely Jesus should have known better than to make such broad, unsubstantiated and untrue statements.

Does prayer work?
The Harvard Prayer Study

In 2006 a study was made with the backing of the Templeton Foundation on the efficacy of intercessory prayer on 1802 cardiac bypass patients in six hospitals across the United States.

In the study the patients, who underwent coronary artery bypass grafts, were divided into 3 groups:

• Group 1 consisting of 604 patients, received intercessory prayer after being told they may or may not be prayed for.
• Group 2 consisting of 597 patients, did not receive intercessory prayer after being told they may or may not be prayed for.
• Group 3 consisting of 601 patients received intercessory prayer after being told they would be prayed for.

The intercessory prayer continued for fourteen days, commencing the day before the surgery.
The primary outcome was for the presence of any complications within 30 days of the surgery.
The secondary outcome was for any major complications or even death.

In group 1 (those receiving prayer while being uncertain about receiving it), complications occurred in 52% (315/604).
In group 2 (those not receiving prayer while being uncertain about receiving it), complications occurred in 51% (304/597).
In group 3 (those receiving prayer while being certain about receiving it), complications occurred in 59% (352/601).

Major events and mortality were about evenly spread across the groups.

In conclusion, intercessory prayer had no impact on the outcome of the study across the groups; on the contrary, those who knew they were being prayed for faired the worst.

It was humorously pointed out that prayer actually makes things worse...