Why does God answer some prayers and not others?

[locationforna]

Just this really.

If you are a Christian, please can you tell me why God answers some peoples prayers and not others?

For example, one woman could be praying her baby survives. Baby dies. Another woman with the exact same situation of an unwell baby - Baby lives. Both prayed, they prayed a lot

Why is it you say 'God is good' and 'God does answer, this is a miracle' and 'we are praying for you'

Do you really think that if the first person prayed hard enough, her baby would've survived? Or if not, and it's just chance, why pray?

I believe in God by the way. I have been studying for a while and seem to lean towards Judaism but notice a lot of 'God is good, he answered my prayers. It's a miracle'

Why some prayers and not others? Why do people think He's helped you get a job offer you really wanted but not answered a woman across the road's prayer not to be raped?

There is suffering throughout the Bible. Jesus himself suffered according to the Bible. That's not what I mean - I mean specially, why some prayers can be answered and not others that are equally in need?

If that's the case do we just assume He's bad?

Because there is no god.

We don't even know if such a being existed to begin with, for all intend, it could just be a story cooked up eons ago to control the direction of humanity

The OP did ask for the atheists view on this so this is the perfect place to ask.

As for th billions of people that believe, did these also large numbers also believe at one point with the church's dogma that the earth was the centre of the universe, ? Just because millions believe, does not equal , they are correct

I think you know perfectly well what the answer to your question is. God does not exist. Religious people are deluded. Nobody’s prayers are answered. Ever. Because there is nothing and nobody listening to them. Baby one would have died anyway. Baby two would have lived anyway. Praying did nothing because it can’t do anything.

Have I been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease because I no longer believe? Am I being punished or tested? The slow decline in my physical ability to do most things witnessed by me, my parents, my husband who will have to help me as I deteriorate and our DC who will also witness my loss of dignity. No amount of prayer will cure me. What do you suggest?

Basically however humans were created, we need to find out own human philosophy, and not shackle our minds to false beliefs of a supreme deities.

*our

I see prayer as a conversation with God, and I know he suffers alongside us. I wouldn't expect him to find me a parking place and if my child was in danger, he knows what that is like.
Some things children ask for aren't things they should have - and God also gave us free will (we aren't robots, we are his children), so that includes the free will to hurt others, sadly.
I am also a scientist, and I tend to think of God as "why" the world exists - definitely not "how", and quite a lot of suffering is because of how the world, and life, came to be (e.g. natural disasters, evolution) but we do not help ourselves. We do not share fairly, we build on flood plains, we don't give people enough to live in healthy housing etc etc.
This is all the theory though and I get angry with God too.

Because God is the ultimate abusive parent.

If I, as a reasonable adult, had let my toddlers do the things they wanted, allowing absolute free will, while in actuality retaining absolute power, the things like running into roads, gouging their sibling's eyes, force feeding people, general wanton violence, because I wanted them to learn to do the right thing just because I said so, I would be viewed as a shockingly poor, neglectful parent.

I am torn between whether God exists of not. I am confident that there is no loving, caring God though. Perhaps a creator God; perhaps a God who hates humanity; perhaps a Pantheistic nonGod;perhaps nothing. There is no loving God though, not who allows their children to do such awful things and allows such attrocities in the world.

Nrtft. I don't believe but was brought up Christian and I have an interest in all religions.

I think some Christians would say that God answers all prayers to what his will is for the invidual and God will only give as much as one can cope with.

Note I say some Christians as it depends on what type of Christian you ask. Some are more evangelical than others.

@locationforna I was brought up in a churchgoing Anglican family, though with one atheist parent, and then married a Jewish man and did quite a lot of classes on Judaism.

I found experiencing Judaism very liberating because it's not focused on the drama of conversion, and endless guilt, confession, reconversion, rededication, rebirth. Chrustianity says you must FEEL what you do or it's useless, you sinner; Judaism says a mitzvah is worth doing whatever you feel about it, there's nobody else, get on with it!

As a religious practice I loved letting go of the idea of eternal life (something I didn't want even as a child and less so now) and much more on the here and now. I loved the practicality of it. Judaism I could smell, taste, hold and touch. I sometimes still bless the Friday night lights because I have such good memories of that time and there's a physical pleasure in saying the blessing.

There is no god.

See also Santa Claus and the tooth fairy.

A bloke who says worship me and do as I say or I'll have you burning in hell forever? No thanks, it sounds abusive to me.

But if God was just a horrible entity, what would be the point?
And yes you're right the OP did ask for atheists views. I misread.

There’s a book by a Christian author called Pete Greig ‘God on mute’ that does a really good job exploring this question. I’m a Christian and I do struggle with the whole issue as well, but this really helped me.

@locationforna
Einstein didn't believe in any sort of god other than his tendency to want the universe to make sense. Even if he did, it wouldn't stop there being a general association between low IQ and religious belief.

Perhaps he does answer but the answer is sometimes no

The easy and simple answer, and with all due respect, is humans wrote and edited all the religious texts, ego no written material from God. We may as well believe Harry potter stories are real as believe in god as an example.

Simple answer? Because he doesn't. Medicine, doctors, luck and a million other factors decide the outcome , not prayer.

The mother of the surviving baby will take it as an answer to her prayers. That's confirmation bias.

The mother of the baby who died , will either blame herself, be angry at God or blame God , or give herself the cold comfort of "God's will", "God works in mysterious ways".

In reality, despite being a believer , I think it's rather self important to think that with everything going on in the world, you or your child are God's priority at any given moment, so much so that he will answer YOUR prayers but not other's.

Like I said I do believe, but I subscribe to the free will school of thought. Haven't yet found a religion that fully fits with my beliefs. Not particularly looking for one either.

@Ifailed

In answer to your question, the OP said they lean towards Judaism, so it is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

There is no God - good things happen and bad things happen but it’s nothing to do with any God

He's not in control, someone else is

Probably the Masons, they're a strange bunch of buggers.

Are you sure?

I don’t think I agree with you.

Do you think, for example, mindfulness meditations are irrational?