The capability of prayer are often misinterpreted as proof of the non-existence of God. In a common argument, a Christian may be asked to pray for something which cannot possibly occur through natural means, or which is so unlikely that the possibility of it occurring without supernatural intervention may be discounted - asking God to ensure that a fair coin lands on heads forty times in succession, for example, which has a statistical probability of approximately one in a trillion. When the prayer has no apparent effect - the coin lands on heads after a few flips - the argument is made that God as described in the bible cannot exist, as this God claims to be able and willing to grant prayer requests. | The capability of prayer are often misinterpreted as proof of the non-existence of God. In a common argument, a Christian may be asked to pray for something which cannot possibly occur through natural means, or which is so unlikely that the possibility of it occurring without supernatural intervention may be discounted - asking God to ensure that a fair coin lands on heads forty times in succession, for example, which has a statistical probability of approximately one in a trillion. When the prayer has no apparent effect - the coin lands on heads after a few flips - the argument is made that God as described in the bible cannot exist, as this God claims to be able and willing to grant prayer requests. |