It was a very strange but enlightening experience. My wife (who is a christian) has been having trouble sleeping the last few nights. She's been very frustrated about it, and I've been annoyed at the whole situation because there's nothing I can really do about it. I don't have any control over her dreams, or over when she wakes up or if she can get back to sleep. I'm very "useless" in this department!

So in my frustration of feeling useless, I remembered that as a Christian, I used to pray for her to be able to sleep well. I actually felt like there was something I could do to have some control over a situation that I couldn't actually have control over through natural means. So I decided that I would pray for my wife. I said "God, if you are real, if you are listening, and if you care, could you please help [wife's name] to have a good sleep tonight, without any nightmares and with waking up at a good time".

It felt so strange to talk to God in this way, but I didn't feel like I was being dishonest. I was doing the best prayer I could muster without lying to myself and my wife about what I believed.

The biggest takeway though: Part of the reason Christianity (and other supernatural beliefs) are so attractive to people, is that it promises us some level of control over parts of life that we actually can't control. Instead of feeling useless, we feel powerful. Instead of being overwhelmed by situations we can't do anything about, we can feel like God is in control and that he listens to our petitions.

Having to face cold, hard reality is really shocking in these circumstances. I feel like I've lost a valuable tool in problem solving, even if it was just an imaginary one. How do you deal with situations that you can't directly control now that you can't appeal to a supernatural being to help you out?