I'm not surprised by the results of this study. If we could push God's buttons by prayer, then none of us would ever have bad things happen to us and our loved ones would never die.
Bad things would not happen to good people, or if they did, they would be miraculously fixed by pious prayer.
Instead, we see the wicked prospering and good people dying young, just as much as we see the opposite.
Prayer may be beneficial to the person praying, but I don't think there's any evidence that it affects God's behavior in the least.
Did the extensive prayer thread here for TexasCowboy prolong his life? It surely doesn't look like it did. And there's no doubt he was a fine man and the prayers were numerous and sincere.
My feeling is that God interferes almost never. In the overall scheme of things, we're all insignificant and we're all going to die. It matters not at all whether we die early or late in life. The only thing that matters is how we live that life while we have it.
I seem to recall the Bible saying in essence- God will grant anything you ask- so long as you ask for the right thing. As the parent of two daughters age ten and twelve- I could well tell them the same thing.
If you hash it out, it can kinda even makes sense. Then again not.
God always answers prayers, it's just that sometimes he answers, 'No.'. We aren't insignificant to God. Maybe our time on Earth is insignificant in the whole scheme of things and that's why it's easy for God to say, 'No.' in certain cases.
You are right that we should live the life we have. We should also treasure every moment with those we love because they might be gone tomorrow.
And yet, I'd like to credit God because I survived my cancer. It seems only proper since I prayed and begged him for a healing. On the other hand, I have seen people far better than I am, not be healed, who had legions of people pray for their recovery.
I don't know if what you wrote is actually true. I can't prove it either way. If God doesn't really intervene and heal people, then he just might let nature take it's course. That thought doesn't bring me much comfort.
sw