Prayer and meditation have been proven in multiple settings to have a profound influence on peoples health and especially on hospital patients. People who pray and meditate daily have shown marked decreases in stress hormone levels. They have also been shown to age better, live longer, and handle adversity far better. Basically, people that believe in God and pray consistently are happier and have a better quality of life. Why is this?

People that pray and meditate feel a sense of belonging. They are not alone to face the perils of this world. All major religions believe in a God and that through this prayer and meditation they can communicate with God. They can ask for forgiveness and ask for help. It has long been shown by psychologists and psychiatrists that it is essential to have a sense of belonging for proper mental health. People that are loners by nature tend to die early, not look and feel as healthy, and do not handle adversity and stress well. They tend to hold it in and then blow up on those that are actually trying to help them.

Prayer and meditation let one detoxify their body and mind of toxic thoughts. Just like toxins we are familiar with, toxic thoughts can bring on depression, dark thoughts, hatred, mental illness and even suicide. Toxic thoughts and being alone are very negative for good mental health. By praying and meditating we are distressing our bodies and learning to put ourselves and our minds in a relaxed state. The best thing is that prayer and mediation are free. You can do it anywhere at anytime, in an elevator, in a quiet room, before going to sleep at night, the possibilities are endless. Prayer will help clean your mind of worry and stressful thoughts and replace them with thoughts of hope and serenity. Prayer before bedtime has been proven to reduce or entirely eliminate the need for sleep pills altogether in some cases.

Prayer should not be thought of as a chore. It can be as simple as the infamous Lords Prayer:

Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

Basically in the Lords Prayer one is asking for forgiveness, for deliverance, guidance and that Gods will be done. In Matthew 7:11 it says:

So if you, weak mortals that you are, are capable of making good gifts to your children, do not you think your spiritual Father will give even better gifts to those who ask him?

We need to realize that regardless of our religion, God is infinitesimally smarter beyond any human comprehension and knows what is best for each and every one of us. God may not always seem to answer our prayers in the way we would like, but that does not mean he does not hear us. God gave us the gift of prayer so that not only could we talk to him, but so we could heal our bodies and better cope with the stresses of daily life. Through our prayer and meditation we can learn patience, forgiveness, hope, love and true happiness. This is why some biblical scholars say prayer is Gods greatest gift to mankind.