On prayer

My cousin's husband has been fighting off some form of cancer, I'm pretty sure it's a leukemia because he's had a couple of bone marrow transplants (my inability to keep track of people's specific cancers is another topic altogether -- generally I figure I am not an oncologist so my staying up on the details means nothing so why bother sweating that). My cousin has done a remarkable job keeping everyone up to date with what's going on with him via CaringBridge and has even kept us up daily on uneventful days ("today he took a nap and then had delicious fried chicken for dinner.") Undoubtedly she has used the process of daily journaling on CaringBridge as part of her discipline to stay positive and forward-looking.

Even more important than the journaling, unquestionably, has been their Christian faith. It is clear that they use the concept of "God's plan" for them to say centered and not be overwhelmed by the very real challenges that face them. I find it hard to imagine a reason to criticize this.

But I hesitate to offer prayers, which are continually solicited by CaringBridge, as someone who doesn't share that specific faith. Similarly, when people are offering sympathy on Facebook etc. on the frequent occasion of the passing of someone's parent, there's often a tacit pressure to offer prayers. Indeed, "I will hold you in my thoughts and prayers" seems like the best and most appropriate thing to say. But I don't really pray so it just doesn't feel right. It feels in some sense like a debasing of the term prayer.

Or is it? Is it necessary to believe in a specific deity or belong to a specific faith community to pray? Is the simple fact of directing energy and consciousness towards someone else's situation sufficient? Maybe what I don't want to do is intimate to others that I am part of their community so as not to offend them. Or am I in fact misleading myself?