I dunno... Maybe Guest Dan has done us all a favor, although I wonder what his motives are. I believe(whoops, think) that if you start a thread, you should participate on some level. This thread might have been a little more focused if he had clarified his choice of words like "scared." But then, maybe we all owe him one. For a newer member like me, it's helpful to know who would be offended by someone telling them that they are praying for them. The purpose of prayer is not to offend folks. For people who find prayer a natural part of their daily life, it's good to know who is of a kindred Spirit, just like it's good to know who likes bluegrass, or blues. Maybe he should have just posted a questionaire for all of us to check off:

Don't Pray for me __
Don't tell me you're praying for me __
It's allright for you to pray for me if you know me __
I'd appreciate your prayers for me __
I'll pray for you if you're suffering __
Clap-trap __ :-)

I don't come here for spiritual conversations and at first I wasn't even going to post to this thread. But, it seemed that there should be a full range of conversation so that we might all understand each other better, whether we agree with each other or not. If agreement was a requirement of Mudcat, it would have died long ago.

Prayer is first of all, private. The only reason I can think of for telling someone that you're praying for them is because many people appreciate knowing it. Not all of them are even believers. They understand that you are praying for them because you love them. Many people ask to be prayed for. If they don't, and you don't know them, it's probably better to get to know them before the subject of prayer comes up. I don't think that there's anything wrong with expressing your beliefs, whether it is that God exists, or that you don't think He does. If you find that something that you are saying is offensive, it's best to leave that part of your conversations alone, whether you are a believer or an un-believer. People who ridicule your faith aren't high on my list of people I want to be around, any more than people who get "preachy" are high on the list of people non-believers want to be around.

You can wish people well, and care deeply about them without believing in God. You can live an exemplary moral live without believing in God. Those of us who do believe in God sometimes are over-zealous because we find such joy in our faith that we want to share it. Like a good book, multiplied a thousand fold. But, you can't share something with someone who doesn't want to hear it. If I've expressed my prayers for anyone who I've offended, I'm sorry... I'll try to get to know people better before I even mention prayer.

On the other hand, when I know that people would welcome prayer, whatever their particular belief, I'm happy to remember them in prayer.

Sly said it best. Different strokes for different folks.

Jerry