{"product_id":"god-and-prayer-merging-scripture-and-reality-by-ric-keaster","title":"God and Prayer: Merging Scripture and Reality by Ric Keaster","description":"\u003ch3\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhen a tornado spares one house and flattens the next, was that God—or just weather? God and Prayer takes the questions believers quietly wrestle with and tests every answer against what the New Testament actually says.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eGod and Prayer: Merging Scripture and Reality\u003c\/em\u003e is Ric Keaster's frank examination of the gap between what we say God does and what we actually see in life. Does God still intervene physically in the world? Will He heal the sick if enough people pray and persist? Why do some God-fearing Christians prosper while others suffer? Keaster gathers ten questions most Christians have quietly wondered about and walks each one carefully back through Scripture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe book's central argument is, by the author's own admission, controversial: that the miracles and ongoing revelation recorded in Scripture served a purpose now complete, and that God works today through His confirmed Word rather than by interrupting nature. Whether you finish convinced or ready to refute it, Keaster asks only that you open your Bible alongside his and reach your own conclusion—weighing every claim by both the logic of everyday experience and the text of Scripture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhat's Inside\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe book unfolds in two parts across nineteen chapters. \u003cstrong\u003ePart 1: God\u003c\/strong\u003e traces how God has communicated with mankind across the ages and takes up the purpose and cessation of miracles, the meaning of \"providence,\" the will of God, and the tension between fate, destiny, and free will. \u003cstrong\u003ePart 2: Prayer\u003c\/strong\u003e turns to the practical heart of the believer's life—why and how we pray, the New Testament pattern, how and when God responds, what belongs in our prayers, and what it means to test or tempt God.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAmong the questions it takes head-on:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIntervention\u003c\/strong\u003e — Does God act physically in our lives today, or are the things that happen to us simply life?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePersistent prayer\u003c\/strong\u003e — If enough people pray and keep praying, will God heal the sick?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSuffering\u003c\/strong\u003e — Why do some God-fearing Christians prosper while others have it so rough?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAnswered prayer\u003c\/strong\u003e — Does \"answered prayer\" always mean yes, or can the answer be no?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eActing vs. allowing\u003c\/strong\u003e — Is there a difference between God making something happen and allowing it to happen?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eRescue\u003c\/strong\u003e — Does God literally save us from car wrecks, tornadoes, and other catastrophes?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFormat \u0026amp; Features\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA 227-page paperback written as a straight-through, readable argument rather than a fill-in-the-blank workbook. Keaster writes in a conversational, example-driven voice—opening with the everyday things people say at funerals and near-tragedies—then anchors each discussion in careful biblical context: who said it, to whom, why, and how the first hearers would have understood it. Scripture is quoted throughout, and each chapter builds toward the book's summary and conclusions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWho It's For\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBible class teachers, preachers, and any thoughtful believer who has ever felt the friction between what they hear about how God works and what they see in the world. It's written for readers willing to weigh a challenging argument with an open mind and an open Bible—whether they end up embracing it, refining it, or setting out to refute it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDr. Ric Keaster has spent a lifetime teaching, preaching, and writing—first as a schoolteacher and administrator, then, after earning his doctorate in Educational Leadership, as a professor and ultimately Professor Emeritus. He continues to serve the Rome Church of Christ in Proctorville, Ohio, and is also the author of \u003cem\u003eIn Our Own Language – Personality Types and the Gospel Writers\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eTypes in the Bible – Shadows of the True\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eAbout the Publisher\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eGod and Prayer\u003c\/em\u003e is published by \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/spiritbuilding.com\"\u003eSpiritbuilding Publishers\u003c\/a\u003e, serving Christians with resources for deeper study, stronger faith, and everyday discipleship.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c!-- notionvc: 957109ef-f9d5-490c-b7c8-31d027b94ab2 --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Spiritbuilding Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48945191420154,"sku":"CHL032","price":14.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0287\/5683\/6484\/files\/CHL032-Cover.png?v=1780134967","url":"https:\/\/spiritbuilding.com\/products\/god-and-prayer-merging-scripture-and-reality-by-ric-keaster","provider":"Spiritbuilding Publishers","version":"1.0","type":"link"}