http://smc305ohmyblog.blogspot.com/2012/01/friends-episode-calling-on-god.html
I think you stumble upon some key features that are associated with christianity and religion for that matter. I am a bit of a scatter brain so hopefully I will be able to transition my thoughts well.
A point that was raised was the fact most people ask for Gods intervention in their time of need. This is partially because we don't have the personal and spiritual connection that we should with whatever God we believe in. For most of us, God is at a safe distance, not to close and not to far away. A better analogy would be to compare God to a facebook friend. We don't necessary consult with this person everyday, but when the time comes we know how to reach the friend.
If people had an intimate connection with their supreme creator, it would not feel like they only address their God in their time of need. I find it personally confusing, because it seems that God has become a popular culture icon. Im sure that a significant amount of people have a real spiritual attachment, but an even greater amount dont. With phrases uttered daily such as, "O MY GOD" "GOD DAMN" "I PROMISE TO GOD" and "GOD WILLING". We even see "IN GOD WE TRUST" in currency. And don't get me started on Gods presence in the social media.
Actually there was an incident which I fell victim to my own firing squad. One morning I was on twitter, and the hash tags were filled with #putgodfirst #GODmorning #Godisgood. I felt a social cohesion to mention God myself on my timeline. Then I felt the metaphorical pie getting slapped on my face, thinking to myself. "you haven't even prayed this morning and yet your on twitter saying #putgodfirst, clearly he's second to you.
Another message i got from the article, was the message that people turn to God in matters that they themselves cannot control. Acts of nature and violence is used as transcendent means of communication. For example, say you hear on the news that a mudslide has just killed 4,000 people in a small village, or a serial killer is killing children and leaving their heads on the parents front step(sorry for the analogy, i just started watching Dexter) your first and customary response would probably be "O MY GOD" or " GOD HELP THEM". If this is the only method of spiritual connection that is socially accepted, I think we are in trouble. As Joey is frantically pleading to God for him not to get old(an occurrence that he cannot control).
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