“There’s a sucker born every minute.”–(often attributed to P.T. Barnum, though history shows otherwise.)
People will fall for most anything that they think will help them in the moment. The selling of snake oil in days gone by, the current weight-loss pills, the almost daily introduction of a new pain reliever, or depression destroyer, etc.–virtually anything promising to move me away from pain and toward pleasure.
These are the two motivations upon which all persuasion is built.
Christians and pre-Christians are no less gullible.
“Prayer Changes Things.”
“God Answers Knee-mail.”
“Seven Days Without Prayer Makes One Weak.”
Practical Bible Teaching 