One of the big misconceptions running around, I think, is that we think that prayer and faith involve suspending our disbelief, and pretending to believe more than we really do. Christianity does not mean throwing your brains away. And it has nothing to do with pretending. If I'm praying at the bedside of someone who's in pain, I don't want to pretend that their pain isn't real. If I'm talking with someone who may be dying soon, I don't want to pretend about anything with them.
Christian faith has to do with reality .
It has to do with discovering truth. There's a story I used to read to my children, called The Little Engine That Could . I'm sure that most of you know it. This cute little blue railroad engine wants to pull a whole train load of toys and food over the top of the mountain to the good little girls and boys on the other side. A lot of Christians treat faith the same way.