I first became aware of my "closeness issue" when I was about five. I remember my grandma teaching me that I'm supposed to say "God Bless You" after someone sneezes. While I believe God blesses each and every one of us, it was hard for me to call upon God to do anything. I mean, I'm sorry you sneezed, but is that really something that deserves the attention of God? Oh, and who am I to call upon God to bless you...No offense.
Luckily, I was born both Irish and German so I could happily call upon my Deutsch roots to confidently comment "Gesundheit" (health) when someone sneezes. But, when forced to think a bit harder, an encouraging Gesundheit is still a wish of good health, and aren't all wishes prayers, and aren't all prayers a similar invocation?
Now I'm not the only one to address this, so if you're looking for other thoughts on the subject, search throughout Blogspot...here is one take on the subject I found from another blogger out there.