Sorry to hear about your friends. That must be rough!
I believe in a good God, a God that is a friend and a God that can hear you everywhere and not just in a decorated church. I always pray directly to God and not to statues or anything like that but to each their own.
Death always makes us look closely at our own lifes and beliefs I think, especially when it's close to home. You're suddenly made aware of your own immortality.
I think what's important is that you try to be the best person you can be and you make peace with what God is for you in your heart.
Anyway that's just my two cents
