How dependent are the alleged benefits of religious faith on one's orientation to religion? How well do believers more focused on faith as an instrument for achieving these benefits succeed by their own account, compared to those more focused on ultimate religious truth and content? Recalling past theoretical work by Merton, Kolb, and Schneider, as well as the classic survey of popular religious literature by Schneider and Dornbusch, the hypothesis that instrumental approaches to religion are self-defeating is developed, tested, and sustained using a sample of Methodist-church members. Implications for court cases related to religion in the public schools are explored.