Through prayer you are in fellowship with God. You can actually speak to Him. You can worship, love, and spend time with Him. Because of what Jesus has done for you on the cross, God hears your prayers.

God wants you to fellowship with Him. 1st Corinthians 1:9 says, "God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." He wants you to be in His presence and be dependent upon Him. To be effective, you need to be in fellowship with God. To be in fellowship, you need to be praying, constantly.

Pride hides itself in the heart so it cannot be seen. When we find ourselves relying on our knowledge instead of God's word, mercy, and grace, then we have fallen into that trap. It is not reason that converts, but God's Spirit. It is not logic that draws us to God but Jesus (John 12:32). It is not evidence that convicts a person of his sins, but the Holy Spirit (John 16:8). That is why we need to rely on.

To ignore prayer is to be prideful. It is the same as saying we don't need God. But we do. We need to pray for those who are lost, pray for their minds to be opened, pray that God's word will ring true to them, pray that our witness will be strong, and pray that the evil one will not have a foot-hold with them or with us. We are fighting a spiritual battle and need spiritual tools. Prayer is perhaps the most important of them all.

It is the Lord who opens the heart and mind, not you (Acts 16:14). Ask God for guidance (John 14:14). Ask for blessing in your understanding (James 1:5) and your speech (Colossians 4:6). Ask the Lord to also open their understanding to Gods word (Luke 24:45). This is what He does.

Prayer brings humility to the one praying. It admits dependence on God. If we are humble and depended on God, we are more likely to hear His voice. Prayer means that you are seeking divine intervention. It changes your heart. It moves you closer to God. Never let your intellect replace the power, received by faith, in prayer before God.

-Taken from "The Importance of Prayer"
Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry