Really my conclusion is that God established prayer as both the primary means of intimate relationship between us and God as well as the governmental center of His Kingdom. The way that Scripture reveals God's Kingdom, all of it is moved by the prayers of the saints, and history shows us how prayer can indeed effect the turning of events, but even more than that prayer is meant to align our hearts with God's heart. When done rightly, prayer releases God's will on the earth by aligning us with His will. People wonder about fasting and if people should participate in fasting today, and even then fasting seems no different than a diet, but in Daniel 10 and Joel 2 you see fasting that is prompted by and inward desire to be reunited with the desires of God's heart.
And the best part of being united with the desires of God's heart is that WE are His desire! The sparks fly when our hearts are turned towards a God who's heart is already turned towards us, but the judgement comes when our hearts are turned away and we 'scorn' His love. That why in Isaiah 59, the Lord releases judgement on Israel because there was no one who wanted to partner with Him! No one shared His desires (Isaiah 59:4,16)! In fact Isaiah 30 says that God, filled with desire, actually waits to visit a nation with blessing until the nation shares His desire. That's why He will not return until Revelation 22:17 is fulfilled when both the Spirit and the bride (being the church) say "Come, Lord Jesus!"
The greatest way to approach prayer is with the desire to encounter God, because that is already His desire. Prayer is a two way conversation that doesn't always get answered immediately, but it is always answered. Many people approach prayer as if they get to define the terms of their relationship with God. Many people even get saved, pray a prayer, but never align with God's terms of relationship. We don't pray in order to "get" anything, we pray primarily to encounter His heart. Truthfully probably less than half of my prayers are actual requests, and I pray a lot (compared to the average western Christian). A prayer life focused on making requests ends in disappointment because we never aligned ourself with God's desires or gained any depth in the conversation. But a prayer life that is based on love and a desire to know God is sustainable for eternity. Requests are very important, however, as God said "You have not because you ask not" (James 4:2-3), but God sets an example by particularly establishing the prayers of the righteous (those who share his motives and desires).
There is a theme woven throughout many of the Scriptures regarding prayer. When I'm teaching someone how to pray, my focus is never based on requests, because God loves to throw curveballs to test our motives. My focus is much more on getting the student fascinated by the beauty of Jesus. The real goal is not results, but a heart that is alive with love for God, in a living relationship and swirl of desire back and forth between us and God until we can't handle it anymore and we actually pray for His return because we miss Him so much! This is a totally foreign concept to most western Christians because God seems so detached and distant, but a life of prayer will reveal just how near He is!
