We underestimate the importance of prayer, if we relegate it to the background as a last resort, when all else has failed. This attitude to prayer has been the bane of Christianity for a long time. God’s opinion of prayer is so high that He says, “Even them I will bring to My holy mountain, And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on My altar; For My HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL NATIONS.””(Isa 56:7) (emphasis mine). Jesus repeats the same thing : “Then He taught, saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL NATIONS ’? But you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ””(Mk 11:17) (emphasis mine). The implication is clear: if it is not a house of prayer for all nations, it is not His house, irrespective of its designation. God values prayer so much that the Bible speaks of His address to Ananias thus : “So the Lord said to him, “Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, FOR BEHOLD, HE IS PRAYING.” (Acts 9:11) (emphasis mine).
    Prayer, which is communion with God, must preceed and undergird any attempt to achieve anything for Him. This is because prayer determines how much of heaven’s resources we can access to accomplish our assignments in life effectively. Jesus Himself made this principle clear when He appointed His disciples: “Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:” (Mk 3:14-15). Note that when Jesus appointed the twelve, it was for them to be with Him first. As a result, the Jewish religious establishment of the first century acknowledged that Peter and John had been with Jesus, when they observed their boldness and courage (Acts 4:13). Similarly, God has appointed every Christian to be with Him as a matter of priority.
    “… that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach…” shows that God sends those who have been with Him. They are the ones capable of representing Him. God did not create man to function independently of Him. However, that is the impression we give when we neglect prayer or relegate it to a secondary place. Your eligibility for an assignment, as far as God is concerned, depends on the condition of your fellowship with Him in the secret place. This is why He is so concerned about our prayer lives—not as a perfunctory exercise, observed merely as an obligation. Rather, God wants you to view prayer as the intimate exchange of thoughts, ideas, desires and passions with Him. This is why He requires the involvement of “all your heart” in it: “Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jer 29:12-13).
    I believe prayer played a major role in Saul’s conversion to Christianity. The expression, “… FOR BEHOLD, HE IS PRAYING.” (Acts 9:11) (emphasis mine) reveals how much God values prayer as preparatory to an effective service to Him. God was pleased that Saul had discovered the fundamental secret of spiritual usefulness. Irrespective of the magnitude of God’s plans for us, they will not materialise automatically. Prayer must play an indispensable role in the conception, sustenance and birthing of a God-given vision. This is why it is foolhardy for anyone to assume he or she can discover and fulfill Divine mandate without being prayerful. Though you may carry the seed of greatness, without a prayerful life, its fruit will never manifest in your life.
    In addition, God said to Ananias, “And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.””(Acts 9:12). In what circumstance did Saul see the vision? In prayer. In what condition did Jesus see what His Father was doing and follow suit? In prayer, for He said, “I am telling you what I have seen IN THE FATHER’S PRESENCE, and you do what you have heard from your father.” (Jn 8:38 NIV) (emphasis mine). To what did Paul resort in order for the eyes of the heart of the Ephesian Christians to be enlightened? Prayer of course (Eph 1:18). Prayer constitutes the conducive atmosphere for the conception of vision. “‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’” (Jer 33:3).
    Whatever God reveals, He fulfills, for He is not a man that He should lie nor a son of man that He should repent (Num 23:19). Accordingly, having shown Saul a man by the name of Ananias putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight, God ensured that it came to pass. As you keep praying, God works to fulfill the vision He gave you. Remember, God knows what you need, He knows who can help you meet the need and how to link you with that person. Therefore, seek Him in prayer with all your heart, as a matter of priority. Shalom.