Pray first and ask questions later 

I am having a fresh revelation of how important prayer is. Often my thoughts dwell on how things work, and I must confess I tend to try to understand how and why prayer “works” so I can tuck this away in my little book of “things what I know,” to be dipped into when needed.
 
I recently felt a prompt from the Spirit on this tendency. The prompt in its essence was that thousands of people use things every day without the foggiest idea of how or why they work.
 
Does knowing a microwave oven uses energy to excite water molecules to heat food make heating food any quicker? Does knowing how an internal combustion engine works make driving a car from A to B any more efficient?
 
The trick I am learning is to just do it. I often worry about how to pray or what to pray. How long or short should a good prayer be? Do I need to speak in 17th century King James English for it to be effective?
 
I have decided to just open my mouth and start speaking to God whenever I remember, and I am finding somewhat excitingly that He listens.
 
There is a concept that originated at Google that has been taken on in workplaces across the world called TLDR or Too Long Didn’t Read. TLDR summarises a long form of written text into a short summary. The TLDR of this blog is "Just Pray."
 
How often is prayer the last thing we do when we run out of all other options? We strive and fight and worry and labour on the issues and problems in our lives, and often don’t come first to our loving Father who wants the best for us. Even when we do pray, we often go back to trying to fix things ourselves.
 
Remember the teaching from Jesus himself on the Sermon on the Mount where he reminds us (Matthew 6:31-34, New King James Version) 

Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. 

In many ways, prayer is really the only tool we have and in a very real sense the only one we need. It is important to study and understand the character and nature of God and the Kingdom he is building, but prayer is an essential part of our role in his plans. It helps build our faith and allows the Spirit to move in our lives.
 
Pray and wait. God may move on your behalf or may gift you wisdom on how to act on an issue, but, either way, it is the best place to start.