Some years ago the following survey was done on evangelical Christians ... these numbers are approximate. 

1.  Do you pray?  Consistently?   

85% of those surveyed said "yes" to both questions. 

2.  How many of you who pray believe that you will have the answers to your prayers manifested? 

Amazingly, 15% said that they were expecting their prayers to be answered. 

Now ... 85% might as well not have prayed at all.  They're throwing words out there, like shooting at a flock of ducks ... "If I hit one, OK."  But it doesn't work this way because You don't have any faith or hope in the prayer that you're praying.

If you don't pray God's Word, your prayers are just your own words, and they go up into the air and bounce off the ceiling.  God is not going to respond to them. 

We need to pray God's Word, the Scriptures, but not necessarily word for word.  The principle of what the Word says has to be spoken exactly like the Word in the words of our prayers.  God is only obligated to fulfill His Words, not ours.  The closer to quoting the Word of God when we pray, the better off we're going to be.

Reverend Robert W. & Mary C. Butler