Because Jesus died and rose again, we can approach the throne of our Holy Father in Heaven with our prayers, our thanksgivings, our needs, our praise and all that is in our hearts and on our minds.  Prayer is powerful and it is effective, because it is the power of God, but remember, there are 3 outcomes to any prayer. 

1)  God will say "Yes" and grants our requests

2) God will say "No".  Sometimes He may say no because He knows what is best for us and wants to protect us from ourselves. So we need to simply trust Him even when He doesn't give us what we ask for.  Remember, He is our Father, we are His children.  If a child asks his father if he can play in a busy and dangerous street, would it be wise for the father to say "Sure...have fun" just because his son wants to? 

3) God will say "Wait"   Sometimes our timing is not Gods timing and we need to be patient.  Again, it simply comes down to knowing that God is perfect, He loves us, and He wants to take care of us.

Look at what scripture has to say about prayer: 

 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." ~Philippians 4:6-7

 "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."              ~Matthew 18:19-20

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him."             ~ 1 John 5:14-15

---