“Since prayer is that act by which we turn our will to God, prayer is of the very essence of religion . . . . Prayer is the most direct expression of faith, because prayerfully turning our thoughts and will to God is the initial step from thought about God to full assurance of God.  By the same token prayer is the most direct expression of love.  It is an offering of highest priority, since the first thing we owe God is our thinking and willing. (Adolf Schlatter, cited in Robert Yarbrough, 1-3 John, 298)