Prayer is, in essence, talking with God. When we talk to someone, it is mostly a one-way discussion. We may pray like that telling God what we want and not waiting for His response. However, when we talk with someone, it is a two-way discussion; we speak and then we listen for the response, and so on.
Swedenborg explains that when we truly talk with God, He responds and opens our interiors to His love and wisdom for our lives. Then, as we listen with our hearts and minds open, we will “hear” God’s answer and He can bring us guidance, hope and confidence. See Arcana Celestia 2535 for more understanding of prayer.
Those who pray merely piously not from the heart or pray only in desperation are often just talking to God, not with God. They may believe God doesn’t hear their prayers because their hearts are not open to His response. He tells us in Matthew 7:21 that “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” When we try to do the Lord’s will, our hearts open more and more to His voice. And we open ourselves the most to the Lord when we pray, "Thy will be done" and trust that His will is always better for our eternal happiness than we can imagine.
For a much more extensive discussion of Prayer, see the book, Prayer and Providence, by Rev. Michael Gladish where you will find 14 chapters about prayer.
(References: Apocalypse Explained 411; Arcana Coelestia 2535)
