Why Pray?

If you're anything like me, you've probably wondered why we pray. You probably don't ask that out loud, because it sounds irreverent. We pray because. . .well, we just do. Now, don't take this to mean that we shouldn't pray--- we should! But I want to ask and answer the question, "Why should we pray?"
The most simple (and most powerful, in my mind) answer is this: God commands us to pray. It's as simple as that. Why pray? Because God said so.
The Bible clearly commands Christians to pray. Philippians 4:6 says, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Instead of worrying about things (being "careful" or "anxious"), we are commanded to bring them to God in prayer.
The final item in the "Christian Armor" is prayer. "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints" (Eph 6:18). The Christian soldier does all things with prayer, requesting God for strength. He perseveres (continues forward) in "supplication" (asking God in prayer) for other Christians.
In 1 Timothy 2:1, we are commanded to pray: "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men." The reason that we should pray for everyone is found in verse three: "For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior."
1 Thessalonians 5:17 is the shortest verse in the New Testament (in Greek), and it says simply (in English), "Pray without ceasing." The book of James says, "Is any among you afflicted? let him pray" (5:13). If you are "afflicted" (sick), you are commanded to pray.
God commands us to pray. He is pleased by our obedience when we pray. We will look at other reasons, but it should suffice to say, we pray because God has commanded it.