Why pray?

So, do you understand what "prayer" is?
It is not talking to some unseen being who you think is waiting on your word and judging your words and whether they are worthy of a response.
True prayer, even though it might be preceded by formula prayers, mantras, etc., is a means of connecting with that which IS - that which is Life - the Force, if you will (sometimes new terms make more sense than old concretized concepts). It is connecting with that to which you and I and all of creation are connected. I like to use the image of the Allium flower - hundreds of florets attached to the center orb - everything "material" is connected to the Source, or else it would not exist.
Religion is supposed to teach us how to re-connect to that Source, not be cow-towing to some mysterious, ethereal judging power or "god-person". That power is in you. That power is you. Connecting more intimately with that power gives the individual a handle on reality - it leads to the realization that all things are connected.
These comments are a response to something I read one "minister" comment on the changing perspectives in religious attitudes - "Most prayers invoke a god that doesn’t act in that way, yet I am still called to pray.”
Again, prayer is not to a "god" - a mysterious being who holds our destiny. Prayer is connecting with the Life which creates and animates this amazing universe on all its levels. And as we deepen that connection within ourselves, we cannot help but become aware of the connection all of life has to that Life at the center of everything. Everything is connected. 
Prayer (connecting to the Absolute) leads to developing those sacred attributes most faith-filled souls aspire to: compassion and love. Practicing love and compassion reconnect us to one another and change lives. As more souls learn to love, it is like lighting more candles in the darkness, and that light grows more brightly, and is seen by more souls who become en"light"ened, adding to the brilliance, and so on.
So, pray. Pray every day - learn to pray always - stay connected with your Source, and your love will radiate and transform the world in which you are walking.