Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 that he didn't try to preach a message of wisdom or eloquent words when proclaiming the gospel. Instead he "resolved to know nothing... except Jesus Christ and him crucified." His message would not rest on human wisdom, but on God's power.
Why is this important? By it we understand that we cannot rely on our eloquence or speaking skills. This is a relief to many of us! Instead, our presentation of the good news of Jesus relies on God's power.
Therefore, we must have conversations... constant conversations with God. We must ask Him to work on people, and listen to Him when He says to do something. For example, He may tell you to talk to a stranger, or to talk to your friend about the Lord (and we'll get to what that looks like later).
Prayer is essential only because communicating with the Lord and bending to his will is essential. Before we think our ideas and actions are potentially bringing someone to Christ, we must replace that mindset with the fact that the Lord is alive and already acting in the lives of many people. Our job is not to go where we think God is not working. It's to go where He wants us to be and join with His own work and power there.
This is hard to grasp. Our whole faith is hard to grasp. We must rely on the Lord God, not just to give us success, but to give us orders that we follow.
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