Perseverance in prayer - Bl. Pope John Paul II

If you really wish to follow Christ, if you want your love for him to grow and last, you must be diligent in prayer. This is key to the vitality of your life in Christ. without prayer, your faith and your love will die. If you are constant in daily prayer and in attendance at Sunday Mass, your love for Jesus will grow. And your heart will know such joy and deep peace as the world could not give you.
Nourish your day with as much prayer as you can and allowing for moments of particular intimacy with the Lord, whether individually or in a group. Only prolonged contact with Him can transform each of us inwardly into a disciple of his. Only by being nourished by long hours of prayer, meditation, concentration and silent listening to God, will a believer be able to speak to other people about the Divine Mystery, to hand it on and to bear witness to it in the presence of others.
The Gospel reminds us of 'the need to pray continually and never to lose heart' (Luke18:1). So everyday, devote a little while to conversing with God, as proof of the face that you sincerely love him; for love always seeks to be close to the beloved. This is why prayer must come before everything else; people who do not take this view, who do not put this into practice, cannot please the excuse of being short of time; what they are short of is love.