Prayer

President Henry B. Eyring said:

"If we become casual in our study of the scriptures, we will become casual in our prayers. 

We may not cease to pray, but our prayers will become more repetitive, more mechanical, lacking real intent. Our hearts cannot be drawn out to a God we do not know, and the scriptures and the words of living prophets help us know Him. As we know Him better, we love Him more."

Prayer

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2001/10/prayer?lang=eng

No matter how often I hear this (I first heard this on my mission in Russia) I can always improve the quality of my scripture study which thus improves the quality of my prayers. If you think about it, prayer is our channel to Father...what is more important than that? I remember the first great commandment, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." Matt 22:37. 

Wouldn't that include our scripture study and prayer? I'd be willing to say that it all starts there...everything else is ancillary to it. 

Opposition and gaining knowledge

Remember the Prophet Joseph Smith while he was in Liberty Jail when you read this quote from Jeffrey R. Holland:

"...you can have sacred, revelatory, profoundly instructive experiences with the Lord in any situation you are in. Indeed, you can have sacred, revelatory, profoundly instructive experiences with the Lord in the most miserable experiences of your life—in the worst settings, while enduring the most painful injustices, when facing the most insurmountable odds and opposition you have ever faced."

Here is the link if you want to watch the whole CES devotional talk:

http://youtu.be/RpOylYSEaqA