The Season of Prayer

In the fall of 1831, four men asked Joseph Smith to inquire of the Lord for them concerning what God would have them do. Joseph received a revelation in response. The Lord took the opportunity to instruct not only the four men who originally asked but the entire Church. Among the instructions directed at the Church at large is this statement:

And a commandment I give unto them—that he that observeth not his prayers before the Lord in the season thereof, let him be had in remembrance before the judge of my people.
--Doctrine and Covenants 68:33

Regular prayer is a commandment, and to refrain from prayer is a sin. The season to pray is when the Holy Ghost prompts me to pray. If I ignore that prompting from the Spirit, I am disobedient and rebellious. The Holy Spirit will withdraw from me as I further withdraw myself from God. 

Now, I can certainly pray even when the Spirit is not urging me to do so, but to resist the Spirit is a sin of which I must speedily repent when I catch myself. It is in those very times when I feel least inclined to pray that God reaches for me with the most compassion.