One of the primary reasons Joseph Smith prayed in the Sacred Grove was to know which of the churches he should join.
But Joseph also prayed because he “became convicted of my sins.”1 In other words, he wanted to repent of his mistakes.
Third, Joseph prayed because he felt inspired to do so. After reading James 1:5, which invites us to ask God, Joseph received a powerful prompting from heaven. “Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did” (Joseph Smith—History 1:12).
Our prayers can have similar motivations: to know truth, to repent, or simply because the Spirit invites us to pray. And like Joseph’s, our prayers will be more meaningful if we humbly and diligently prepare ourselves for the experience.