Prayer can be a very positive and effective way to get something done.  We can pray for our health or for someone else's.  We can pray for success in some endeavor.  We can pray for an answer to a question that is bothering us.  In many cases, praying works.  Does that mean God is answering out prayers?  In most cases, no.   What it means is that when we pray with belief and conviction, we open the necessary channels and send the positive energy that helps to achieve the desired result.  And when a group of people pray for the same thing, the added energy of them all helps even more to make it happen.
    I'm not saying that God doesn't care about you.  He does, but what He cares about is you spirit and your soul, not your physical body or your material needs.