This incredible idea is illustrated with a mashal by the renowned Maggid of Dubno. In his time, wealthy individuals in the city had an arrangement with their doctors. They pay their doctors a fixed sum per year to have them visit their households daily, whether they are ill or not. On the other hand, the less affluent residents only paid the doctor when they required medical assistance.
This dynamic led to an interesting conduct among doctors. When attending to lower-class people, doctors intentionally prolonged the treatment in order to consistently visit the patient and continue receiving pay. This led to delayed administration of effective medication, as the doctor has an incentive to prolong the treatment.
However, when the wealthy patrons fell ill, the doctor had no reason to delay providing the most effective treatment. Since the wealthy individual consistently pays the doctor, it is in the doctor's best interest to promptly cure them.
The same idea can be applied to tefillah. Individuals who are distant from Hashem do not feel the need to seek guidance or ask for assistance through prayer. They rely solely on their own abilities and resources to navigate life's challenges. It's only when they find themselves in truly desperate situations that they wake up and reach out for divine intervention. However, even then, Hashem doesn't hurry to fulfil their requests because they may revert back to self-reliance once the immediate crisis is averted.
In contrast, those who have a close relationship with Hashem employ prayer as a consistent practice in their lives. They turn to Hashem for both major and minor concerns, recognizing that they are completely dependent on divine support for even the simplest of needs. Their unwavering faith and commitment to prayer demonstrate their deep connection to Hashem, and in turn, they receive His attentive and immediate response.
(משלי יעקב ואתחנן אות שלז)
Let us ensure to remember the power of a heartfelt and sincere prayer. One that's uttered from the depth of our heart has the power to be answered even when we're not deserving of it. Remembering that Hashem is waiting for these prayers, let us continue persevering until our pleas are fulfilled. Knowing that a delay in our prayers being answered is often due to Hashem wanting to uphold and strengthen the connection attained through tefillah, let us ensure to constantly maintain this level - regardless of our given situation. In that merit, may all our prayers be answered letova, immediately. May our tefillos for Redemption be answered with the coming of Moshiach speedily in our days אמן.