I have seen a lot of scripture recently telling me to pray as though God has fulfilled my prayers.
Mark 11:24 New International Version (NIV)
24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
James 1:6-8 New International Version (NIV)
6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
This is called faith and either I believe that God will answer my prayer or He will not. If I believe that He will answer my prayer, they why not pray as though it has been answered? Please do not confuse this with making God a genie who fulfills wishes. If you believe that God will answer your prayer, but it has not happened, then you may be praying with the wrong motives.
James 4:3 New International Version (NIV)
3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
I also saw a scripture that said that until I acknowledge before God my sins, that God will not hear my prayers and therefore they will not be answered.
Isaiah 59:1-2 New International Version (NIV)
Sin, Confession and Redemption
59 Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save,
nor his ear too dull to hear.
2 But your iniquities have separated
you from your God;
your sins have hidden his face from you,
so that he will not hear.
So I titled this as “Responsibility”. If you want God to hear you, then start by asking Him to show you what your sins are. Accept that what He is telling you is truth and accept the responsibility for your actions. Then take action to confess these sins before God or in other words acknowledge what your sins are before God and ask for His forgiveness. Then He may answer your prayers. However, remember there are three answers to your prayers: Yes, No, Wait.