In Mesillas Yesharim (Chapter 19), the Ramchal, discussing praying for the redemption, writes:
And if a person will say, “Who am I and what am I worth that I should pray about [ending] the exile and about Jerusalem?” The answer is obvious, as the sages taught us (Sanhedrin 37a), “The reason man was created alone [meaning the reason Hashem started the world with just one man, Adam, rather than with an entire nation] is that each person should say to himself, ‘The entire world was created just for me.’” It gives Hashem pleasure when His children request and pray for [the redemption]. And even if He will not fulfill their request because the time has not yet come or for any other reason, they have done their job and Hashem is happy with this.
In Shmuz 192: “Hashem Really Cares,” Rabbi Shafier quotes his Rebbe, Rabbi Henach Leibowitz, zt”l, who explains that the Ramchal is teaching us a profound lesson: A regular Jew should pray to Hashem knowing that his prayer has the power to cause Hashem to grant what he asks for, even if he is praying for something as significant as the redemption! If Hashem would create the whole world for just one person, surely one person is significant enough for Hashem to impact the world to grant him his request, even if it is something major. Although Hashem might not grant his wish, perhaps because it’s not best now or for another reason, the person must realize that his prayers were important enough to attain it. Hashem didn’t grant it only because in His infinite wisdom, He knew it wasn’t best.
The Ramchal is saying that if a person thinks Hashem won’t listen to his prayers because he is insignificant, he is mistaken. Every person is so valuable that Hashem would have made the entire world just for him, as Hashem taught us by starting the world with just one man. We don’t come in prayer because we deserve to be answered. We ask our Father for a free gift because He loves us so much. Thus, it shouldn’t seem strange or surprising if Hashem grants us our request. And even if He doesn’t, we shouldn’t assume that we’re not important enough for Hashem to care, but rather that it wasn’t best for reasons that Hashem understands. We are significant in Hashem’s eyes, and our prayers are so valuable to Him. He is always listening because He cares so much about us. This is why prayer works.
Since you are so important to Hashem that He would have created the entire world just for you, in a sense you must act as if He did. Realize that the fact that there are other people in the world doesn’t detract from the individual attention Hashem has for you. Hashem loves and cares about you as if you were His only child. Think about how you would view Hashem’s relationship with you if you were the only person on planet Earth, and realize that this is exactly how He relates to you. Hashem loves you as if you were the only person in existence. That is how important you are to Him.
Now you can understand how Hashem relates to you when you turn to Him. No matter what you pray for, Hashem listens to your prayers and really cares because you want it. He is especially excited that you are growing, which means He will be able to give you the greatest pleasure ever. After all, that’s why He created you.
Hashem cares about whatever you care about. Although He might decide that it’s not best for you due to calculations that are beyond us, you must not interpret it as indifference or anger at you for asking for something bad. Rather, you must realize that Hashem really cares, is ecstatic that you reached out to Him, and longs to grant it to you, but didn’t because it wasn’t best at this time. And keep praying, because at some point Hashem might grant your wishes.
Remembering how Hashem relates to us is especially important when we pray to Him. When we pray, we must make believe we are the only person in the world. We must realize how much Hashem cares about our prayers. We’re not demanding things because we deserve them or because we prayed with concentration. Rather, we have hope that Hashem will answer us because we are so important to Him. He is listening and of course He cares. We are hopeful that He will grant us our wishes if they are good for us. If we have this attitude, praying will be so sweet.