Prayer and affirmation is the act of asking, wherein meditation is the act of listening, of quieting down the mental noise which we allow to distract us from listening to our Source.  First, I set a positive motivation, asking for what I want, being clear that my wanting comes from a place of love and not from a place of ego.  If I am seeking to please others so they will love me, or trying to prove I’m worthy, I know this is not a pure motivation.  If necessary, I re-set my intentions and then sit in meditation, allowing space for whatever needs to come forward.  If I don’t stop talking, I cannot hear.  Active listening is allowing, as opposed to waiting to speak, which is just ego thinking that what it has to say is so much more important.  One of the greatest acts of love is to listen to others, giving them your complete and undivided attention, without interruption.  Allowing others the space to communicate their feelings is a beautiful gift.  Meditation is the act of gifting yourself this space.