In his beautiful Darshan talk (translated simultaneously into German) of 11 November 2011, at the Shree Peetha Nilaya Ashram in Springen, Germany, Sri Swami Vishwananda talks about service & prayer that comes directly from the heart.

He explains that whatever comes directly from the heart is much faster than the mind can comprehend and is answered also directly.
We ought to learn to be centered inside the heart; and learn to perform every action with awareness that we are doing it for the Divine, as a form of prayer. The best prayer is TO SEARCH FOR LOVE IN EVERYTHING. And to serve whoever needs help.

Swami says: "Serve, help wherever you can. Don't think about it. The moment you start thinking about it, it is no longer a help."