The first thing is to pray:

The first thing is to pray. 
From the moment we begin to pray, 
things start moving. 
The darker the night, 
the closer the dawn. 
From the moment we chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo 
with a deep and powerful resolve, 
the sun begins to rise in our hearts. 
Hope --- prayer is the sun of hope. 
To chant each time we face a problem, 
overcoming it and elevating our life-condition as a result --- this is the path 
of "changing earthly desires into enlightenment," 
taught in Nichiren Buddhism.

Daisaku Ikeda