Abu al-Zubair says that I asked Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), "Did you hear the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say that as long as a person waits for the prayer, he is counted as being in prayer?" He replied, "Once we were waiting for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for the 'Isha prayer. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not come until a portion of the night had passed. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) arrived, and we performed the prayer. Then he said, 'Sit down,' and while addressing us, he said, 'The people have performed the prayer and gone to sleep, but you remained in prayer the entire time you were waiting for the prayer.'"