grumpymatryoshka:

“If one is not compassionate, he may sit for hours with the komboschini, and his prayer will have no result whatsoever. If there is pain in his heart about what he is praying for, even with a single sigh he will have prayed from the heart.”

— Saint Paisios of Mount Athos

The words that pour from our lips are not our prayers. We can stand and recite the prayers from the origins of Christianity, but that does not mean that we are actually praying.

What is in your heart?

When I pour forth the tears that are held inside. When I feel the bursting of my heart in my chest. When I scream forth my pain and my longing. My tiredness and my love.

Then I am praying. Then the Spirit has given utterance. At that point I am close with Him.