I am very bad at praying. I don't have the sense that I am doing it wrong, but basically I don't enjoy it and I don't like praying. It seems more like a chore since it is hard to see the benefits of. After all, doesn't God already know my needs and wants? And can't I know what God wants through reading the Bible? I have had amazing moments in prayer over my lifetime. But 99% of my experience has not been amazing. Some people seem to have amazing, enjoyable, or at least satisfying experiences far more often than me, so that is why I continue to practice it and make an effort to learn more about it.

This book is the best book about prayer that I have read. It is easy to read and understand, with many illustrative examples.

The author never seems to pass judgment on any style of prayer. Rather, there is a place for all of it. He breaks the different styles of prayer into 4 progressive maturity stages, but that isn't to say that you ever fully 'leave' or grow out of using the prior stages. It is just that you have more options and different preferences as you mature. The stages are: talking at God (recited or read prayers), talking with God (free form verbal prayer), listening to God (meditation and listening), and being with God (immersion into God, losing one's sense of self and feeling at one with God, 'dying to oneself' in Biblical parlance).

He also has a very compssionate outlook on distractions and the desert seasons of prayer (also called the dark night of the soul), and how these can be used as positive things in our prayer life. God is a god who wastes nothing, indeed.

I'd say this book has been exceedingly helpful and encouraging to me. I feel motivated to keep trying and making prayer more of a daily priority in my life. I have decided to reallocate the majority of my quiet time to that instead of reading.

My fav quote, from monks who host guests for prayer retreats: "We hope you enjoy your stay. If you need anything, please let us know and we will teach you to live without it."