As breathing is essential to the physical body, prayer is essential to the health and well-being of our spiritual bodies. It is the foundation of our faith and our mode of communication with God. However, as we go about our busy lives, we often get caught up in the worries and the pleasures of the world. Prayer often becomes a formality, a ritual, or something we simply need to check off of our To-Do list. We may know that prayer is good for us, but this may simply remain as something we know but do not truly experience. As a result, we may have prayers without direction, prayers that feel long and unfulfilling, or prayers that leave us feeling emptier and further away from God. We may even wonder, “Why pray at all? Does it really help?”