It's the most essential thing of all just because it's not a matter of how you do it at all, but of whether you do it. Like being born, or cooking: how you do it is less important than whether you do it. You can find thousands of books on prayer that give you methods of praying, hundreds of "how's"; but they do you no good at all unless you actually pray. Otherwise, it's like reading a cookbook instead of cooking. You can't eat a cookbook!

Prayer: The Great Conversation: Straight Answers to Tough Questions about Prayer