In relation to God we are always in a position of response. This fact could become the key to a life of prayer that feels much more relational, mutual and less ritualistic. God has already spoken to us through Scripture; he has and is doing things that we should respond to, and he has been speaking to you lately in various ways. People struggle to get started in prayer because they try to get prayer started. But God has already started the conversation and we are always in a position of response. If I expressed to you something very important and you ignored me and started a different conversation, that would be a sure way to stifle our relationship. If you give me a great gift which I then fail to acknowledge when we next meet, it would, again, stifle our relationship. So, ask yourself, what has God done for me that I should acknowledge and give thanks for. There is more gracious divine activity in and around your life than you can conceive. So thank and praise God. God has probably been highlighting things in your life that grieve him. He speaks into our hearts by his Holy Spirit and also by circumstances that press on these infected areas in our character. Don’t ignore him and start a different conversation that suits you. Agree with his concerns in penitence and repent. Before you express your concerns to God, open your heart to his concerns about you. This will make your prayer life into a real and perpetual conversation.
Give thanks to God and confess the sins that he is grieved by in your life.
Read Psalm 95.
