“Some brothers asked Macarius [4th C. monk], ‘How should we pray?’
He said, ‘There is no need to talk much in prayer. Reach out your hands often, and say, “Lord have mercy on me, as you will and as you know.” But if conflict troubles you, say, “Lord, help me.” He knows what is best for us and has mercy.'”
– from The Desert Fathers: Sayings of the Early Christian Monks