The prayer continues, “And receive compassionately and willingly our prayers.” The word “receive” suggests that prayer is something we give to God and that He willingly accepts. In other words, our prayers are our gift to God. In fact, the Talmud teaches that God desires our prayers. This is because without our prayers, God cannot give us His presence. Such is the dynamic of all loving relationships. Unless I truly value and want your love I will not be receptive to it. Even if you were to shower me with endless gifts I will not feel your love unless I open my eyes to it, value it, want it and ready myself to receive it. God wants to give us the joy of bonding with Him. But unless we value and want that experience and properly prepare ourselves to welcome God into our lives, we will not be receptive to His gift. Even though God is always showering us with His love and is forever near to us, unless we want to feel that connection, we won’t. For example, let’s say I tell you that I need to talk and invite you to come by my house tonight around 8 p.m. On your way over you think, “Hmm, I usually eat dinner at 8, and David didn’t invite me for dinner. Maybe I should first grab a bite to eat so that I’m fully able to hear what he wants to discuss with me.” So you stop for a burger and fries and then make your way to my house. Meanwhile, I am preparing a surprise party for you, complete with a gourmet meal of everything that I know you love to eat. When you arrive, I rush you into the house, fling open the dining room doors and yell, “Surprise!” There, on the table, is an incredible feast of all your favorite delicacies. But you’re not hungry. Because you don’t want to hurt my feelings, you eat what I have prepared for you. But you really do not get the pleasure I intended, because you are not hungry. In fact, not only do you not enjoy the food, the double-meal actually makes you sick. So, too, unless we are hungry for God, we do not appreciate and enjoy His presence.