Prayer is part of justice, so it's virtue, that you should pray not only for your own purification, but also for that of every man. Whether you pray along with the brethren or alone, strive to make your prayer more than a mere habit. This is simple but powerful instruction. So I pray, I repeat the words, I sit properly, I breathe properly, I focus in words. Is there an inner experience or am I just going to the motions? If you do it long enough, there will come a period of mechanical habit. When I remember, when I see that, try to make it inner experience, that feeling should come inside. What is praying as
"Do not pray for the fulfillment of your wishes, for they may not accord with the will of God. But pray as you have been taught, saying: Thy will be done in me (cf. Luke 22:42). Always entreat Him in this way - that His will be done. For He desires what is good and profitable for you, whereas you do not always ask for this." - Evagrius Ponticus.
Swami Sarvapriyananda speaks on Evagrius's teachings on prayer.