“Prayer is the lifting up of the mind and heart to God.] From this it is evident that it is quite impossible for anyone to pray whose mind and heart are attached to anything carnal— for instance, to money or to honors—or who has in his heart passions such as hatred or envy for others, because passions usually contract the heart, in the same way as God expands it and gives it true freedom.”
(St. John of Kronstadt in ‘My Life in Christ’)

http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20151106&t=2&i=1092918320&w=976&fh=&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=2015-11-06T210001Z_19728_GF20000047786_RTRMADP_0_AUSTRALIA-WEATHER