In fact, all good prayer begins from a position of weakness —not a lofty idea of our own spirituality. If we want our prayer life to be like climbing a ladder to heaven, that first rung needs to touch the mud in which we live. Once we choose prayer, God will lift us to the next step. If you find yourself mired in ordinary struggles, you are not disqualified from practicing extreme prayer. That’s actually an ideal place to start. Jesus prefers the cry of the person who says, “God, have mercy on me,