The most important thing

"The most important thing in prayer is that we present ourselves as we are before God as He is."
—Thomas Merton

Any time the Bible, a saint, or a holy person says, “the most important thing is…,” our ears should perk up! They’re about to give us the golden nugget, the ‘secret sauce,’ the closest thing to a “shortcut” to holiness.

Of course, that’s not exactly how it works—but you know what I mean. We should pay attention. 

And often, the wisdom they share isn’t a hidden secret or a clever trick; it’s something simple, something we probably already know deep down, even if we couldn’t quite put it into words.

So it is with Thomas Merton’s words here: “The most important thing in prayer is that we present ourselves as we are before God as He is.”

No matter how we pray—our choice of devotions, books, or methods—this truth remains at the heart of it all. All the techniques in the world mean nothing if we forget who we are and who God is. If we miss that, the rest will crumble.