When despondency and hardness of heart attack us, preventing us from praying, then, in order to drive away such a state, we must say to ourselves:
Lord, I have neither tenderness, nor zeal, nor contrition to pray to You properly!
After such contrition of the heart, by the grace of God a godly prayer will appear, because... God will not despise a contrite and humble heart; He will not leave it without help.