Anyone can pray. It’s as simple as getting in touch with your best friend. You don’t need to be a saint. And you definitely don’t have to have a degree in theology, a particular type of personality or special spiritual attributes. People of all ages and conditions can pray.

The author has listened to the compelling prayers of a murderer and someone with Down’s syndrome, the almost inarticulate utterances of a bed-ridden quadriplegic and the erudite prayers of poets and academics. Jesus selected ordinary people – fisherman, a freedom fighter, and a tax collector – as his disciples, and taught them how to pray. If they could learn, we can too.