From the Dux Spiritualis by the Ven. Louis de Ponte SJ
Page 120 - The first act thou ought to exercise when coming into the presence of God to pray is one of adoration and reverence, interior and exterior, which we owe to the majesty of God, in whose presence we stand.
As soon, then, as thou comest into the presence of the Man-God, whether thou lookest upon Him in some image, or in the Most Holy Sacrament, or in highest heaven, thou ought to adore Him for a thousand reasons which oblige thee to it; and lest he cast up against thee these words of the prophet: If I am Father where is my honour? and if I am a Lord, where is my fear [Malachi i, 6] and reverence?
But this reverence is not only a strict duty, it is also a very important means of being made welcome [page 121] by God and obtaining a favourable hearing for thy prayer. For thus says Ecclesiasticus: He that adoreth God with joy shall be accepted, and his prayer shall approach even to the clouds [Ecclus. xxxv, 20].
St Bernard, [Sermo 4 de modis orandi, in fine] moreover, says that many souls experience aridity and distraction of mind in prayer because they approach only out of custom and without any reverence. Ascend in spirit, he says, and see with what veneration the blessed spirits adore God.
Page 123 - For He has not decreed the death penalty for all those who enter to speak with Him; on the contrary, he has made it punishable by eternal death to refuse to enter, or to ask anything: for he is delighted when we speak to Him in prayer and put up our petitions.
Prayer
Father of Lights, grant me that light by which I may see Thy greatness and my own vileness: that with profound respect I may humble myself in Thy presence and speak as I ought with such immense majesty.
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