Before you ask
In praying, don't use vain repetitions; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking. Your Father knows what things you need before you ask him.
If the Father knows before you ask, prayer cannot be information; you are not briefing God. And if he tells you not to use many words, it cannot be persuasion either. The contemplative answer is alignment: prayer is the turning of the self toward the one who already knows, so that you begin to want what is wanted for you. It changes you, not God. The fewer the words, the less there is to hide behind, and the practices move steadily from many words to few to none.
Today's practice
Pray for what you need today in one sentence. Then stop, and sit for the rest of the twenty minutes in the awareness that it was already known.
The fast
Daily fast, Daniel table. Tomorrow is a full day without food; finish supper early and lightly tonight.
By the calendar, today is Day ?.