A place to pray

Jesus first taught His disciples to pray by making a point about the physical place.

"And when you pray, you are not to be as the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners, in order to be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you when you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you." Matthew 6:5-6

God ignores the prayer made in the context of seeking honor from others. The physical place itself does not hide God from us; God has hidden Himself from the pride of man. We cannot pray from a stage. A physical place hidden from others removes us from concern for what others think. The place to pray is a place where we are alone with the hidden God.

But even physically alone, we can still be playing a role on a stage.

"And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need, before you ask Him."
Matthew 6:7-8

Trying to manipulate God is little different than a hypocrite praying publicly to seek honor from men. We are still performing on a stage.

Prayer is not meant to manipulate God; He already knows what we need. Prayer is honesty; man being honest with God. The place to pray is a place of honesty, without any role playing.

There is no stage in heaven, only a throne, before which only honest men can stand.