During my early years as a Jesus follower, I received teaching about the Trinity fairly close to metaphysical philosophy. It was all about abstract formulations and precise definitions. It was also about heresy hunting. This was a big turnoff.  

However, I later received teaching about God as three-person relational.  He is three-person relational in the the drama of redemption, as all the action moves from the Father, through the Son and in the Spirit. This shows that God has always been three-person relational within his own communal life. He is essentially relational and calls us into relationship with him.  

This opened up to me a life of prayer as relational.  I saw for the first time that praying is sharing in Jesus’ relationship with his Father in the Spirit.  A conversation is already going on between Jesus and his Father in the Spirit and we get to share in that relational conversation in union with Jesus.

We easily slip into prayer as mere request.  We ask God to meet our own needs and the needs of our friends and family.  It is easily reduced to list-making and requests.  We must see that prayer is primarily a relationship. The request element is simply part of the relationship. We need to develop a new relational way of praying that arises from discovering who God is as a three-person relational being.  In the Spirit, the relational God draws near to us through Jesus for relationship; and in the Spirit, we draw near to the relational God through Jesus for relationship.  We share in the Son’s relationship with his Father as we cry abba Father in the Spirit of his Son.