Hashem Lifts the Child Who Cannot Climb
A small child cannot climb onto his father's hand, so the father lifts him; Hashem likewise plants love and awe in a person's heart so that he can cleave to Him.
On the verse in which Hashem says He taught Ephraim to walk and took them up on His arms, the Maggid offered a parable of a father and his small child. The child cannot climb up onto his father's hand by himself, so the father lifts him. Only once he is held up can the child delight in playing with his father's beard. So too, a person cannot cleave to Hashem on his own. Hashem places love and awe in his heart, and these are the hands that lift him. Prayer without them does not fly upward, but when a person serves with love and awe, he cleaves to Hashem and draws down His attributes of mercy and grace, which are like the beard, there for the sake of the worlds that need them.
Source: Maggid Devarav LeYaakov, §15
You do not have to climb to Hashem alone. The longing and the reverence you already feel are the hands that are lifting you. Today, before you daven or learn, pause for a moment and name one thing you love about being close to Hashem and one reason you stand in awe of Him. Let those two feelings, however small, carry the next few minutes of your service. Closeness is a gift that you accept more than something you achieve.