In the times of Choni haMa’agal Klal Yisrael were in great distress - there was a severe drought, a matter of absolute pikuach nefesh. Everyone was surely davening with all their strength including the great tzaddik, Choni. Famously, Choni’s tefila was only finally effective when he drew a circle in the ground around him, pledging not to leave it until Hashem responded. Why was this necessary? Why did his powerful tefilos not suffice?
The answer is that Choni was employing the form of tefilah described above. Although he (and Klal Yisrael as a whole) was in great distress and their tefilos were of great intensity, he was seeking a tefilah of absolute desperation. Thus, he drew a circle around him and said: “I will not step out of here until it rains”. In so doing he placed himself between the proverbial rock and a hard place; the only way he could move would be if there was a yeshua. There he was able to daven the ultimate tefilah and the yeshua was indeed forthcoming.
