Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

We're not in Philippians anymore, but from today's passage you might not know it. For months we've been listening to the apostle Paul write about the joy of all things. And here he's at it again. Rejoicing and prayer so often go hand-in-hand.

When we read this passage, the word "continually" caught our attention. Paul wants his friends to pray without ceasing. This practice awakens us to the reality of God's presence.

• We can pray at all times because God is with us at all times.
• We can pray in all circumstances because God is with us in all circumstances.
• We can pray without stopping because God never stops being with us.

But what does it look like to "pray continually"? In his book Franny and Zoe, JD Salinger imagines that unceasing prayer would look a lot like a nervous breakdown. Should we drop out of school, quit our jobs, abandon our families and withdraw from the world? Is that what it means to pray without ceasing?

We think continual prayer looks like this: a constant awareness of God's presence, a continuing back and forth ... often interrupted but never ended ... between us and God.

One thing that we've found helpful to our practice of continual prayer is to realize that prayer doesn't always involve words. The practices of Centering Prayer (sitting silently with God) and Listening Prayer (asking God to speak and paying attention to the words and images that come into your mind) have helped us immensely. We'll share more about them in the weeks ahead.

Have you ever tried to "pray continuously"? What have you found helpful or difficult? 

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