Pray Continually

Before I began my quiet time today, I prayed that God would open my heart to what He wanted me to hear.  After I said Amen, I turned to my book and giggled a little.  The topic was on prayer and I was excited to dive in.  It gave me three verses to read, and while they were all great ones, there was one that hit me.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always,  pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."
I can't tel you how many times I have read and heard this verse.  It is even underlined in my bible, and a certain verse has a box around it, but something struck me today that I never noticed.  Verse 17 only contains to words, in my version. "Pray Continually".  I just sat there in awe, knowing this was what God wanted to reveal to me today.  These words could have easily been apart of verse 16 or 18, but it was important enough to be on its on.  We are to constantly be in prayer, lifting up thanksgiving, confessing our sins, stating our needs.  But what does this look like?  Does it mean we are on our knees all day, tucked away from everything? 
 Of course not!  If we did that, we wouldn't be able to spread the Word, as we are called to do.  This is meaning to have a prayerful mindset.  When we do this, we will be more attuned  to the Holy Spirit, since we are told to pray in the spirit in Ephesians 6:18 "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." 
When we are driving down the road, we should be praying; when we are sitting in class, we should be praying; when we are interacting with people we should be praying.  When our hearts and minds are prayerful, our words and actions will reflect that. 
There are two quotes on prayer that I just discovered and love.  When I am going through trials I will constantly be lifting up the situation to God, not because I don't believe He's not hearing me or that I am not leaving it at His feet, but more as an act of perseverance, and believing that what I am asking will come to pass.  R.A. Torrey said “Those persons who know the deep peace of God, the unfathomable peace that passeth all understanding, are always men and women of much prayer.” And one of my favorites, Oswald Chambers said “We have to pray with our eyes on God, not on the difficulties.”  Sometimes for me, being able to keep my eyes on God is when I am constantly praying to Him about a situations, whether it be mine or someone else's.  It also helps me have peace and believe that God will answer.
So I encourage you, always have a prayerful mindset.  It will help you battle temptations, bringing you closer to God, and have the mindset of Christ!