Ceaselessly

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus in you. 
What exactly does it mean to pray without ceasing? It's funny, I was talking to my crazies about this the other day.  I am always telling them to pray for stuff, from lost socks, to meets, to good weather.  And they have been wanting to pray more at bedtime instead of letting me rattle off our usual "Thank you for today, keep us safe and healthy" speech.  Every so often one of them will announce they want to pray for their new sister.  Which of course warms my heart and encourages me so much.  So then when bedtime prayer time rolls around and they ask me what to pray for and I suggest our impending adoption or for their new sister, I usually get "I already prayed that."
Thus begins the discussion on praying without ceasing.  Bookie can tell me what ceasing means, not surprising since he reads so much.  Which leads to Little Guy to declare he can't pray without ever stopping, that's impossible!
Praying is simply talking to God, we all know this, and hopefully we do this every day.  I try to, and some days I feel like I am just having a run on conversation with Him throughout the day.  But it is so easy to just get into a prayer rut I think. Thank you for today, keep us healthy, help me find my keys, phone, and make my 3 hours of sleep feel like 10....  We are instructed in the Bible to "ask, and it shall be given to you" So does that mean being specific? I think so!  And ceaselessly so! Pray until you get an answer, pray until mountains are moved, pray until your faith grows so enormously God's call resonates through your very soul, and you have no choice but to pray without ceasing!
I believe prayer should lift us up, regardless of what we are seeking Him for.  It should restore our soul.  It is an intimate and beautiful thing, and it is for every one, not just those who are "good" at it, but the rough, and abrasive, the frenzied mom who wants a little peace, and especially my crazies whose hearts are so big they can't imagine God not blessing them with another little sister.