red light, green light.

some 'trusty' internet sources show that the average person spends about 5 - 6 months stopped at red lights in their entire lifetime; averaging at least 10 minutes a day.

we obviously must obey traffic laws so we are forced to waste all that time, right?
wrong. 

sometime when i was in high school, i read 1 Thessalonians 5 in my devotions. verses 12 - 28 grasped my attention. big time. my prayer life was right before bed if i didn't fall asleep first, maybe 5 minutes a night.  i was feeling a bit like a zombie.  i needed to know that God was hearing me but i struggled to invest in my prayer life.

in lands: verse 17: 'pray continually'. 

i started to examine aspects of my routine that are consistent.  now, i don't remember when this was (kicking myself for not documenting this kind of thing), but i must have been at least 16, because i was driving.  i started praying at red lights. now, i found it to be a bit rude to start ignoring my passenger or start praying over-top of anything that they might have been saying----so i only pray at red lights while alone. ha.

it began as just a prayer about who knows what; but i found it hard to focus.  eventually it evolved into specific prayer time for the authority & leadership in my life.  at that time it was my youth pastor and his family, but has continued to evolve as my leadership has evolved.

why am i sharing this with you? i'm actually a little uncomfortable, but this practical aspect of my life has dramatically changed my understanding of 'praying continually'.  i no longer just 'waste-time' sitting at red lights or doing other mindless tasks during my routine when i can add prayer to these things.  this does not replace setting aside time to pray daily, but improves my prayer life dramatically.  praying continually radically changes your life. 

so what about you? when is the last time you've improved the quality of your prayer life?  what in your routine is mindless and could use some spice of prayer? who can you be praying for?