To pray does not mean to think about God in contrast to thinking about other things, to spend time with God instead of spending time with other people. Rather it means to think and live in the presence of God. As soon as we begin to divide our thoughts into thoughts about God and thoughts about people and events, we remove God from our daily life and put him in a pious little niche where we can think pious thoughts and experience pious feelings.

Prayer can only become unceasing prayer when all thoughts---beautiful and ugly, high and low, proud and shameful, sorrowful and joyful---can be thought in the presence of God. The main question is not so much what we think, but to whom we present our thoughts. ~Fr. Henri J.M. Nouwen