One cannot always meditate, but one can always enter into inner prayer, independently of the conditions of health, work, or emotional state. the heart is the place of this quest and encounter, in poverty and in faith. –CCC 2710

The role of place and time in contemplative practice is uncharacteristic of how we might typically relate them to prayer. Consciously or unconsciously, many people tend to think of there lives in terms of “in prayer” and “not in prayer.” When I pray my Rosary, say grace before a meal, offer a bedtime blessing, go to mass, or have my 20-minute prayer period, I’m “praying.” Otherwise, I’m “not praying.” The above teaching from the Catechism almost completely reverses that understanding. Dedicated times and places of prayer are important, but not because that's where the “stuff” of prayer really happens. Rather, the dedicated prayer times and spaces or the dress rehearsal, the simulation, the practice arena for the life of prayer, which is lived at all those other times! The “prayer space” is the place where we learn to welcome and let go of everything that comes to us in a spirit of surrender, and the rest of life is where we do the surrendering! Only this understanding of prayer makes any sense of St. Paul’s imperative to “pray unceasingly” (1 Thes 5:17). And yes, it is true that the Church points to the mass as the highest expression of communal worship – but we must not lose sight of the fact that worship reaches its pinnacle when we stop “saying prayers” and finally act, taking and eating!