What kind of legacy do I want to leave my family? What character and vision and story do I want to instill in them? That is the inspiration behind this series of letters--an attempt to set down and share in words the values I hope to lead them in by example.
Alongside reading the Gospels (and the rest of Scripture) I would encourage my family to pray. These two activities go hand in hand. Each one on its own can feel a bit like a one sided conversation; together is sometimes as close as we can get to dialoging with God (though it may often seem a bit disjointed).
I will admit, this one is a bit harder for me to write. I'm not the best at praying, nor do I really understand how it works. Some days it feels like I've gotten into a rut, repeating the same words day after day almost mindlessly. Other days, I don't know what to pray or I just forget. I often wonder what prayer means for the God who knows everything. I suppose there are two or three things that I hold onto to anchor my belief in prayer.