My love for my kids is beyond words. Every day that I live with them, I discover more and more beauty within them, more love within them, and more love within my own heart. It seems that kids awaken the inner world of love with the parent. My own sense of prayer has changed dramatically as I have been a father. I "long" for my children to be well. I "long" for my children to be happy, to meet friends, to speak, to behave, to be silly. In essence, I want them to represent "me." It might sound selfish, but actually, I think you could get this same response from a lot of parents. And this is why I think being a parent deepens prayer. The Father God wants His children to experience His life, His vitality, and His pleasure, which is played out in our own relationships with our children and our families. God always seems to work in families. Even monastics are married to Jesus. They know that at their chore, they are in relationship. Relationship. As I love on my kids I see our relationship develop. I see our trust gel. I see so many things that remind of God and His love for me, and His joy in seeing me pray, in seeing me living the life that is like His.
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