A Letter from a PK to Her Pastor Dad

Dear Dad,

I want to take some time to thank you for all you do for me, our family, and our church. Your job isn’t easy — being both Father and Pastor — but it’s good, grace-filled, and God-glorifying. Your faithfulness in all spheres of life sings of a faithful Shepherd who always meets the needs of his flock.

You’ve loved me well. Through the terrible twos, years of teenage moodiness, and all the years in between, you’ve been present and patient. What a testament to your unconditional love.

Thank you for your faithfulness in little moments, redeeming meals and bedtimes to share the gospel with me. Thank you for teaching me sound doctrine at home, even when I complained that you were “preaching again.” I know now what a gift I have in you.

I think of Psalm 78:5-7: “He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded to our fathers to teach their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children so that they should set their hope in God.”

You’ve obeyed this command, teaching me the law of the Lord. By grace, I’ve set my hope in God. And your faithful fathering has been a means of that grace in my life. It still is, and I’m so grateful. Thank you for never being just my pastor. You’ve always, first and foremost, been my dad.

You’ve also been a faithful husband, showing me a humble picture of Christ’s love for the church as you love Mom well.

Because I’ve watched you, I know what it means for a man to lead, serve, and provide for his wife. Thank you for your example of sacrificial love that reflects the sacrificial love of Christ.

But you’ve not only shepherded our family well. You’ve also shepherded the local body God has called you to pastor. No pastor is perfect, but I’ve seen you live out 1 Peter 5:1-3:

“So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.”

Each day, when you lay down your life in little ways for your family and church, your life points to that of the Good Shepherd, who lays down his life for the sheep.

I love the church because Jesus has transformed my heart, but I know how to love the church because he made me your daughter, and I’ve watched you do it since day one.

Most importantly, you’ve held fast to the truth in the church and our home. Thank you for guarding the good deposit entrusted to you (2 Timothy 1:14), for preaching the Word instead of seeking to please the world (2 Timothy 4:1-5). In season and out of season, you’ve been faithful, seeking to live like Paul when he said, “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:1-2).

Dad, God gave you broad shoulders to bear the weight of your family and your flock, and you do it so well. Your life is a testament to the sufficient grace of Christ, and I’m incredibly grateful to learn from you up close. Happy pastor appreciation month! I hope you feel so loved because you are.