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Thank You, Father

In honor of Clergy Appreciation month, this is a message of appreciation to the various priests who have served to nurture the staff members of the Center for Family Care in the Orthodox Christian Faith, throughout life's various circumstances.

 

Thank you, Father

 

“Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 

for I was hungry and you gave Me food”(Matt 25:34,35)

 

Thank you, Father, for having regular Bible and Faith Study Groups. Through them, we grew in knowledge and wisdom, and in love for God and each other.

Thank you, Father, for distributing the Holy Gifts to us. Through your hands we receive provisions for eternal life, spiritual food for strength, and oneness with Jesus Christ.

Thank you Father, for the love you show to our children.  

Thank you Father, for your immeasurable love for all of us.

 

“I was thirsty and you gave Me drink” (Matt 25:35)

 

Thank you, Father, for not leaving me in my error, and guiding me to live a more authentic Christian life.

Thank you, Father, for always reminding our parish that the sounds of crying babies and rambunctious toddlers are good things to hear in church.

Thank you, Father, for your voice led us in worship with power - at times cracking with emotion. You proclaimed Christ’s sacrifice as a “voice crying out in the wilderness” of my soul.

Thank you, Father, for teaching us as children to fast and come to Confession. This instilled holy habits for our spiritual growth.

 

“I was a stranger and you took Me in”(Matt 25:35)

 

Thank you, Father, for welcoming me back into the Church with open arms after my years of painful wandering.

Thank you, Father, for being so intentional about welcoming us into the community.

Thank you, Father, for coming to the hospital to bless our newborn baby.

 

“I was naked and you clothed Me”(Matt 25:36)

 

Thank you Father, for seeing the good in me, and helping me to see it in myself.

Thank you, Father, for putting me to work in the parish. You encouraged me to be an active member of the Body of Christ.

Thank you, Father, for tirelessly serving the poor and inspiring me to do the same.

 

“I was sick and you visited Me”(Matt 25:36)

 

Thank you, Father, for visiting and ministering to my dying grandfather while also comforting and guiding our family through our sorrow.

Thank you, Father, for visiting our child in the NICU and anointing him with holy oil and your prayers.

Thank you, Father, for reading prayers over me before I went in to surgery.

 

“I was in prison and you came to Me.” (Matt 25:36)

 

Thank you Father, for the time you spent with me when I was experiencing a lot of anxiety.  

Thank you, Father, for being with us in times of our family’s sorrows and trials.

Thank you, Father, for patiently listening to my confessions and being a source of accountability for me.

Thank you, Father, for returning contempt with love, showing us by example how to “turn the other cheek”. (Matt 5:39)

 

Thank you to all the clergy of our Church for being instruments of God’s grace: through you we hear His voice, feel His love, partake of His Heavenly Kingdom, receive forgiveness of sins, instruction in the Faith, and encouragement to fulfill our true purpose as members of His Body, the Church.

You are appreciated, you are loved, you are prayed for. Thank you, Fathers.