Often have I thanked my Maker for the greatest blessing of my life— your example & instructions in all the duties I owe to God, and my neighbour. They have not been lost upon me;
Explanation:
1. Timothy Pickering was an Adjutant General in the government of George Washington when he received a letter from Massachusetts that his father was dying. He then penned down the words in the letter above. This excerpt from the letter showed the great respect Timothy Pickering had for his father. There he thanked God for the example of his father and the instructions which he gave him. He also said that he had not forgotten these efforts of his father.
2. I think he included this in his letter to reassure his dying father that he appreciated all his efforts and contributions to his life that made him the man he was in the society then.
