[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Page 3308]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 prayer

  The Chaplain, Dr. Lloyd John Ogilvie, offered the following prayer:
  Almighty God, Sovereign of history and personal Lord of our lives, 
today we join with Jews throughout the world in the joyous celebration 
of Purim. We thank You for the inspiring memory of Queen Esther who, in 
the fifth century B.C., threw caution to the wind and interceded with 
her husband, the King of Persia, to save the exiled Jewish people from 
persecution. The words of her uncle, Mordecai, sound in our souls: 
``You have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.''--Esther 4:14.
  Lord of circumstances, we are moved profoundly by the way You use 
individuals to accomplish Your plans and arrange what seems like 
coincidence to bring about Your will for Your people. You have brought 
each of us to Your kingdom for such a time as this. You whisper in our 
souls, ``I have plans for you, plans for good and not for evil, to give 
you a future and a hope.''--Jeremiah 29:11.
  Grant the Senators a heightened sense of the special role You have 
for each of them to play in the unfolding drama of American history. 
Give them a sense of destiny and a deep dependence on Your guidance and 
grace.
  Today, during Purim, we renew our commitment to fight against 
sectarian intolerance in our own hearts and religious persecution in so 
many places in our world. This is Your world; let us not forget that 
``though the wrong seems oft so strong, You are the Ruler yet.'' Amen.

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