[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 17]
[House]
[Page 23493]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 PRAYER

  The Reverend Dr. Ronald F. Christian, Pastor, Evangelical Lutheran 
Church in America, Fairfax, VA, offered the following prayer:
  Almighty God, all the peoples of the world call upon You for mercy in 
their times of need and all alike have access to Your succor.
  All the nations of the world seek Your favor but none have the 
promise of Your preference.
  We gather at this noontime hour to pray.
  We pray for wisdom in our decisions so that all may be served with 
justice.
  We pray for courage in our leadership so that our self-interests may 
not give way to halt the causes of peace and goodwill.
  We pray for temperance in our life and appetites so that the world's 
resources may be fairly distributed.
  We pray that justice may roll down in our communities like cool 
streams in a desert.
  Bless, we pray, all those who are in harm's way this day.
  Bless, we pray, all those who seek respite in the midst of strife.
  Bless, we pray, all whose hands are calloused from the day's labor.
  Bless, we pray, all who will harvest the grains of the good earth 
that we will soon enjoy on our dinner tables.
  Amen.

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