[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Page 10778]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 prayer

  The guest Chaplain offered the following prayer:
  Eternal God, our Heavenly Father, we come to You in solemn prayer as 
our Senate opens its deliberations for this day. We express our deep 
gratitude for the unmeasured blessings You have bestowed upon this 
Nation. We honor our Founding Fathers whose sacrifice and wisdom 
birthed this Nation under Your divine guidance. We marvel at the 
unbroken success of this experiment in democracy.
  We bow in gratitude for the protection of Your Almighty hand through 
all of our wars, from Valley Forge to Baghdad. We thank You for the men 
and women, both past and present, who have served so nobly in our Armed 
Forces. We ask Your comfort for all of the families who have suffered 
in our latest war.
  Where we have broken Your commandments, forgive us. Lead us in the 
uncharted waters of the future. Guard our hearts from pride. As we face 
the great issues of our time, may we be mindful of Your holy laws and 
our accountability to You, our righteous Judge. May You guide the 
deliberations of this body. May we seek to do justice and walk humbly 
with our God. Long may our land be bright with freedom's holy light; 
protect us by Thy might, great God, our King. All of these favors and 
blessings we ask in the name of our Lord. Amen.

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