[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1943]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 PRAYER

  Chaplain William E. Dickens, Jr., 445th Airlift Wing, Wright-
Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, offered the following prayer:
  Father, we acknowledge that all blessings come from You. I ask that 
You give the men and women who serve this great Nation from these desks 
wisdom, courage, and discernment to make decisions that are honoring to 
You and right for this country.
  Presently, there are soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines deployed 
around the world in harm's way. Father, I pray that You will keep them 
safe, give them purpose, guard their hearts from loneliness and 
despair, and bring them home soon. For their families, I pray that You 
will comfort them and meet all of their needs. For those who have given 
their lives in defense of freedom, words cannot express our sorrow and 
our gratitude. May our actions honor their sacrifice, and may Your 
peace comfort their families.
  Father, for this great Nation, I pray that it will continue, under 
Your blessing, to stand as a beacon for goodness and a bastion of 
freedom. May we understand the message of Your scripture: ``To whom 
much has been given, much will be expected.''
  In Your precious name I pray. Amen.

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