[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1606]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 PRAYER

  Reverend Rudy Stevens, United States Army, Pinehurst, North Carolina, 
offered the following prayer:
  Lord, too often, we Americans back home forget to pray for our 
leaders here in D.C. Forgive us, Lord. For those assembled here in the 
people's House, I pray that You give them courage, strength, and 
wisdom.
  Give them courage from our convictions, strength from Your spirit, 
and wisdom for the future. For here decisions are made: choices that 
shape circumstances of years, if not generations, of all Americans.
  All the way from California to North Carolina that airborne chorus 
sounds off loud and strong with, ``This land is my land, and this land 
is your land.''
  And it is here in this room that chorus hits the ground and finds 
harmony reminding us that from many, we are one, one Nation under God 
that seeks liberty and justice for all, for all the fatherless and the 
oppressed.
  So, Lord, hear our prayer and keep these leaders wise, strong, and 
courageous.
  In Jesus' name, amen.

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