Men Ought Always to Pray and Not to Faint

MEN OUGHT ALWAYS TO PRAY AND NOT TO FAINT -- (House of Representatives - November 14, 2007)

[Page: H13946]

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The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Broun) is recognized for 5 minutes.

Mr. BROUN of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, Luke records in his Gospel that ``men ought always to pray and not to faint.'' That's in Luke 18:1.

I believe in the power of prayer, and I should note that the power of prayer is beheld in the One to which we pray, God Almighty.

Yesterday, my Governor, Sonny Perdue of Georgia, hosted a special prayer service at the Georgia Capitol to pray that the Lord would provide rain for our drought-ravaged State. Governor Perdue wisely recognized that a request such as this must be made to a higher power, and I commend him for his humility and wisdom in calling on God to provide what man cannot provide.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Jeremiah 33:3, which states ``Call unto me and I will answer thee and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.''

The book of Hebrews, in 14:16 states, ``Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.''

We are a needy people, in desperate need of God's mercy and grace. Throughout Scripture, we are commanded to pray and seek God's face, not as a last resort but as the first order of business.

My home State of Georgia is facing one of the most severe droughts in its history. Our rivers and reservoirs are at record lows, and many of our communities face water shortages that could challenge their ability to meet water supply needs in the near and distant future.

The situation has gotten so bleak that the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, EPD, has declared a Level 4 drought response across the northern third of Georgia, which prohibits most types of outdoor residential water use. In fact, many nurseries and outdoor plant suppliers are going out of business because of this.

Worse yet, many forecasters are calling for a dry, mild winter that could result in serious water supply problems by spring.

I've had the privilege and honor of working with my fellow delegation members in a truly bipartisan effort to come up with practical responses, such as conservation and water management, to Georgia's water crisis. Despite our best efforts in Washington and in Georgia, there's no legislative solution to this problem. The issue at the heart of our drought problem is a severe lack of rain, and there is nothing that government can do to change that.

The Apostle Paul tells us to make our requests known to God with thanksgiving, so I gratefully acknowledge what the Lord has done for us already and boldly call upon Him to show favor on us yet again by sending rain to my beloved State of Georgia. God has not failed us before, and I'm confident He will not fail us now in our time of need.

At a time when religion has been continually forced from the public square, I want to offer my sincere thanks to Governor Perdue for his bold and faithful trust in the Almighty. His efforts helped unite hundreds of Georgians from all walks of life, leaders and citizens from varying faiths and denominations, races and ages for this prayer service.

So I join the Governor and fellow Georgians in calling out to God to provide rain from heaven, and I pray that the Lord will give wisdom and discernment to the Governor and each of us in leadership positions to address the drought and its devastating effects on our State and our citizens.

So I pray, Lord, You are sovereign and completely in control of all things, and I acknowledge Your awesome power and authority.

All things are in Your control, and nothing is too small or too great to bring before You. When you walked on the Earth in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, You spoke and stilled the waves and calmed the winds. You spoke into the existence, the heavens and the Earth. You created man in your image, and I know you can alleviate the severe drought conditions we face in Georgia.

So Lord, I ask in the name of Jesus that you bring down rain from heaven and refresh our land, fill our reservoirs and dry lakes and streams. I pray that You will quench our parched land, and I implore You, Lord, to show mercy upon us and to see us through this difficulty and show Your awesome hand in moving nature to suit Your will and bless Your people that call upon Your name.

Thank You, Lord for all that You have done and will continue to do for us. And I pray this in the precious powerful name of our Lord and Savior, in the name of Jesus Christ I pray this. Amen.

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