From the United States Congress to local municipalities, official meeting sessions are generally opened with a prayer. Often these are more directed toward the audience hearing them than Almighty God. Still, at the Lycoming County Commissioners Meeting on September 7th, Commissioner Chairman Scott Metzger opened the session with a prayer that spoke volumes. It deserves to be heard again:

“Dear Gracious and Loving God, we thank you for another day that you have granted us the gift of life. We pray that we will use it for your glory and magnify you. We think of Labor Day yesterday and pay tribute to the hardworking men and women that have built this great country. We pray the determination of the American worker, with your guidance, will lead us forward to further greatness. Meet the needs of those that labor each day to support themselves and their loved ones.

“Father, we draw nearer to 9/11. Let us never forget that fateful day 20 years ago that changed the course of our nation forever. On that day, evil was evident as innocent men and women boarded planes and went to work. Police officers, firefighters, and EMTs started their shifts. Their lives were snatched away in a blink of an eye. These were lives full of beauty, sacrifice, and promise. We remember the final calls made to loved ones. Husbands, wives, sons, and daughters leaving messages in those final seconds saying, ‘Tell them I love them’ and ‘I will see you someday.’

“On that day, we did not focus on a person’s nationality, color, wealth, sex, or religion. We focused on humanity, love, and people in need. We will never forget the ones that ran into those buildings to assist others in escaping. The true heart of a nation and humanity was revealed in its open hearts.

“We lost 3,000 civilians, 343 firefighters, 60 police officers, and eight EMTs. We have lost countless more since that day to the repercussions of those terrorist attacks.

“Father, we thank you that evil did not prevail, and we stood as a nation. However, Lord, we stand here 20 years later, a nation so divided in conflict and strife. We mourn the servicemen and women that were recently killed. We hear and see the horror that is going on in Afghanistan that we fought against. The same evil and hatred that consumed those 19 men that flew the planes into those buildings is now in so many in our country. That same hate that came from a faraway land on the other side of the globe is now manifesting itself from within this great country. Lord, do not allow our land to be torn apart with the same hatred that attacked us 20 years ago.

“We are Americans under one God. You have richly blessed our great land for nearly two and a half centuries. May we look to you to heal us in unity and love.

“Protect our land from any further attacks. Most of all, let us heal and unite in love as Americans. Do not let us self-destruct from the same hate that caused such loss and heartbreak 20 years ago.

“Now, Lord, we pray for your guidance today and throughout the days to come. These things we humbly pray in Jesus’s name, Amen.”

And may all God’s people say, Amen!