The below was sent by Jeff Landry for the start of the 2023 Louisiana legislative session:
Lord,
As we begin this new legislative session, we pray for guidance as lawmakers, representatives, and leaders.
There are many obstacles upon our path — as our State’s sovereignty is threatened by unjust laws, our voices are suppressed, our cities ravaged by violence and crime, and our children tempted to trade their innocence for a difficult life path.
We know that these are challenges that we can only overcome by joining together, Parish by Parish, to rebuild and restore our communities, which will help us revive our State. With Your guidance, may we weave a deeper understanding of these problems and receive clarity about the solutions we need.
Lord, please grant us the wisdom of discernment and fine-tune our instincts for truth. Please give us the courage to do what we know to be right, and the strength to weather the consequent storm. Please help us all commit to the betterment of our State through our decisions and with our actions, while showing respect for our differences of opinion and the sovereignty of each individual.
Please help us persevere as we make Louisiana a safer and more prosperous place for our children, families, builders, workers, and creators. Help us connect our children with a love of learning so that they might pursue dreams of a fulfilling career, while protecting their innocence from selfish motives.
Please grant us the ability to listen to our intuition rather than our egos, to reflect upon and honor our gifts, and to work with our innate humanity so that we might become the best that we can imagine. Through this, please bring us justice in the court system, fair laws within the Legislature, peace within our communities, and deep love for each other.
While we know the prayers of our mothers and grandmothers are still protecting us, we pray that you help us live by their example and create a better future for us all. This is our year to change our course, and we pray that we are able to seize the moment and not let this beautiful opportunity pass us by.
In Your Name we pray,
Amen
