Prayer of the Year

Father, thank You,
especially for letting me fly this flight.
Thank You for the privilege of being able to be
in this position; to be up in this wondrous place, seeing all these many startling,
wonderful things that You have created. Help guide and direct all of us that we may shape our lives to be much better Christians, trying to help one another, and work with one another rather than fighting and bickering. Help us to complete this mission successfully. Help us in our future space endeavors
that we may show the world that
a democracy really can compete… Be with all our families.
Give them guidance and encouragement
and let them know that everything will be okay. We ask in Thy name. Amen.

May 15-16, 1963, Major Gordan Cooper, USAF, stirred the world with his 22nd orbit in space. To Major Cooper, the experience was more than scientific. As he circled the earth he composed the following prayer, which he later read before a joint session of Congress. This Week Magazine, then the National Sunday Magazine with a circulation of over 14 ½ million, printed the words of Cooper on December 29, 1963, as “Prayer of the Year” What a wonderful way to express God’s greatness and man’s need for clinging to the Creator wherever we might be. This could be the prayer for us today. The Lord is still here though trouble is everywhere. Truly Psalm 19:1 rings true: “The heavens declare the glory of God: and the firmament shows His handiwork.” Till next time, Don Johnson, Kirby Pines Chaplain