In my early days as a newborn Christian, I was an experienced CB'er and Ham radio operator. As I was rejoicing with Jesus one day, it occured to me that when I close a prayer with "amen", that I was effectively saying "over and out" as in CB and HAM lingo. Well that really disturbed me. I never wanted to break that connection in any way. It is the link to the greatest joy in the universe, and in no way was I ever going to break it. So I quit using the word "amen".
Later, I asked the brother who led me to Jesus just what the word "amen" meant. He said that a wise old Christian brother explained it as meaning "In Christ, all things are sealed". That made me feel a little better, but still just a little uneasy about it.
As the years passed, I gradually came to better understand the meaning of "asking without doubting" and decided to end my prayers with "In Christ Jesus, so be it". "So be it" to me sounds very positive. For me it seems to instill faith in that what Jesus and I discussed is as good as done. "So be it". Sounds pretty positive to me.
Hmmmm. It just dawned on me that "all things are sealed" and "so be it" are pretty much the same. Thanks Dad. Be blessed my brothers and sisters.
What a neat way to bring new life to what some might see as just an old habbit.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside or in addition to these thoughts, a wize minister once said something to this effect: when you add, "In Jesus' Name" to the end of your prayer, its not tacking a good luck charm at the end just to seal the deal. Its effectively signing the Name of the Son of God to the bottom of your pettition. What you need to ask yourself is this: Would Jesus sign His holy Name to this prayer if He was writing it in a letter to His Father? Is this the kinds of things Jesus would ask His Father for? Selah!