The Power of "Amen": What does it truly mean?
What is the true meaning of "Amen?"
The Talmud translates it as, " a truth or belief." To take it one step further, according to the Jewish Encyclopedia, the definition is: a word used at the conclusion of a prayer, or in other connections, to express affirmation, approval, or desire. In essence, it is a confirmation of a truth or belief. It breathes life into our prayers, proclaiming them to be so in accordance to God's will.
Little rabbit trail here (my husband would be proud of this reference,lol): If anyone remembers Captain Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation, you knew that when Commander Ryker wanted to confirm an order with him, Captain Picard would always say, "make it so!" or "Make it so, Number One!" That was his way of confirming and carrying out the order(s). This is what the word "Amen" gives to our prayers. We are sort of like Commander Ryker when asking for prayers. We state our needs and desires for our life, and confirm them with an "Amen" at the end- asking God to "make it so."
2 Corinthians 1:20 proclaims, "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us."
What an awesome proclamation of God's promises! Not only that but it gives bold affirmation of our Amens!! With that said, what are you amen-ing into your life? Keeping in mind that positivity begets positivity and negativity begets negativity. You can choose to speak life or death into your life. Most of us would say, "Well, of course I want positivity in my life!" Okay, but are you actually speaking it into your life? Is it something you consciously think and say on a daily basis? "I say it to myself, but sometimes the little devil on my shoulder convinces me otherwise." That "little devil" is actually the Prince of Lies, himself trying to convince you that you don't deserve positive things in your life, you've sinned too much and God doesn't have time for a sinner's prayers or vain requests. ALL LIES! He wants you to think and speak negatively so that he can regain control. You can't let him! Your response to shut him up can go something like this: "NOT TODAY! NOT EVER!! Get thee behind me Satan and go back to hell from whence you came! In the Precious blood of Christ Jesus! AMEN!!!" God will make THAT so immediately! In fact, he takes great pleasure in granting that prayer request!
What you speak into your life is what you will experience. This can also apply to what you speak into others' lives. In other words, as scripture so perfectly exclaims, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may."(Eph. 4:29) God wants us to be uplifting, encouraging, and empowering when we speak of ourselves and others because in him we are worthy of that. He loves us more than we can possibly fathom and wants us to see ourselves and others as he sees us. He promises and desires wonderful blessings for us but we have to speak them into existence so he can breathe life into them. That is one of his favorite ways to say YES to us as his children.
Let's do a little exercise:
Get a pen and paper handy and draw a line down the center of the page.
On the top left put "Negative", Top Right -"Positive"
List some negative words you have said of yourself on negative side
List some positive words that you believe God would say about you on positive side
Compare the two lists. Which one was longer?
Continue this on a daily or weekly basis and see how your lists shift from day-to-day, or week to week.
You may just discover your positive "Amens" may begin to outweigh the negatives!
If you feel lead to share in the comments, I would love to see/hear some of your results!
Our "Amens" are "Yes" to him...proclamations, if you will, so that he can "make it so," Amen-ing his blessings, grace, mercies, and joy into our lives. Does this mean we will never experience hardships? Nope. Unfortunately that comes with the territory of being human. However, those hardships are when we need to look beyond and see the blessing...see the mercies...grace...drawing nearer to Christ all the while. He is silently amen-ing some amazing blessings for us, but in order to truly appreciate them, we have to be pruned a little so that we can grow in Him and experience the spiritual maturity and faith to know he always has our best interests at heart.
Blessings to you, My sisters in Christ! Now go and "Amen" encouragement, empowerment, and positivity. Speak life into yours and your sisters' lives and have a blessed week!!
Until Next week...
Aspiring Shulamite
