Today we conclude our prayer model with the final word "Amen." Too often we see this as just the way to end a communication with our God. However the word amen has a far greater importance than just a way to tell God we are through talking with Him. John Wesley said of the word amen: "Signifies an hearty assent and approbation, and withal an earnest desire of the thing, to which it is annexed. Amen means that you are agreeing with what has been said and that you desire the things prayed for to come about.
Amen implies 4 things:
1. A belief of all that we have said about God and ourselves is true;
2. A wishing and desiring to obtain all that we have asked for and sought;
3. A confirmation of our confessions and professions and promises made to God;
4. The hope and sure expectation of the acceptance of ourselves and that our prayers have been heard.
Don't say "amen" and make it an empty ritual; it is a word of great significance and power. When you are saying "amen" you are concluding your address to Almighty God with faith that it shall be done according to His Word and Will. You now have the complete prayer model: invocation, adoration, confession, petition, pleading, profession, thanksgiving, blessing and amen. Develop your prayer life around these concepts and you will avoid the ditches on either side of the road: formality or praying without preparation and focus. May your prayer life never be the same.
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