In Jesus' name I do not pray

"In Jesus' name I pray, Amen."

This is how my family and I finish our prayers. Every prayer. Be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner, before we sleep or before examinations. Before devotions and after family discussions. This is how I end my quick thankyou's, my hurried please's and my long, drawn-out chats with God.

"In Jesus' name I pray", I say, but I might as well not. Because I rush through it. It no longer means anything to me. It's turned into "the end", a signal that we can start eating, or unclasp our hands, or raise our heads.

It means "okay, done" or "that's it" or "c'est fini". I sometimes don't even say it, because I think that it's a "given", that once I've expressed my wishes, God already knows what's coming, and so "in Jesus' name I pray" is unnecessary.

Agh.

I've been horribly misguided, and it makes me very angry that I have created for myself this habit of speeding through these five words, because they mean so much.

I know I've quoted it a lot, but I'm going to quote it again. "In Jesus' name I pray" - what does this mean?

It means what it says. It means that everything I have prayed, everything that I have said to God, I swear by God's name. It is a promise that all my words are spoken to Jesus, for Jesus, because I believe in Jesus.

It is not affiliated with the word "amen". They are not a single sentence. They are two separate things.

When I say "In Jesus' name I pray", I am promising God that I have spoken sincerely to Him. And when I say "amen", I fortify this statement by declaring that "I agree". So twice, I have sworn to God (literally) that I have prayed a righteous, genuine, Godly prayer.

But more than that, "in Jesus' name I pray" also screams God's grace and promises to us. It is a privilege that I can pray to God. I'm currently reading the Old Testament, and only priests could talk to God. Only the anointed could go into the tabernacle, only the anointed could even touch the house of God.

If we were living in the Old Testament, then we would not have the right to say anything in Jesus' name by virtue of the fact that we're simply too unholy and unclean. (Also, yes, Jesus hadn't been born yet.)

We were given this blessing - not this right - when Jesus died on the cross for us.

When I say "in Jesus' name I pray", I'm telling the story of His crucifixion. I'm spelling out to myself, to God, to everyone who hears me, that I'm speaking to a real, merciful God, because He loved me enough to send His son to die for me. I'm sealing my agreement with Jesus' death and resurrection.

The gospel is in these five words. The promise of the gospel is in these five words. The covenant between me and God is in these five words. And a covenant isn't just an oath. A covenant is a loving promise of a relationship.

So yes, by all means, let us pray in Jesus' name. Not because it means "the end", but because it means "His love never ends".