Start with Amen
How I Learned to Surrender by Keeping the End in Mind
- Prayer & Spiritual Formation
- Publisher: W Publishing Group (Thomas Nelson)
- Published: 2017
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Publisher's Description
One power-packed word: amen. Millions of Christians all over the world say this word every day. Yet few realize what richness, depth, truth, and connection are packed into this sacred phrase. Throughout the centuries, Christian tradition has taught us to end prayers with amen. But the Bible is full of stories and passages where God’s people started their prayers with amen. Why? As Beth Guckenberger shows, amen is more than just a way to punctuate a conversation with the God of the Universe. Amen is a declaration of who God is and who we are in relation to him. It is a moment of submission and worship, saying “So be it” to a Sovereignty that holds all things, and acknowledging “It is as you say” to him who holds our lives. In Amen, Beth unpacks all the Bible has to teach us about the moment we say amen to God. Using key scripture passages mixed with fresh teaching and personal stories, she invites readers to experience the richness they’ve been missing. Amen is more than just a word. Amen is a full invitation from God packed with all that he requires from us and all he longs to bestow upon us as his beloved children. As Beth writes, “He is beckoning us all. Come to me. Learn my ways. You are my child, whom I dearly love and bought with a price. The God of Amen rescued you so you can echo amen back to him. God intended this word to be a moment of intimacy, drenched in reverence, replete with peace—the moment when you rest in him and are rejuvenated by him. There is so much more he wants to give. Amen.” If Christians long to be truly connected to their Creator, they must begin with amen. For, as Isaiah 65:16 says, “Because he who is blessed in the earth will be blessed by the God of Amen.”
Endorsements (8)
“From the first to the last pages of Start with Amen, you will see how God links his dream for us to his vision through us! You will experience new thirst and expectancy for receiving the ‘hidden wealth of the secret places’ (Isa. 45:3) and realize—I pray as never before—that for you, just as for Beth, the secret place is the secret to life in all its fullest. As you review the subtitles of every chapter and get to the very last, imagine there is an added chapter—an epilogue—that you yourself will write as your part of this story, and its subtitle is this: The Invitation of Amen! I pray your RSVP says ‘YES!”
Dr. Susan Hillis
“Start with Amen was an inspiration and eye opener. For me, the word amen is used to describe something I do to close a prayer or offer thanks. But as she points out so eloquently, it was intended to describe a spiritual position before God—a start of something, not just an ending. This book is part study of the Scriptures, part illustrations—with real life examples—that bring to life practical ways to put Scripture to work, and a whole lot of inspiration. Prepare to be challenged. Beth constructs Start with Amen in a way that inspires you to not fall into orphan thinking but to realize that God cares about everything you do. A great read for those looking to go deeper with God and to be inspired by someone who lives that out every day.”
“All my life I’ve prayed and put a period at the end of amen. After reading Start with Amen, I’ve experienced a new revelation about how to begin my conversations with God. Beth Guckenberger leads you through the practice of beginning with the end and how it immediately aligns your will with his. Sacred in every way, she testifies that this place of oneness is where even what can’t be seen causes your heart to swell with supernatural confidence and hope. Beautiful and praiseworthy, this work is filled with the immeasurable possibilities that follow when you utter your amen to God first—for his glory and his glory alone.”
“I have seen firsthand the fruit of Beth’s prayers. I have spent time with her and her husband in Monterrey, Mexico, and I’ve seen the way that Back2Back has made an impact all over the world. Beth’s heart is always open to God and his love for those who have been pushed to the margins in our society. In 2007 I rode my bicycle across the country to benefit orphans. That trip was born out of one of Beth’s prayers that I would let God use me in a way that went far beyond what I could dream or ever expect of myself. Beth makes space for God in every aspect of her daily life, and these prayers are born in that sacred space. They are prayers that change lives, including mine.”
“Amid the noise of a groaning world and our own aching hearts, Beth Guckenberger helps us hear the Heartbeat at the center of the universe, pulsing with love and mercy. The guidance Beth offers is not speculation; it is godly wisdom rough-hewn from the sorrows, sacrifices, and joys found only in long journeys of faith, near to the heart of Jesus.”
“Beth is an amazing storyteller, and this book is no exception. She has a wonderful knack for captivating the reader with her personal life stories and intertwining them with the timeless treasures of God’s Word.”
“In her new book, Start with Amen, Beth unpacks Old Testament and New Testament truth about our covenant-making, promise-keeping God, who can be trusted with our full lives surrendered to his ways. Beth, through incredible story, personal transparency, and intimacy with Jesus, walks the reader to the place of freedom and power that Christ intends for us to enjoy. Beth’s book is a proclamation of what surrender and unflinching obedience to the God of all power can yield in the life of the reader. . . . Enter this book with great expectancy to experience greater faith, new hope, freedom from fear, and a fresh ability to trust our all-loving God.”
“While reading Start With Amen, I realized how much my mind and heart needed reconditioning. Like hair that gets dry and brittle from overexposure, so my spiritual walk needed this reboot and reminder that God waits to do life for us and through us. Our energy needs to be refocused on resting in his provision. Starting our days, our appointments, our challenges with amen helps us orient our minds and wills to let God be the ‘I am’ in the everyday. Thanks, Beth, for being used of the Spirit to comfort, convict, and clarify in this profoundly simple revelation.”
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