The Spirit of Abandonment

In the 5th-6th century in Ireland there were monks who were called the Peregrine. These monks would get into a little boat off the shores of Ireland. The boat had no rudder or oars. They only had a sail. They trusted God to send the winds to take them where they were supposed to go. Their adventures were awesome. We must too have that Peregrine spirit. We must have that spirit of abandonment to Him and His purposes.

In 1966, Jackie Pullinger, at the age of 22, left Britain after sharing her heart about missions with a minister-friend. He told her that she should buy a ticket for a boat going as far as she could get and pray to know when to get off the boat. She arrived in Hong Kong, which in the 1960s was not policed and consequently had become one of the world's largest opium-producing centers ran by Chinese criminal Triad gangs. She established a youth club to help drug addicts and street-sleepers. She saw over 500 addicts set free. This is the result of the spirit of abandonment.

Paul has a vision of a man asking him to come over to Macedonia and bring the gospel. Upon arriving at Macedonia, things turned upside down. Paul and Silas ended up in jail but an earthquake happened and the jailer and his household became believers. They moved on to Thessalonica and trouble followed them. At Jason’s house they met with some devout Greeks and a large number of the chief women. The people of that city exclaimed, “These that have turned the world upside down have come here also!” (see Acts 17:6) The early believers were upside-down people. They were containers of oil and they inverted themselves so the power of God would flow out of them.

The spirit of abandonment was in the heart of Paul as he traveled the world going wherever the Spirit led him to go. It was in the heart of people like Abraham who left his fathers house for an unknown land. It was in the heart of David as he danced with all his might before the Presence of God in the streets of Jerusalem. It was in the heart of Elisha as he sacrificed his oxen and followed Elijah throughout the country. Scripture is full of people that lived lives of abandonment. They allowed their lives to be turned upside down not even considering the lack of comfort as being important. Some were tortured. There were those who experienced mockings, scourgings, chains and imprisonment. Others were stoned, and some were sawn in two. They were tempted. They were put to death with the sword. They went about in sheepskins, and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, and ill-treated. These were men and women of whom the world was not worthy. Many of them wandered in deserts and mountains and caves and lived in holes in the ground. (see Hebrews 11:35-38)

Abandonment was in the heart of the women who poured the oil on Jesus. When they poured oil on the feet or head of Jesus it was an act of great sacrifice. (see Luke 7:36-50 and John 12) As an act of their worship they gave all. In one of the stories it was a street woman and in another story it was Mary, the sister of Lazarus. Each of these ladies had to abandon their concerns and hesitancy because of the certainty of criticism. The alabaster box of sweet scented oil was worth a year’s wages. The seal was broken and the fragrance filled the house. Mary poured it upon Jesus. She stepped into her Kairos time and poured it out with abandonment. She didn’t miss her opportunity. This happened close to the time of His crucifixion and many believe that Jesus still smelled this fragrance on the cross. Contrastingly, Mary Magdalene came early in the morning to anoint Jesus’ dead body but she got there too late. He had already risen.

The pouring of oil in scripture was an act of adoration and worship. It also represents the anointing or power of God. In the parable Jesus told, five of the ten virgins ran out of oil. They were powerless. Another way of looking at the oil is to see ourselves as the container. We carry the power of God given to us by His Spirit. The only way to get the oil to flow out of a container is to turn it upside down. It’s the same way with us. The only way to get the power of God flowing out of our lives is to live an upside down life. If we are always careful to do everything right-side-up we will never flow. If we never dare to be different, we will never flow. If everything in our life has to be in order and pleasing to our friends, we will never flow. If we are stuck in a box called comfortable, we will never flow. God is looking for upside-down people.

Power always depends on the position or alignment of the container. This is a season to check and double-check our alignment. Are we in the place where God has called us to be? Are we at the right workplace? Are we a part of the group of believers God has called us to be a part of? The times of just working at any job and going to just any church is over for those who want to flow. We need to seek the Lord for direction in the smallest to largest things in our lives. If we are not flowing, it is not an oil problem but a container problem. Are we inverted? Are we upside down?

The beauty of the container is not that important. It might be bent or old. It’s all about what is flowing out of the container. A beautiful container sitting on a shelf is somewhat useless. An old ugly coal bucket turned upright and allowing coal to flow from it to the furnace is productive. I recall the prophecy that Robert Whitlow spoke over me about 12 years ago when we first met. He said I was like an ice cream salesman with all kinds of ice cream. The people were not so excited about me as they were the ice cream. The street woman’s name was never recorded, but what she did has been preached all over the world in all generations. God is ready to use a nameless generation. This is a generation that has power coming out of them instead of a desire for popularity. The power of big time names is coming to a close in the kingdom of God. The Christian popularity show is over. Jesus is the name above all names and that is being restored. Rejoice.