Abandonment is to give up that part of ourselves that is primarily concerned with ourselves. When the biblical David (the giant killer, poet, street musician, warrior, voyeur, adulterer, sage) returned to his city with the Ark of the Covenant, he danced at the front of the parade. He danced with joy and abandon and...pretty much naked. His wife berated him not for his exuberant dancing but for his exuberant dancing in front of the help. To her, his dancing was unseemly.
I admit I'd love to see who gets the freebie from the change I put back in the vending machine. Bit I take my cues from the mystery pie-buyer [mentioned earlier in the article] and leave. Abandonment is being able to live without acknowledgement, without the approval of the rest of the world. Jesus talked about those who prayed loudly in public simply so that others could see them pray. Jesus' suggestion? Pray in your closet.
So [we are encouraged] to...
- pray alone in [our] bedrooms,
- give without expectation,
- study the Bible only to get to know God--not to make life easier or happier,
- serve without thought of including it on [] college applications,
- praise a classmate for no reason, and
- make the coffee in the morning so Mom doesn't have to.
When we start to live without waiting for our thanks or acknowledgement, we free ourselves from the scratch-yours-scratch-mine mentality.
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Group Magazine, vol. 34, no. 4, p. 58
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