I was rereading an article by Paul Cain in a 1992 issue of The Morning Star. It was entitled, The Annointing vs. Respectability.
Cain states that in every move of the Spirit, there are four stigmas attached to the anointing:
Stigma #1. Embarrassment. This stigma is not tolerable for those who are self-seeking and pretenders. After all, who really wants to be embarrassed, right?
Stigma #2. Being Misunderstood. When we take up our crosses, we too must accept being misunderstood if we are to carry out the very purposes of God. Those who insist on being understood most likely will separate themselves from the anointing.
Stigma #3. The Occasional Requirement to be Set Aside. Are we willing to look like nothing for a season until God makes something out of nothing? Are we willing to wait, like God is willing to wait, for His name to be vindicated? Jesus will be vindicated for eternity; and it is better to wait for eternity to vidicate us than insist on it in this life.
Stigma #4. Being Defenseless. It is embarrassing and awkward when you cannot defend yourself, when you know that you are right about something, but God does not allow you to defend yourself because He has a higher purpose.
Cain’s article causes me to search myself and count the costs. Do I really want to embrace the mess and look foolish in this new move of the Spirit? Do I want to be misunderstood by those people I love and have fellowshipped with over the years?
Sometimes, my answer is an absolute yes. Sometimes, it’s a definite maybe. And sometimes, it’s just “wait and see.”
But what about you, which do you want respectability or the anointing?
Swimming Upstream appears at this blog site on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It’s a little of this and a little of that, all written to encourage and exhort believers in their Christian journeys.
Larry Who 
There are those who ignore Paul Cain because of his mistakes. To me, that’s sad. If we ignore messengers who have sinned then what do we do with people like King David? His sins were so great that he should have been stoned. Do we cut David’s psalms out of our Bible? How ridiculous!
Thank God for grace, right?
I enjoy reading the profound messages Paul Cain has given over the years. They totally encourage and exhort me…and isn’t that what they are supposed to do?
So, God bless Paul Cain and use him in a mighty way to advance Your kingdom. Amen.
There’s one thing the writer failed to ask, and since I tend to think in triplicate, that would be being liked. Anointing, respectability, or acceptance. Any group wants to be liked and Christianity is no exception. Youth will break every rule and take every risk to be accepted and liked. We have something to share and don’t really get it when we’re spurned. What — you don’t want to die for your faith? What’s wrong? Oh, okay, you don’t have to change anything. We can compromise. That’s how churches go cold. Who wants to be shunned even by strangers?
Jane,
Good point. Thanks.
Very sobering.