Truth and Transformation

Americans are in a "throw the bums out" mood. There seems to be a lot of anger about the "broken system." Our economy is not the only thing broken. Congress seems to be broken too.

But I'm more disturbed about the cause of the breakdowns than the breakdowns themselves. The breakdowns could turn out to be a blessing, if they are instrumental in waking us up to the cause.

Such an awakening would be miraculous, and this is the way it must be. For the kind of awakening we need can only happen through a move of God.

Vishal Mangalwadi, in his remarkable book, Truth and Transformation, writes: "Roots of corruption go deeper than individual leaders and regimes. Dethroning leaders or smashing 'the system' rarely does lasting good...Ultimately it is our inner life--our assumptions, values, worldview, desires, emotion, and attitudes--as well as our relationships, that need to be transformed."

Such inner transformation, Mangalwadi contends, only happens when people embrace the Truth revealed in a Book the West no longer takes seriously: the Bible.

If you only read one book this year besides the Bible, let it be Truth and Transformation. Some books are worth reading multiple times, and this is one of them. I have read it twice, so far. Chuck Colson calls Truth and Transformation a tour de force, and he doesn't use that description flippantly.

What makes Mangalwadi's work especially powerful is that it was written by a man born and raised in India. As a result, he sees more clearly than Westerners that we are throwing away the very foundation of our health and wellness--economic and otherwise.

In essence, Mangalwadi is saying to the West: Have you lost your mind? What are you doing?! Don't you realize what authentic Christianity has done for you and your society?

His writing is a plea from one who knows from personal experience in India what can happen when a society rejects Truth. His life was threatened (more than once), he was put in jail, and his parents were beaten because of decisions they made to live according to Truth.

I want to spend a few weeks on Mangalwadi's work because it has enormous implications for our economy, and for a return to meaning and purpose among followers of Christ in the workplace.

Stay tuned.