As I write this I am on my way home from almost two weeks in the Philippines and Korea. This trip has impressed me in a number of ways. It was a special time because I was joined by my father as well as my son Daniel as we spoke to around 20,000 people across the Philippines. What seemed to impress people the most was not necessarily my or my dad’s preaching, but the fact that there were three generations of Blackabys ministering together. Daniel shared a number of times in front of thousands of people.

On our first day in the Philippines, we made a courtesy call on the president of the Philippines, Mrs. Gloria Arroyo, at her presidential palace. We gave her our books Experiencing God Day by Day, Discovering God’s Daily Agenda and Spiritual Leadership. My father prayed for her.

However, our visit with her coincided with recent revelations in the senate that massive corruption had taken place in government and even the president’s husband was allegedly involved. The former Philippine president, Estrada, had been forced to step down in 2001 while facing charges of corruption. Now, seven years later, his successor was being called upon to resign because of alleged corruption in her government as well. A few days later, a massive rally was held to protest the ongoing wrong doing in government. That same day, Daniel and I spoke in the afternoon at the City of Manila University to several hundred students about leadership. That evening my father and I addressed 1,400 Christian business people about God’s agenda in the marketplace. Several things impressed me. For one, pictures in the papers of tens of thousands of people protesting corruption and greed made it painfully clear that people have a chronic sin problem. When the “whistle blower” told the senate about the corruption, he acknowledged that he and most other government leaders routinely accepted kickbacks and payoffs, but he referred to that as “moderate greed.” However, what was happening now was going beyond moderate, acceptable, respectable, greed. The public was aghast.

What was particularly disappointing was that the nation had ousted two former presidents, Marcos and Estrada, for corruption, yet the problem seemed to remain. To a Christian the answer is obvious. Greed and sin are natural to people who do not know Christ. If this life is all there is, why not grasp all you can? Why care about others such as the poor? People can protest greed all they want but no rally will rid people of their innate greed or self centerdness. Only a divine encounter can do that. As we challenged the college students in Manila, I saw hundreds of young Filipinos who were entering into the same corrupt world their parents had become immersed in. Without Christ, they would one day be the ones making the headlines as they were caught in their own transgressions. That evening as my father and I challenged Christian business people to be salt and light in their marketplace and nation, it was encouraging to see hundreds of them make that commitment. It affirmed to me why BMI invests itself in marketplace ministries and teaching spiritual leadership. This world is looking for leaders with integrity and the younger generation is thoroughly disillusioned with those leading today.

Perhaps with all I experienced on this trip it was especially poignant to have my son Daniel with me. I earnestly want to live my life in such a manner that the next generation growing up in my home chooses to follow the same God that their parents and grandparents served. For those of us in leadership in the church today, the next generation is watching us. They see how faithfully we serve God. They observe how zealously we worship God. They notice how carefully we practice what we claim we believe. Christian sociologists claim that many younger adults have grown disillusioned with the church. Much of that is because they have not been impressed with the way the current leadership has led. My prayer is that we will always be aware that the next generation is watching and they are deciding much of their beliefs about God and the church based on what they see in us today. May they come away from observing our lives with an increased desire to love and serve God with all their hearts.

Reading

This past month I read two very different kinds of books. One is by Dietrich Von Hildebrand entitled, Transformation in Christ. Hildebrand was a Catholic leader in Germany during the rise of Adolph Hitler. He explores what the Christian attitude ought to be. While he writes from a distinct denominational and national perspective, his discussion is challenging for readers today. A second, very different book, is by Arthur T. Vanderbilt entitled, Fortune’s Children: The Fall of the House of Vanderbilt. It chronicles the decline and fall of the world’s wealthiest family over the course of four generations. It demonstrates the futility of building a family heritage on the basis of money. Commodore Vanderbilt sought to build a lasting tribute to himself by accumulating enormous wealth yet, even the world’s largest fortune could not survive long when his descendents succumbed to their greed and pride.

Posted by Richard Blackaby at 10:47 am