The Main Point by Michael Main

Saturday, April 10, 2004

SEEING THE WORLD THROUGH A DIFFERENT LENT

Lent is ending.

Tomorrow our small church will forego Sunday school and instead have a pot luck breakfast. There will be food aplenty.

In the past, I have reveled in piling my plate high on Easter Sunday. This year I think will be different. I plan to restrict myself to fruit and choose one small food item to savor as a reward for adhering to my Lenten pledge.

This Lenten season has been especially good for me, coming at a time when I needed to make more room in my life for God.

I still have room to spare.

TESTIMONY

I mentioned a few days ago that the author of the Jesus Tribe blog was soliciting testimonies from Christians for a testimony webpage he's developing.

One of the folks who stops in here on occasion has passed along his story. It is very powerful and very much worth reading.

Friday, April 09, 2004

WANTED: MODERATE MUSLIMS TO SHARE...HUMANITY.

Where are the moderate Muslims?

I receive regular emails from Muslim groups. Without fail they point out what they consider to be the unfair treatment of people of their faith. Oftentimes they are right, but invariably they also seem to minimize the brutal treatment of those who do not share their beliefs. Brutality often at the hands of other Muslims.

One such email arrived this afternoon.

In part, it was a reprint of a Boston Globe article.

MUSLIMS IN U.S. VOICE CONCERN ABOUT IRAQ

You can follow the link for the full story, what I've listed below has been edited by me for the sake of brevity.

Muslims on Long Island signed a petition condemning
the American bombing of mosques in Iraq, while worshippers and clerics at
Friday prayers around the United States worried that the war is getting out
of control.

After their weekly service at the Islamic Center of Long Island, 200
worshippers signed a petition to President Bush. It not only condemned
military actions at mosques, but urged the president to "bring home our
boys and girls."

At the Islamic Center of America in northwest Detroit, Imam Hassan Qazwini
said that millions in Iraq and around the world were happy to see the
collapse of the regime of Saddam Hussein.

But, he added, the situation there hasn't improved and "the coalition
forces are moving from one mistake to another."

"Yes, we condemn the killing of innocent people, and there is no
justification for this kind of massacre," he said, referring to the slaying
and mutilation of four American contractors in Fallujah.

"But there's no justification for killing women and innocent children,
there is no justification for attacking mosques...We have to respect the
Muslim community."

I agree with that last statement...we have to respect the Muslim community.

But is this the best they can do?-
"we condemn the killing of innocent people......but there's no justification for killing women and innocent children."

Until perhaps the early 1970's, the Ku Klux Klan was a force to be reckoned with in the South. Brave people of color stood up against their hatred for decades. It cost thousands of them their lives. People of the Jewish faith also were quick to denounce the KKK and their courage can not be understated.

Today the KKK is not really a threat to anyone, except perhaps themselves. I don't believe many people take them seriously. Klansmen are bigots who play dress up games and wallow in their mutual ignorance.

What brought the KKK down?

Please understand, I don't want to minimize the contributions and valor of the very people these bigots persecuted, but I think what truly made the Klan a group more to be giggled at than feared, was the decision by moderate Christians to stand up and be counted. Protestant leaders boldly saying, "These are not my people. This is wrong. We not only denounce their actions, we will fight them with every tool of justice possible." Christians who held fast to their beliefs and were willing to die for them.

The Klansmen were exposed...as cowards.

I wouldn't begin to say I understand the Islamic faith, but I have seen their spokespeople.

I know this sounds harsh, but I can't name one who is a moderate.

The spokespeople I see for Islam are caught on camera mutilating Americans. They boast of blowing up Israelis. They rejoice in the deaths of innocents, and a rare few occasionally offer wishy washy statements with only passing caveats about "condemning killing of innocents" couched in messages bemoaning their own perceived injustices.

It's not enough for me.

I'm tired of it.

Where are the moderate Muslims - the ones who truly adhere to their faith and are willing to proclaim loudly their disassociation with all forms of violence?

Have you seen them?

I haven't.

Stand up and be counted if you're out there.

I understand your fear. You will pay a price.

It's a price that has been paid before by many, many others, but it's not without reward.

MORNING HAS BROKEN

I came into work this morning to be greeted by the chaos of the night. A teen boy was dead - a victim of street racing. Witnesses say he was going very fast trying to outrun another car. Only a few miles from our home he lost the race...and his life.

He hit a curb, sailed through a wrought iron fence and into an oak tree, which toppled over from the force of the impact. He died in his daddy's red mustang. The other racer drove away.

Moments later a police source whispered to me over the phone that I might want to contact another officer as soon as possible. I called that officer, who was not ready for media inquiries, but he confirmed that a 17 year old gang member accused of running over another teenager was in custody. The boy had been the subject of an overnight manhunt.

It was a gruesome case. Witnesses say the victim was literally torn apart on the pavement as he was dragged for 900 feet under the suspect's car. He screamed most of the way.

The screams stopped when he lost the ability to breathe...when he lost his life.

It was a sad morning, but I have come to understand the mistakes of the young are too often fatal.

Another story that broke here this morning was somewhat different. It involved a fire at a convenience store. I knew when I heard the alarm it was the work of arsonist. Convenience stores don't usually catch fire, yet four in San Antonio have been torched in the past month.

All of the stores are owned by Muslims.

The fires prompted members of the Muslim community to demand action. They've been joined in their outrage by people of many faiths, and many colors. Rightly so.

In this incidence, a suspect was caught, so perhaps we can put this ugliness aside.

The community worked together to find out who was setting these fires, and catch him.

It seems like common sense doesn't it?

Thursday, April 08, 2004

QUIET TOOLS

I learned today a friend's cancer has returned.

Many months ago, when I asked for prayer for my cancer stricken sister-in-law, this woman, whom back then I had only recently met, quietly came to me. She held my hand firmly and looked into my eyes as she said, "I am a cancer survivor."

It's a message she has repeated to me on several occasions...occasions when she perceived I needed to hear it. She was right.

She has provided me with hope, inspiration and courage; and she has done so with placid dignity and determination.

Now however her cancer is back, and as is the nature of this insipid disease it has silently wormed its way into several areas of her body.

She will fight, but her odds are not good. She knows that.

My friend is a calm woman. She has never wanted recognition or attention and she doesn't want it now.

So I will pray in subdued silence...but I will pray a lot.

Mine will be prayers for mercy and healing, but also prayers of thanksgiving.

The cancer may rob my friend of her life but it will not ever steal her true strength.

One day I will hold her hand as I pray. I will look into her eyes and tell her, "You have been a tool of God in my life...I am better for knowing you."

ALL WORK AND NO BLOG

It's been a tough week, and there's still work to be done. Alas, blogging must be sacrificed again today.

Maybe I'll have time this weekend to enjoy some quiet reflection.

Wednesday, April 07, 2004

A PLUG FOR JESUS TRIBE

It was a beautiful day today, but I'm tired now and don't really have time to express my appreciation for all its aspects in writing. Perhaps tomorrow. I did receive an interesting email from the author of the Jesus Tribe blog who is embarking on an interesting project. He's dedicating a portion of his website to the collected testimonies of Christians. Somehow he found mine and asked to link to it. I think it's a wonderful idea, but he needs more Christians to write out the details of their individual journeys. Check it out at this site.

Spread the Word.

Tuesday, April 06, 2004

SO THAT'S WHAT THE MARCH HARE DOES IN APRIL...

"But I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked.
"Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."
"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here."

I've learned no longer to be surprised by the insanity associated with the practice of medicine, yet some days it's hard to suppress my befuddlement.

This afternoon I took Amy to see a new doctor, a hematologist - a blood specialist - who was called in to give his opinion on Amy's relatively minor case of anemia.

The appointment was for 12:30.

I was preparing to wait in the waiting room, having brought crossword puzzles and a book, but soon after Amy was called back into the inner sanctum of the place, she poked her head out the door and asked me to join her. Little did I know I was entering the medical equivalent of a rabbit hole.

Amy escorted me from the waiting room to the "sub waiting room". Really...that's what it was called.

While sub-waiting I noticed a sign on the staff desk in front of us. I'm sorry I couldn't get a better picture of it - Amy has this aversion to me doing embarrassing things even when we're ensconced in the rubber Ramada.

I know that's too blurry to read, but this is what the sign says:

ATTENTION PATIENTS

In order to shorten your wait time we ask you to arrive 15 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment....

Immediately below that, on the same sign it reads:

EARLY AND LATE APPOINTMENTS

To accommodate all patients we ask that you arrive no earlier than 15 minutes before your scheduled time. If you are going to be late to an appointment, please notify staff in advance.

The way I read this, if your appointment is at 2, that really means 1:45...but if you show up at 1:43 you are in violation of the rules for being too early, if you are there 14 minutes before your appointment you are late.

There was actually another sign right next to this one that warned patients would be charged a 25 dollar fee if they failed to show up for a scheduled appointment without giving 24 hours notice.

I promise I checked to see if there was an entryway directly into the asylum from the sub-waiting room, but I couldn't find one.

We arrived for the 12:30 appointment at 12:30 (it was our first time; we didn't know that 12:30 really meant 12:15). We weren't fined or even scowled at to the best of my knowledge.

By the time we got through the waiting and sub-waiting rooms into an actual room where Amy was to be seen by a doctor it was about 1:30. When the doctor poked his head in, it was 1:50. That would be 1:35 hematologist time, and I believe 7pm in dog years.

I should mention before we arrived at the doctor's office Amy was required to fill out about 30 pages of information about her medical history, and she was asked to bring with her all of the drugs she is currently taking. I had the passing thought that perhaps there might be a bellboy available to help us carry those, but that was not to be. At least I didn't have to worry about tipping.

When the doctor finally entered the room, the one beyond the waiting and sub waiting rooms, he sat down and so help me the first thing he said was, "So why are you here anyway?"

Amy blinked. I suppressed conflicting urges to giggle and strangle him. I tried to be as polite as possible but I couldn't help but mention that I was under the impression he might at least have read Amy's chart or some of the 30 pages of information she had been required to fill out. I stopped myself from adding that even if he hadn't read it before our appointment; he had an extra 90 minutes to cram. I also resisted the urge to rummage around in Amy's suitcase full of drugs and look for something that might put me on an equal playing field.

With a straight face the doctor said, "Well it's probably all in the charts here, but why don't you just tell me."

So, we spent 15 or 20 minutes (or a split second in the land that time forgot) outlining Amy's entire medical history only to then have the doctor nod and condescendingly define anemia for us.

After about 20 minutes of analogies along the lines of "if this room were a red blood cell and the room next door was another red blood cell", the doctor finally mentioned that he thought he might run some actual blood tests. I smiled while gently nudging Amy to prevent her from snoring.

I suppose we accomplished something today. I'm not sure exactly what, but we did all agree to return for another appointment in two weeks, which by my calculations will actually be 11 days when you account for the difference in time zones between here and the land through the looking glass.

Monday, April 05, 2004

EVERYDAY MYSTERIES

Random questions from a rambling mind....

Why do people rush like mad to get to work...and then complain about their jobs?
===
Why does anyone take up smoking anymore? I can sort of understand people who are in their 40's or older smoking. I still remember the Marlboro man, and still recall the jingle, "Winston tastes good...like a cigarette should". I can blame Madison Avenue I suppose and justify folks from my age group and above being addicted.

For the life of me, it's a complete mystery why anyone in their 20's smokes. For their entire lives they have known of the proven dangers of smoking. That doesn't even take into the account the cost. When I was a kid cigarettes where 50 cents a pack; I smoked for many years before quitting in my late 20's. Even then I think I was paying less than a dollar a pack. Now the price for cigarettes has to be close to 3 dollars a pack. If you're a pack or two a day smoker there literally are drug habits that are cheaper.

It's expensive. It makes you smell bad. It turns your teeth yellow, and there's a good chance it will kill you.

Yet I still see young adults everywhere smoking.

Amy and I don't go to many bars, but I recall on one occasion being in a bar playing darts and noticing that every single person in the bar, including the waitress and the bartender, were smoking. We were the only non-smokers.

Maybe smoke clouds your brain.
===

Why do people wait endlessly to get into a parking space that is perhaps 30 feet closer to a store entrance than another spot down the row? I see this all the time. I'll drive into a parking lot and there will be someone patiently waiting for another driver to pull out. Sometimes it takes 5 minutes or more, but they'll wait. To the best of my discernment, these people are not handicapped in any way, and there are open spaces only a few yards away, but still there is something about getting the closest spot. What that is, I don't know.

I've given some people the benefit of the doubt, moms with a passel of young kids, older folks who perhaps don't qualify as handicapped but for whom walking is still a chore. I can even justify it if the weather is really bad, although if it's pouring rain, you're really going to be about as wet if you dash 20 feet to your parking space or 80. More often than not though, the weather is beautiful and I wonder why anyone wouldn't enjoy having a few extra moments in the sun before having to deal with the doldrums of shopping or the looming menace of traffic.

I don't get it, but every time I go to a store, there is always someone waiting...waiting for that special spot.

We all need our space I suppose.

====

Why do drivers in heavy traffic insist on getting around the car in front of them, when they can see full well that there are a bunch of other cars all packed together only a few yards ahead and this pattern repeats itself over and over and over again for miles?

I've been in a hurry plenty of times in my life...and certainly I've been frustrated in traffic, but this idea that somehow your situation will improve if you can only zip around the guy in front of you seems rather short sighted. These drivers must realize there is another pack of cars right up the road which they'll have to contend with, even if they succeed in bypassing the group that is seemingly frustrating them at the moment.

Maybe they're blind, in which case I suppose I should be happy to concede the right of way.

I'm not talking about getting around the guy who is doing 45 in the fast lane. I'm talking about people who will insist on getting by you, no matter how fast you drive.

I've conducted my own non-scientific studies.
I've driven the speed limit, 5 miles over the speed limit, 10 miles, 15 miles, even 20 miles over the speed limit, and still the car behind me will almost always try to get around me. Oftentimes when they succeed they'll realize how fast they're going and quickly slow down to something within the range of sanity, but not until they have removed the offending view my back bumper.

These days I try to avoid the fast lane altogether because it's apparent you really can't ever go fast enough.

Maybe it's something instinctual - the mentality of the alpha dog in the pack.

I guess one day we all have to learn, no matter how hard you try to get around life, there will always be someone up ahead of you, sticking their tailpipe in your face.

Sunday, April 04, 2004

SUNDAY QUICK NOTES

Thunderstorms are pushing through. Daylight saving time is about to wreak havoc on my already fragile sleep schedule. In addition to having new duties I'm still trying to work into my routine at the office, I have a co-worker taking Monday off, so I'll have to do part of his job. I probably shouldn't spend too much time writing tonight.

I figure that's enough excuses to simply post a couple of pictures of today's service.

Palm Sunday. Each year the littlest kids are given palm branches and prance around the congregation as we sing.

Simple traditions.

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