And Now A Message From Our Sponsor

Of all the posts you will find on my blog, this one is the most important so please read on.

I work with someone who drove a diesel Mercedes for years. He was fond of that car because it was well engineered and would just keep running. I believe it was rust and not mechanical problems that caused him to stop driving it (Michigan roads + winter = road salt + rusty cars). I like a well engineered car as much as the next person so let me use that model for the sake of discussion. Let's say I wake up one morning and find a brand new diesel Mercedes in my driveway. First let me explain how it might have gotten there: Bill Gates develops AF, finds my blog using Microsoft Live Search (you think he would use Google?), considers the information here useful, and out of gratitude sends me a new Mercedes (thanks Bill - by the way, your wife has a good strong first name).

Back to the Mercedes - I could examine any part of this finely crafted automobile and come to the realization that it was the product of some very talented designers and engineers. I wouldn't have to go shake the hands of Hans and Frans to know they exist - the car itself is proof of that. Just like a building is proof that there was a builder and a painting is proof that there was a painter. This is the only logical and rational conclusion any thinking person could come to.

Now let me switch gears, so to speak. Before June 2006, I knew nothing of atrial fibrillation or the electrical system of the human heart. With all the reading I've done over the past 1-1/2 years, I still only understand a fraction of what makes a heart beat. There are articles out there that go way over my head dealing with the flow of potassium, sodium, and calcium ions in and out of individual heart cells. The human heart is truly an amazing organ.

Maybe you read my earlier post where I explained how AF is not life threatening - how a person can still survive with the top half of their heart essentially not working. Why would the AV node have a built-in safety mechanism that limits the ventricular response to atria that are quivering away at 300-400 beats per minute? A mechanism like this serves no purpose in a heart that is functioning normally. The existence of this mechanism does not fit an evolutionary survival-of-the-fittest model especially when you take into account that AF and other similar arrhythmias are much more common well beyond child bearing years (60-70's). You can argue that the reason is the refractory period is longer for the cells in the AV node but the basic question still remains - Why?

Consider this is just one of the systems that makes human life possible. Now study any of the other numerous complex systems of the human body, examine the intricate balances and interactions at the cellular level, puzzle about the order of development (which came first: the immune system or viruses?), and on and on. Apply the same rationale as you would if you stumbled upon a new Mercedes in your driveway, and there is only one logical conclusion you should come to.

Some wonder why there are diseases like cancer or conditions like atrial fibrillation if we were so perfectly engineered and created. Some theologians answer "because we live in a fallen world". I understand where they are coming from but lets go back to the Mercedes analogy for a minute. A brand new car may be perfect when it leaves the factory but it will develop problems earlier than normal if the owner does not change the oil at the recommended intervals or with the proper type. For a car this impact is limited to the single car. From what we understand about genetics, for humans this impact can span generations.

Please understand this is not about religion. This is about first realizing you and I are more than simply an accident, and second about seeking the One who created us and finding His purpose for our lives. But this does not stop with head knowledge. I have heard it said that the distance between Heaven and Hell is 12 inches - the distance between the brain and the heart. I hope and pray you will continue to search and come to this logical conclusion.

Next step: Save Yourself Some Pain

Spon·sor: a person who vouches or is responsible for a person or thing.

My sponsor is not Mercedes or Microsoft, He is Jesus Christ. I pray He is your sponsor too.

Dave