Letters from a Hospital Bed is a series of reflections by Jim Houston, now entering his 100th year, in which Jim seeks to capture and reflect new insights of his ever-discoverable God, revealed through his own hospitalization, for the encouragement of all care givers.
January 27, 2022
Dear Friends;
Editors Note: This week, we thought it was only right and real for us to reflect the current reality for Dad. While he has been working on his writing for Easter, he has been quite challenged in this last phase of lockdown for the Omicron variant because of the lack of visitors. He has some engagement through emails and phone calls, but in the absence of in-person interaction, we notice that he struggles to remain present in a current sense. In the next few weeks, we will share some material that he has been working on for a while and we wondered about starting that this week, but we realize, as his friends, he can be with you as he really is which is more withdrawn and under-challenged by the routine of his daily life. The other day, he talked about being bored with the routine. I can’t remember ever hearing our Dad say he was “bored”! Never in over 60 years! We find that he thrives on the stimulus of questions, of invitations to address a question or an issue. As many of you know who have invited him to write or lecture on a subject, he heads off in all kinds of different directions than you may have intended, but the question is an on-ramp and Dad has been missing his familiar ‘on-ramps’. Like booster rockets, inquiry fuels his engine and then it kicks into high gear, still, to this day. So, for this ‘letter’ we thought we would just share where we are all at and invite your questions, your stimuli to Dad, to enquire his reflections on a subject or an issue. Feel free to post below, or send by email. In this way, we shape a dialogue, around, not from, his hospital bed.
With thanks
Jim's family
Dear JIm,
We face lots of tribulations and sufferings in our life, Indeed you have too. Can you share with us how you feel and look at them now that you are in your 100th year?
Blessings,
James.
Dear Jim, next week I will be traveling to Albania for about two weeks to teach in Bible school. there. I wonder if you have ever been to Albania or traveled near that area? I would love to hear any stories or interactions you may have had on such trips.
Geordie Ziegler
Dear Jim,
We miss you at Breakfast and often reflect on things you said and did. I do not wish to burden you, but if you are up to a challenge, Earthkeepers - Christians for climate justice could use a hand. Can you help us get the message out to churches that the Church should be about earth keeping for the sake of creation and creatures that are beyond just groaning, for the poor who suffer from what us rich have triggered and mostly for the glory of God. Blessings to you Jim - I pray for you daily.
Jim, I am thinking a great deal about the importance of creativity and how we reflect the image of our Creator in this respect. Maybe it could be put this way: As Christians, what makes for good art?
Dear Jim,
Yesterday a friend and I were talking about the complexity of our life’s journey with the Lord. There are times when, in the daily battle for the Kingdom, we experience his presence and other times we feel his absence. My friend asked me if I ever read Psalm 23 and the first 24 versus of Lamentation 3 together. I hadn’t. So we did. I would read a versus from Psalm 23 and he would follow by reading from Lamentations. It was a brilliant exercise! Afterwards we agreed life is both the expressions of David and Jerimiah at the same time. Not one or the other but both. I’m not sure where I’m going with this thought yet…