Sunday (October 31): "Zacchaeus
made haste and received Jesus joyfully"
Meditation: What would you do if Jesus knocked on your
door and said, "I must stay at your house today"? Would you be excited
or embarrassed? Jesus often "dropped-in" at unexpected times and he often
visited the "uninvited" — the poor, the lame,
and even public sinners like Zacchaeus, the tax collector! Tax collectors
were despised and treated as outcasts, no doubt because they over-charged
people and accumulated great wealth at the expense of others. Zacchaeus
was a chief tax collector and was much hated by all the people. Why would
Jesus single him out for the honor of staying at his home? Zacchaeus
needed God's merciful love and in his encounter with Jesus he found more
than he imagined possible. He shows the depth of his repentance by deciding
to give half of his goods to the poor and to use the other half for making
restitution for fraud. Zacchaeus' testimony included more than words. His
change of heart resulted in a change of life, a change that the whole community
could experience as genuine. The Lord is always ready to make his home
with us. Do you make room for him in your heart, your home, and in
every area of your life?
"Lord, come and stay with me. Fill my home with your presence
and fill my heart with your praise. Help me to show kindness and
mercy to all, even to those who cause me harm."
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