Zacchaeus, come down quickly…
November 19, 2024
Dear Family of Mary!
Today, our Gospel Reading is about Zacchaeus! I love this story! Zacchaeus is not someone you would expect to be interested in Jesus. He was rich and a tax collector. He didn’t need anything in worldly terms, so why was Zacchaeus so interested in seeing Jesus? Maybe his curiosity came from a deeper feeling that he had, the feeling that there was more to life than all that the world could offer him, and that he needed to look for more.
And boy, did he find more!! He found everything in Jesus!!
Luke 19:1-10
At that time Jesus came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town. Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man, was seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see him because of the crowd, for he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus, who was about to pass that way. When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” And he came down quickly and received him with joy. When they saw this, they began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”
Zacchaeus found what he was looking for in Jesus! And it changed his relationship to all worldly things. His wealth no longer had a hold on him.
But this worldly perspective lives on. Our Lady warns us of it in her messages. She has come to free her children of that same addiction to worldly things. She wants us to look for the wealth that will last, eternal life!
Here is one such message:
November 25, 2011
“Dear children!
Today I desire to give you hope and joy.
Everything that is around you, little children,
leads you towards worldly things
but I desire to lead you
towards a time of grace,
so that through this time
you may be all the closer to my Son,
that He can lead you towards His love
and eternal life, for which every heart yearns.
You, little children, pray
and may this time for you
be one of grace for your soul…
Thank you for having responded to my call.”
Let’s follow our Mother to a time of grace, so that we will all be the closer to Jesus!! Like Zacchaeus, we will find everything we could have ever desired!!
God bless you all,
Cathy Nolan
Mary TV
