Today we talked about a few stories from Luke. One, found in Luke 19, is the story of Zacchæus, who was chief among the publicans, rich, and "little of stature." When Jesus comes, Zacchæus tries to see him but can't because he is too short. So he runs ahead a bit and climbs a tree. When Jesus passes under, He looks up, sees Zacchæus, and says that He will dine in Zacchæus' house. Zacchæus recieves him joyously, and promises to give half of all he has to the poor and to restore anything he has wrongly taken away {in his job as a publican this happened a lot} fourfold. Though the other people call him a sinner, Jesus says that this day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."
One of the lessons I learned from this story is that we all have weaknesses, but I don't need to let these keep me from seeing the Saviour. I may be a little short in some areas, but that shouldn't stop me. I can show a little gumption and determination and "climb a tree" if necessary to get to my Saviour. I would imagine that Zacchæus lost a bit of his dignity as a grown man climbing a sycomore tree, but getting close to Jesus was more important to him. Is it most important to me? How desperate am I to get to Christ?
Another thing I learn is that we are never lost to the Saviour. How often is a person walking along when they just randomly look up to see if a person is in the tree above them? Jesus knew exactly where Zacchæus was at all times. We are never lost to him. We are never insignificant to him. We matter to him. "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."
In the most recent General Conference, President Uchtdorf gave an awesome talk called You Matter to Him. He said:
"I often felt... insignificant, unknown, and quite alone. Even so, I never once wondered if the Lord had forgotten me or if He would ever be able to find me there. I knew that it didn’t matter to Heavenly Father where I was, where I ranked with others... or what my calling in the Church was. What mattered to Him was that I was doing the best I could, that my heart was inclined toward Him, and that I was willing to help those around me. I knew if I did the best I could, all would be well... [The Lord] knows where we are, no matter how humble our circumstances... At times we may even feel insignificant, invisible, alone, or forgotten. But always remember—you matter to Him!... No matter where you live, no matter how humble your circumstances, how meager your employment, how limited your abilities, how ordinary your appearance, or how little your calling in the Church may appear to you, you are not invisible to your Heavenly Father. He loves you. He knows your humble heart and your acts of love and kindness... Brothers and sisters, the most powerful Being in the universe is the Father of your spirit. He knows you. He loves you with a perfect love. God sees you not only as a mortal being on a small planet who lives for a brief season—He sees you as His child. He sees you as the being you are capable and designed to become. He wants you to know that you matter to Him."Awesome, right? And so, so true. :)
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