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 to him, "Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house." And he came down quickly and received him with joy. When they all 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."

Introductory Prayer: Confident that you hear the prayer of a humble heart, I come before you Lord in faith to encounter you in the cross road of my life. Increase this faith to believe I am in your presence. May this act of faith in your good will, strengthen my hope that you have the grace I most need today and that this hope in you will provoke me to love you above all else.

Petition: Jesus Christ, I ask for the moral courage to venture out of my comfort zone; trusting that what I leave behind is nothing compared to your friendship.

1. Jesus and I. The first lines of the gospel initially seem to present us with two stories: one of Jesus and another of a tax collector by the name of Zacchaeus. Two men supposedly on two different journeys; and yet as we read on for both it is the same journey. Jesus was in effect not going through the town [of Jericho]. Our blessed Lord was searching for that soul for whom he had aroused an anxiousness and restlessness of soul. He is like that hound of heaven which pursues each soul where they are at: physical location and circumstances but moreover spiritually. We can insert our own name in this passage. Christ desires this personal encounter with me. He wants me to welcome him into my house, to dine with him and to be my personal guest. Haven't I experienced this anxiety, restlessness of soul in the quiet moments of my downtime? Christ seems just to drop into our busy ordinary lives. He cant wait for us to plan a better time according to our time table because he knows that time is now. Lord, I believe I am in your presence now and I want to receive into my heart. I cannot receive you sacramentally in the Eucharist, but I welcome you at least spiritually into my heart.

2. Standing Around. The desire for all prayer originates in the initiative of God. He places in our soul this thirst for him to be satiated in that personal encounter with Christ. He calls but we have to go out and meet him. Prayer and pursuing Gods will, hence, require us to be tenacious. Moreover, in the measure of intensity in which our Lord is prompting our soul with actual graces, consolations, spiritual insights and a yearning for a greater commitment in my relationship with him, we need to work assiduously with grace to overcome difficulties. Dryness in prayer, lethargy, lack of commitment above all when it comes to leaving our comfort zone are some of the typical difficulties that may present themselves. Just because obstacles are put in the way, does not mean that those spiritual promptings which touched our soul are now no longer from God, nor His will for me. We have to see difficulties in prayer and in the fulfillment of doing what I am led to believe as Gods will manifested to me as opportunities to demonstrate our love. Zacchaeus stood his ground when it appeared Christ might not dine in his house. Rather than resign to the opposition, he emboldened his resolve to work through the setbacks. In this way, he proved to Christ the degree of his love. Is my faith inert when difficulties arise or is it operative to the point that I can repeat with St Paul what can separate us from the love of Christ

3. Giving it all to Christ. Pope Benedict in an address to the youth once said: Do not be afraid of saying yes to Christ, he takes away nothing from our freedom and gives us everything. Zacchaeus is exemplary of this attitude of total confidence in Christ. He is a free man and exercises the height of his freedom in complete abandonment to God. What led him to do such a bold act of faith and trust? Zacchaeus had everything by the standards of his time: wealthy, influence and power. Yet he was more ambitious. Christ proposed to him his friendship. This intimacy with our Lord was the missing treasure which Zacchaeus resourcefulness which made him wealthy and powerful could not attain on his own. Intimacy with Christ can only be attained by a personal invitation and a proportionally generous response. We can say that Zacchaeus stumbled upon that hidden treasure in the field and realizing so was disposed to sell everything to attain it. What is my attitude towards the open invitation of intimacy with Christ? Am I attached to anything that may hold me back from welcoming our Lord into my heart: sin, selfish desires, perhaps even a timetable for God to act as He would wish? Zacchaeus gave it all in a blink of an eye. He was shrewd and knew the value of friendship with Christ was greater than anything else. In recompense scripture records those blessed words, Today salvation has come to this house, because this too is a son of Abraham. Lord Jesus, I too want to give you whatever you ask so as hear these words said of me.

Conversation: Who am I Lord that you should be mindful of me? You have encountered me in the path of life and desire my friendship. What is holding me back from giving it all to you now? Sometimes I feel that fear of what will others say if I just launch out like Zacchaeus risking everything for your friendship. Help me to over come any self consciousness, vanity or insecurity by holding ground in that belief that to posses you is to posses the greatest treasure, the source of my happiness.

Questionnaire:

1. Do I make time habitually in the day for real intimacy in prayer? Am I aware that without seeking silence for reflection, my life is filled with a flurry of concerns of the world and I block out the occasions for encountering Christ in the crossroads of my life. How can I change this? Do I feel the need like Zacchaeus to venture out to find what is the source of my restless and anxiety of heart?

2. What is faith for me? Is it passive or is it an attitude that God is faithful to his promises to the one who perseveres under trial? Do I realize that discouragement is from the devil and next to mortal sin is the greatest enemy of the soul? How has God tested my love in the past and did I seize those opportunities as invitations to manifest my love or did back away from those difficulties disheartened?

3. Am I content with being a good person or do I want to be a saint? What does this mean practically for me? Each day am I actively seeking to grow in my generosity with Christ so that our friendship is daily enriched and more intimate? Can I consider a friendship where there are limitations of my love? What perhaps might please Christ most today if I were to offer him? Lord I would give you anything in return for assurance that you call me your friend.