Special Recognition

When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him,
'Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; I want to stay
at your house today.' -Luke 19:5

The red plate is coming out at the Hamon house today. We are celebrating a birthday. We've had the red plate for years. The red plate has an inscription around the brim that says, You are special. I must confess as hokey as it may sound to you, it is something that has become quite a tradition for us.

Everyone likes to be recognized. We like to hear our name and have others notice something we have contributed if it is only another year of life. I believe that is why anniversaries of all sorts are important to us. Anniversaries help us recognize, not only milestones, but who we are and what we do.

Not all recognition is welcomed. Zacchaeus was a tax collector for the occupying Roman government. So, it goes without saying that he was unpopular. I would imagine that the recognition Zacchaeus usually received was negative. He was probably shunned by about everyone except his fellow tax collectors.

Along comes Jesus who gives him some hope that in spite of what he does, God recognizes him as a person of worth. This positive recognition made Zacchaeus happy. In fact it changed his whole life and the way he did business. He did not give up tax collecting, instead continued his career in a way that was fair and just.

I'm not claiming that the red plate will turn my life around. I do know this-it will remind me that I am loved and that alone will help me, at least for this day, to be more loving of others.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you for the reminders each day that you care for me. Help me to look for them in the small ways they often appear that I may accept your invitation to be fair and just in my treatment of others. Amen.

P.S. While you're waiting for that recognition from someone else, perhaps there is someone waiting to receive recognition from you.

Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana