Also by this author: The Boy Who Shared His Sandwich, The Easter Fix, The Dad Who Never Gave Up, The Dad Who Never Gave Up, The Little Man Whose Heart Grew Big, The Christmas Surprise, Little Me, Big God: Stories about Jesus: Eight True Stories from the Bible
Published by Good Book Company on October 1, 2021
Genres: Children's, Bible Stories
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Zacchaeus ran as fast as his little legs could run, and climbed as high as his little arms could reach. Why? Because Jesus was coming! Discover what happened next and how everything changed for Zacchaeus.
In this engaging retelling of the meeting between Jesus and Zacchaeus, young children discover how Jesus came to save people whose hearts are small, and to make a way that they can be friends with God.
Notes for parents at the back help to explain the details of this account from Luke 19:1-10.
The Little Man Whose Heart Grew Big is a simple retelling of the story of Zacchaeus in language accessible and appropriate for young readers and bright, bold illustrations. Steph Williams gets to the heart of the story, using Zacchaeus’s size as a metaphor for the size of his heart. He’s a “little bit little” but has a “very BIG pile of money” that he’s gotten by being unfair and collecting too much money from the people.
When Jesus comes to town, Zacchaeus wants to see, so he climbs up into a tree where Jesus notices him and that’s when everything changes. He doesn’t grow in size, but Jesus teaches him to grow in love. It’s also suggested that Jesus being friends with Zacchaeus isn’t something that the other people would look kindly on. Maybe their hearts were just a bit small, too. But Jesus tells the people that anyone can become God’s friend, and he had come to save people whose hearts were small.
It’s a story stripped down to simplicity and told with passion and authenticity. Instead of filling the background with a bevy of colors and sets and movement, the book opts for a simpler background, usually a single color, forcing emphasis on the story’s characters. The storyline is singular and precise, simply and clearly telling the Gospel and Zacchaeus’s response to it. The Good Book Company has always shined with its children’s books and this is no different. It’s a must-have for your little one’s library or Sunday School bookshelf. And from a business standpoint, they’re priced very reasonably—perfect for picking up a dozen or so and sharing with all the little ones you know.