Are you familiar with the song, Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree? Some of you may remember the original story line. It’s about a man who was sentenced to prison, served his time and was coming home by bus. He wasn’t sure whether the woman he loved would accept or reject him. So he wrote her a letter asking her forgiveness. He requested that if she could forgive him and welcome him home, she should tie a yellow ribbon around the old oak tree at the entrance to town. That way, when he arrived on the bus from the prison, he would know, if there was no ribbon there, that he should just stay on the bus and ride on.

On the long trip home all he could think about was what he would see. He shared his story with some of the people on the bus. When the bus finally pulled into town, all the passengers erupted into cheers. The old oak tree had not one yellow ribbon, but one hundred yellow ribbons tied around it. Instantly he knew that she not only forgave him and wanted him, she wanted him home with all of her heart.

And that’s what it will be like for those of us who have given our hearts to Jesus Christ. Only we don’t need to wait until we die to find out if Jesus wants us. The Bible says that if we believe in Jesus and ask him to forgive our sins, he will forgive us and will welcome us into his heaven some day with a million yellow ribbons!