Dannah Gresh, Secret Keeper Girl
There was a young man who’d grown up on an almond farm in California. He didn’t want to be a farmer, so he asked his wealthy father for some money and left home. He left with a bad attitude. He found himself adventure in the form of a lot of sin. Eventually he realized how awful his life had become and how very much he missed his father. But he had become so worn out and broken. Of what use was he to his family now?
He sent his father a note. It said, “Father, I’ve sinned, and I want to come home. At 1:00 tomorrow I’ll be on the train to come home, and it goes right past one corner of your orchard. Please cover one tree with a white sheet if I am welcomed. If I don’t see it, I’ll just stay on the train. Your humble son.”
The next day, as the train neared the property, the son began to weep. He was so distraught he couldn’t get himself to look. So, he asked an old man sitting nearby, “Sir, in a moment we’re going to round a bend and you’ll see the most beautiful orchard imaginable. Could you please look to see if one of those trees is covered in a white sheet?” The kind old man agreed to look. In a few moments the old man said, “Son, I think you need to see this for yourself.” As far as the eye could see, every tree was covered with a sheet.
That’s how very much God our Father loves you, my friend. There is NOTHING you can ever do to make Him love you less. While He does not desire for you to know the pain of living without Him and filled with sin, He’s always ready to welcome you back.