In May of 1976, George Jones and Tammy Wynette recorded the song “Golden Ring.” It is a song about a young couple in Chicago planning to be married. The young couple, just starting out, are standing in a pawn shop, looking at a wedding ring. The ring is not much, but it represents their hope for marriage and a future together. The chorus of the song goes like this:
Golden ring (golden ring)
With one tiny little stone
Waiting there (waiting there)
For someone to take it home
By itself (by itself)
It’s just a cold metallic thing
Only love can make a golden wedding ring
It is true that rings of gold do not make a marriage. It is love that makes a relationship work. Love is essential for all relationships. Love is the expression of God’s character in our lives. We see people as God sees them. We care for others as God cares for them. Love is what makes life special.
This past week, Shaquille O’Neal, the famous basketball player and TV host, was in an Atlanta jewelry store. Shaq was shopping for himself when he overheard a young man asking the cashier how much he owed on the wedding ring he had been paying for over time. The young man had no idea how his day was about to change. Shaq walked over to the cashier and handed him his credit card. He told the young man that the rest of the ring was on him. At first, the young man politely declined, but Shaq told him, “It is ok, I’m into making people happy. I do this all the time.” Shaq paid the remainder of the balance and went on his way.
Soon, this ring will be on the finger of a young lady who is about to start a new life with her husband. The ring is already special, because it was purchased with love. First, by the young man who was working to buy his bride a ring, and secondly by Shaq, who just wants to bless others.
Shaq was being interviewed about his act of kindness. He said, “This is something I do every day. I’m into making people happy. So, whenever I leave the house, I just try to do a good deed.” That is a worthy goal. It is the kind of goal that reflects the love of God.
I love officiating at weddings. It is a beautiful time, filled with hope and joy as a couple looks to the future with great anticipation. One of the special moments in the wedding ceremony is the exchanging of rings. When I ask for the rings, I always say these words, “The wedding ring is an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.” Among many things, the wedding ring reminds us of the love of God, a love that knows no beginning and no end. I hope today we will keep our eyes open to share God’s love, to offer hope to someone. Let us remember that it is love that makes life special. Look around. There are so many opportunities to be “an outward and visible sign” of the love of God for our world. After all, it is love that makes a ring… life special.
– Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
