Mary Marzec was waiting at a Tampa bus stop with her husband. The grass had grown very thick and overgrown the area, and was scratching Mary s legs. Mary swatted away the blades of grass from her legs, and accidently whipped her wedding ring off her finger and into the brush. She had wore that ring for over sixty years, and now this eighty-eight year old woman was on her hands and knees searching for the ring that meant everything to her. However, she had no success in locating the ring, so she went to the Chevron station on the corner and borrowed a pair of scissors. Mary cut the tall grass and crawled franticly searching for the ring. Her husband finally said, ‌Come on lets go. I ll buy you another ring.‍ Some times we husbands just don t get it do we. She shouted back, ‌I m not leaving until I find my ring.‍ A sheriff s deputy happened by and noticed this aged woman crying as she crawled through the thick grass. He had a business card of George Kollmer, a local treasure hunter who owned a couple of metal detectors. Unfortunately before Mr. Kollmer could arrive the Marzecs had to leave for an appointment. When Mr. Kollmer arrived he asked the gas station clerk where the ring had been lost, and the attendant waved out toward the bus stop bench. In a patch of overgrown grass between the sidewalk and a utilities box, Mr. Kollmer's detector got a hit. "Within 10 minutes," he said, "I had it in my hand." He called Mrs. Marzec, and then drove straight to their house with the ring. Mrs. Marzec was in tears, and pressed $50 into Kollmer's hand. The ring from her finger belonged with her heart. "If you promise yourself to someone," she said, "that's for life."
Have you ever been in the same situation as Mary? Oh, I don t mean pitching a ring in the brush; something more precious, our soul lost in the depths of sin. No matter how extensive and exhausting our attempts we cannot retrieve our soul. We must call on the only one that can restore our lost relationship with God. If we answer the Gospel s call to repent, confess, and be baptized for the forgiveness of those sins; Jesus will redeem us and reconcile us to the Father. We will not have to shake out $50 from our wallet, because the price is already been paid in blood. Then in the same manner as Mary; Jesus will belong with your heart. Once found you can say the same words as Mary, ‌If you promise yourself to someone, that for life.‍