"My Precious"

Gollum's "precious" consumed him to the point that he was unrecognizable as what he had been: a hobbit.  Of course, you may say, "that's fiction."  Yes, it is but what is fiction but what man takes out of the life he knows and writes it down?  Therefore, I'm sure Tolkien had seen the deterioration of humans consumed with stuff.

God, of course, knows it well.  He has watched it continually since man's beginning.  As He had done so many times before, God discusses with His prophet Jeremiah what to say to disobedient Israel.  However, Jeremiah has faltered and become frustrated with his job.  It's not an easy job to tell people they are to turn or burn.  But the fact is that this is truly a compassionate work on God's part.  He doesn't have warn them.  And now His prophet is fumbling around in self-pity.  So God must deal with Jeremiah before He continues His warning to His people, Israel.

Jeremiah's "precious" must be unmixed with what the world deems precious!  And he must rouse himself to the amazing position he holds as God's spokesman to the His people.  God, the mighty Maker of all things, is speaking to Jeremiah.  So, in his faltering, God deals with him a moment so that he can get back to the business at hand.  "If you return, then I will restore you--before Me you will stand; and if you extract the precious from the worthless, you will become My spokesman.  They for their part may turn to you, but as for you, you must not turn to them."  Jeremiah 15:19

Let us turn to what is truly "Precious", for there is our only hope, security, and peace.  Is Jesus precious to you?  If yes, then be consumed with Him and not with that worthless pursuit that will one day come to nothing.  That is NOT fiction, but is life changing and life saving.  May we, too, become "unrecognizable" as to our former way of life as we submit to this transformation God wants to make in us.