Apples of Gold
Radio Script for July 8, 2008
“Single and Obsessed”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
(open with dramatic music, “Gollum’s Song”)
It was Sméagol’s birthday – and his life was about to change forever.
He went fishing with Déagol, who was pulled into the water by a fish. When he surfaced he had a ring.
This ring had a powerful effect on Sméagol. It instantly became his obsession. He demanded that Déagol give it to him as a birthday present, and when he refused, Sméagol strangled him and took it.
The ring was an evil influence, but Sméagol loved it. It ruled his life. Because of the ring, he was driven from his family, and he ended up living underground, hating the sunlight.
One day he lost the ring in the darkness, and eventually it was found by Bilbo Baggins. For years Sméagol obsessed over the ring. His life’s goal was to get it back.
Years later, when the ring was about to be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom, Sméagol got his hands on it one last time – then fell over the edge. And even as he plummeted to his death, the last word on his lips was the nickname he had given the ring…
(sfx: Sméagol saying “My Precious.”)
Now let me talk to some of you single people. Like Sméagol, do you have an obsession with a ring? I’m talking about a wedding ring, a symbol of “true love.”
A lot of single people are obsessed with finding “true love.” Like Sméagol’s ring, it is always on their mind.
This obsession can lead them into very dark places. Seemingly good Christian people might find themselves at bars in their search for the ring. Or there they are, trolling the internet, searching like Sméagol from cave to cave.
Sméagol would do anything to get the ring, and so do some singles. In their quest for “true love” they end up doing crazy things. They agree to meet people they shouldn’t meet. They go places they shouldn’t go. They put up with things they shouldn’t put up with. Why? Because they are blinded by their obsession. At all cost they must get that ring.
For Sméagol, the ring came first. It came before family and friends and everything else. It was his god.
And for some single people, their quest for the ring comes first. If they have to sacrifice their family, so be it. If they have to give up their friends, fine.
But the problem is, the ring, this search for “true love,” becomes their god. It comes first.
Their decisions are made, not based on what God wants, but based on what will help them in their quest for the ring.
When they get up in the morning, they “dress for the quest.” They join clubs and churches based on where the best “fishing” is. Where will they go? How will they act? They might even take a new job or move to a new city. Each decision is motivated by the ring.
The problem for the Christian is, this hunt for true love bumps God off the throne; the same God who said, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” Jesus said, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.”
The Lord is to be our obsession. It is Him we seek, not a ring. When we dress, we dress for Him. When we decide where to go and what to do, it should be motivated by our passion to worship and serve Him.
In Tolkein’s “Lord of the Rings,” Sméagol was a moody creature. He had moments of sanity, but then he would be highly agitated, all because of the ring. He spent a lot of time depressed.
This happens to some singles. When they can’t seem to find what they so greatly desire, they become agitated and moody. They feel a surge when they think the ring is within reach, but when it isn’t they are depressed. Up and down they go.
This is not God’s plan for your life at all. He wants you to be stable, to build on His sure foundation.
Hebrews 11:6 says that God rewards those “who earnestly seek Him.”
Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
It is the Lord we should be seeking with all of our heart, not some relationship. That shiny golden obsession is actually fool’s gold. It’s deceiving. It promises things it can’t deliver.
Sméagol’s obsession with the ring destroyed his life. If you are single, don’t let this happen to you. Yes, you may want it, but do yourself a favor. Deny yourself. Take your eyes off the ring and fix them on Jesus. He alone is our obsession. He alone is worthy of preeminence in our lives. He should be our motivation in all things.
And the payoff? He is the payoff.
Does being single make you feel like you have gaps in your life? Ephesians 1:23 says that He “fills everything in every way.” The Lord alone can fill all the gaps in your life.
So don’t end up groveling like Sméagol. You are worth so much more than that. No one’s value is based on that ring. Instead, seek the Lord first, and let your value come from being a dearly loved child of God.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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