The Legend - Guest Post by Mike Messerli ⏤ Vol 2, Ch 11

Please welcome our Guest Post Blogger for this 2018 Winter Wisdom Series, Mike Messerli.

I myself have known Mike for over 20 years. He has been a faithful servant of Christ, pastor, and friend to many. He and his delightful wife Joye serve God daily. His children are now blessing them with grands.

THE LEGEND
By: Mike Messerli

 As a kid did you ever get out the encyclopedia and look at the maps of the world?  I did.  And I was captivated by all these many lands and places, full of people I had never met, surrounded by animals and scenery I had never discovered.  I would literally spend hours looking at the maps and dreaming of places I wanted to go one day.  Then I discovered something.  The legend.  It’s a little box somewhere on the map that helps you read the scope and scale of what you are seeing.  The legend clarifies the map.
 
As I read the Bible many years ago I found a legend there as well.  It’s a way of clarifying the foundational themes of the Bible and how to respond to them, how to see them.  Much like night vision goggles this verse lets you see things you never saw before.  Suddenly you discover a clarity that had always seemed to be a cloud before.
 
Now let me explain.  I’m old.  I’ve walked with God for way over 50 years now.  And, I’m much older than 50.  My passion in this half-century of walking with God has been to find him, to see his face. And I’ve found him in his word.  The most important thing in my life is this- I want to know God!  I want to walk with him, see his face, talk to him and look like him.  That’s been my quest.  And the legend has cleared my vision to see him more clearly, to find him and become what he designed me to be.
 
Ok, you’re waiting, aren’t you?  What’s the legend?  Here it is:
 
“And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”
Job 28:28
 
Simply put Job is saying this- wisdom is to fear God, reverence him in a way that listens, bows and responds.  And understanding is that response.  Understanding says, “because I fear God I will avoid anything that displease him, anything that isn’t like him.”  Wisdom is how I see God, understanding is what I do about it.
 
Wisdom sees God first and then, in light of him I see myself more clearly.  Wisdom sees God clearly and then, because of my fear and reverence for him, my responses are affected, my choices change. 
 
I must tell you this legend has changed the way I see everything!  It affects my view of God and my view of the world.  It clarifies my motives and my responses.  And, more than anything else, over time I have noticed I have begun to look more like God in my life.  I’m kinder, more loving, patient and bit by bit people are seeing God through me.  It’s not because I’m so great, it’s because He is!  What has come from wisdom and understanding is a change in me. I am beginning to look a bit more like God. 
 
If you want to go anywhere you have to have a map or an app.  You have to have directions.  This amazing little verse gives you the essentials of a walk with God.  It gives you the legend on how to get to the very place we all want to be…
 
….in God’s presence.

I hope you gained wisdom from
our Guest Post Writer: Mike Messerli.
read further for information about Mike.

Mike recently retired after 19 years of service as a pastor for  a church in the Dallas area.
He is now working as a chaplain for New Century. A Hospice care service.

When asked who he is:
Mike Messerli says he is an old pastor trying to finish well. "I want to live in, walk in, soak in the love of God to such an extent that others are drawn to God because of their encounter with me." 1 Corinthians16:14

Mike plans to retire...
"right after lunch on the day I die! Until then I'm here to serve God, love people and talk about Jesus!"
You can find Mike here on his "Finishing Well Blog":
http://mikemesserli.blogspot.com/

Thank you Mike for your insight, love of God, and ministry. You are loved and prayed for by many.

Until next week,
Robyn and Biff Cox
Sending you our hope that you make Jesus your ALL.

May Easter Sunday find you in relationship with the wonderful
God who IS, who WAS, and who IS TO COME.

RR&BC, LLC©
https://www.readthebiblewithrobyncox.com/is-this-website-for-you.html