Paul's Second Journey

I am taking an online New Testament class this semester and I have the opportunity to share some of what we are learning in Acts. 

On Paul's second mission he visited many different places. One of which I have had the opportunity to visit myself. Some of the places he visited and later wrote epistles to included Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians and Thessalonians. I think that it is safe to say that Paul was a man who was greatly filled with the Spirit. Now this doesn’t mean that his missions where easy just because he had the Holy Ghost with him, but he was directed by the Spirit when the Lord saw fit. For example in Acts 16:6-10 it talks about how the Spirit directed where they should go. Paul was told not to visit the churches in Asia or preach there. On Paul’s first journey he traveled to preach the word and bring people the gospel and he would set u the church in this place and then he would move on. On Paul’s second mission he was returning to see how the churched where doing. As you can imagine in areas with 100% converts they weren’t always doing so well but then their where churches that had become evil and were perverting the ways of the Lord. In this scripture Paul was also blessed with a vision of a man. It was when he was visiting Troas (modern day Troy) and he saw a man from Macedonia calling to him to come over and so they did. Also in Acts 18:9-11 there is counsel given to Paul from the Lord in a vision that he should preach openly to the Gentiles. At this point the Jews had rejected him and he was in need of direction of what he should do and the Lord answered him.

Paul set an amazing example of following the spirit to complete missionary work. If I were to apply this to my own experiences I wouldn’t say that I have had any grand spiritual manifestations of the spirit in missionary work. I have never directly influenced someone to get baptized or been on an actual mission. I would say that small ways I have seen this would be the few times that I have openly shared the Gospel with other people. I tend to be a very private person who doesn’t care to talk about sacred things that the other person might not understand. But there have been a handful of times when I did feel prompted and safe to share this with other people and I think that those are the times when I may not have seen the person baptized but I could have made a change in them somehow. I think that I should use the spirit to be braver to share the Gospel with people and rely on it for what to say instead of getting so worried that I will say something wrong or offend the person

Paul did many things that allowed him to be an effective teacher. I believe the most important of which would be his constant companion of the Spirit. Some others included his prompt following of promptings, he sought out opportunities and he worked with miracles. I think that all three of these can be used to our advantage in missionary work. And now for some questions about Acts 16:9-33:

In what ways did Paul turn his experiences into missionary opportunities?

One thing that Paul was blessed with was a constant desire to praise God. I think that when you see God’s hand in all things then you are able to relate that to other people. For example when the prison was opened and the inmate released rather than letting the jailer kill himself he used it as an opportunity to share the gospel with him.

What can you learn from Paul’s mission experiences?

What I take away from Paul’s experiences is to be fearless and firm in the faith and if you trust in the lord he will help you through. I have also learned that sometimes the things that are hard are also the things that we should be doing. So seeking out that missionary opportunity may be uncomfortable but you will grow because of it.

How is the jailer an example of a true convert?

I think that the jailer did a few things that made him a true convert. First off he believed completely, and then he had a desire to share it with others (his family). When he had done that he served Paul and Silas by washing the wounds from there beating and he agreed to be baptized.

Does Mosiah 4:9-10 expand your understanding of Acts 17:30-31?

This Book of Mormon passage gives some clarity to what is being spoken here. I believe that it is saying that God will overlook the things that you had done without knowing the Gospel but he is now calling you to repentance and you will be judged according to your works and use of the Savior’s atonement.

What can you do now to better prepare yourself to share the Gospel, whether as a full-time missionary or a member?

At this moment in time I can be a better member missionary by taking a more active roll in thinking about and taking action in missionary work. I think sometimes we sit around waiting for missionary work to fall into our laps but it’s called work because we need to seek it out. Also listening to the spirit more for promptings related to missionary work.