Paul's Second Mission

The four cities where Paul taught on his second mission and later wrote epistles to:
1. Philippi
2. Thessalonica
3. Corinth
4. Ephesus


The map is a little tricky to see, but Paul's second journey was quite the trek.  (His journey is the purple.) :)

In Acts 16:6-10 and 18:9-11, the Holy Ghost directs Paul in a few different ways.  First, in Acts 16:6, it says that they “…were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia.”  In verse 7, Paul and his group were planning to go to Bithynia, but “…the Spirit suffered them not.” In Acts 16:9, Paul was given a vision and again, in Acts 18:9-10, Paul was given another vision, but the second one was different.  In the first vision Paul was given, it was of a man.  In the second vision, it was the Lord, speaking directly to Paul.  But, no matter what, the Lord, through the power of the Holy Ghost directed the path of His servant’s feet. 

I’ll be perfectly honest here…I’m not very good at recognizing the promptings of the Holy Ghost.  So, I can’t think of any super awesome experiences when my missionary efforts in my personal life were directed clearly by the Holy Spirit.  But, I do know that there have been times when I was able to take a leap of faith and talk to a friend about the gospel and the Spirit blessed me with the words I needed to speak, or the right moment to bring up talking about church.  I need to work on being more sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit.  I usually realize after the fact that I received a prompting…after I’ve already brushed an idea off, thinking I can get to it later and the opportunity is missed. 

Paul was able to teach the gospel so effectively because he quickly obeyed promptings (Acts 16:10), he willingly taught anyone who listened (Acts 16:13-14), he worked miracles and stood by his faith when questioned, beaten, and abused (Acts 16:16-24), Paul was obedient to the Lord in all things and praised the Lord (Acts 16:25-26), he never hesitated to teach a willing heart (Acts 16:30-33).

It seems to me that Paul was able to see when someone was willing to learn about the gospel.  He was blessed to know that one was ready for the blessing of baptism.  And so, he taught.  He didn’t make excuses for why he was too busy or too tired or too stressed about his own circumstances.  (He was beaten and thrown in jail, for goodness sake!!  But he still taught.)  He simply opened his mouth and spoke the truthfulness of the gospel of Christ.  What I learn from his example is that there is no reason for me to ever be afraid to share the gospel.  I need to be so converted to the gospel that it is the essence of who I am, in everything I do. 

The jailer is an example of a true convert because once he heard the truth, he wanted his family to receive it.  Which they did, with open and willing hearts, and were then immediately baptized.  He had such faith.  Faith that quickly turned to action.  In Mosiah 4:9-10, we learn that merely believing is the foundation of everything.  This principle of faith is what we build on in this gospel.  There was a blessing I received about 6 years ago.  In it, was said, “…faith, on earth we call it trust…”  Trust.  It is such a simple and basic idea, but it cannot be done halfheartedly.  We either trust our Savior, Jesus Christ, or we don’t.  We either believe or we don’t.  This isn’t an on-the-fence kind of gospel.  We need to be on the Lord’s side with nothing, not even a little toe, on the opposing side.

I need to more fully commit to obedience to the teachings of this gospel.  I need to get better at praying daily and truly studying my scriptures each day so I can be ready to share the gospel to anyone I meet.  As a member missionary, I still need to be willing and actively trying share the message of the Savior.  Like Paul, I need to make sure I am doing what I need to always have the Spirit with me.  

The Martyrdom of Stephen

Stephen’s death struck a chord with me.  This is a man “full of faith and of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 6:5).  He testified of Christ and didn’t shy away from calling people to repentance when it was needed.  His last words were bold and powerful, yet he showed incredible mercy towards the people who killed him.  He began by calling the crowd out on their attitude towards God and His prophets. He even talked about their fathers and that they behaved similarly to the prophets.  He says, “Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? And they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One…” (Acts 7:52). 

In verse 54, it says, “…they were cut to the heart…” by Stephen’s words.  In spite of how wicked these people had become, Stephen’s speech effected their hearts.  They felt the truthfulness of his words.  Instead of changing their ways and listening to Stephen, “…they gnashed on him with their teeth” (Acts 7:54). 

In that moment, Stephen did not falter.  He “…looked up steadfastly into heaven” (Acts 7:55).  Because he looked up, instead of reacting in anger to the crowd, he saw “…the Son of man standing on the right hand of God” (Acts 7:56).  Here, we learn that the Godhead is made up of distinct and separate beings.  The crowd throws Stephen out of the city and stones him.  Again, in that moment, Stephen does not curse this angry mob.  Instead, he kneels down and “…cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge” (Acts 7:60).  He asked the Lord to forgive the people who were killing him.  And with that, he falls asleep and dies. 

Not for a second did Stephen’s faith falter or fail him.  He did not question Heavenly Father or curse Him or the crowd inflicting such pain on him.  Instead, he was forgiving and steadfast until the end. 

For me, that is what I take away from this chapter.  His undying faith and commitment to be obedient to his Father in Heaven, regardless of what was happening to or around him.  Which is similar to Abinadi.  

Abinadi and Stephen both looked to God and asked Him to receive their spirits.  They both testified of the wickedness of the people.  They each suffered death at the hands of others.  They were both faithful to Heavenly Father until the end, no matter how much pain they suffered.  And, in both stories, there was an individual who walked away from watching them die and turned their lives around and became obedient followers of Christ: Alma from Abinadi’s teachings, and Saul, who later becomes Paul, from Stephen’s.

Their faith and dedication to the Lord is what I want to emulate in my life.  I will likely never have to face an entire angry mob and preach repentance to them.  I will also probably never face being killed because of what I believe in.  But I can dedicate my life to my Father in Heaven and my Savior, Jesus Christ.  I can be faithful in studying the scriptures and praying without ceasing.  I can serve willingly and to the best of my ability in church callings, without grumbling or complaining.  And I can teach my children about the Savior.  I can give my Savior my very best in being obedient to His teachings.  Even though I’ll never be perfect and will need to use the atonement many times every day in this life, I can still give my Savior my heart.  I will choose, every, single day, to be a little more Christ like than I was the day before.  I will choose right over wrong, good over evil, light over dark.  I will choose to follow the Savior.  Every day.