Missions Institute and the Holy Spirit

Any missionary that reaches the field without attending the IWM Mis sion Institute is at a definite disadvantage. The missionary suffers, the family suffers, and the work of the church suffers. I believe that and the great majority of those who experienced the field first and returned to an Institute later have expressed that. However, experience has taught most of us that the Institute helps us recognize a problem in our cross-cultural lives when we see it, but only the Holy Spirit can guide us to a right solution. This is why Acts 21 is part of the Institute curriculum. There we find a real life situation where accepted expectations, human logic, and common sense were not enough. I believe God had Paul’s experience recorded in Acts 21 to remind people that easy answers are not always right answers. Some guidance from above is needed! That is why the Holy Spirit was given to the church. The first verses of Acts 21 tell of Paul’s journey back to Jerusalem with some of his associates as they bring the offerings given by the churches in Asia (Rom 15:25-28). Here the Holy Spirit is active in informing the church that Paul will face hardship in Jerusalem (Acts 21:4, 10-11). It is interesting that the church is led by the Holy Spirit to try to persuade Paul not to continue his journey to the city (21:4); but Paul says he is “drawn there irresistibly by the Holy Spirit (20:22). Is this a reminder that people must listen to the Sprit’s guidance for them personally, rather than attempt to decide what the Spirit is saying to someone else? Paul and his entourage arrives in Jerusalem in verse 17; and “all the brothers and sisters in Jerusalem welcomed [them] cordially” (NLT). As the story continues, one can read that there were some questions about Paul’s mission work; but I believe their joy in seeing him was still real. They even praised God when “Paul gave a detailed account of the things God had accomplished among the Gentiles through his ministry” (19, 20).