In honor of St. Patrick's Day, here is a little backstory on Saint Patrick himself.
At the age of 16, Saint Patrick was captured by Irish raiders and taken to Ireland where he became a slave to the chieftain of Ulster. One night, after six years of slavery, Saint Patrick heard a voice, "Behold, thy ship is ready." He traveled two hundred miles on foot to a place where he knew no one and had never been. He wrote in his autobiographical account, "After this I took flight, and left the man with whom I had been six years; and I came in the strength of the Lord, who directed my way for good; and I feared nothing till I arrived at the ship. And on that same day on which I arrived, the ship moved out of its place."
Patrick made his way back to Britain, found his family, and could have lived out the rest of his life in relative comfort in the land of freedom. But in 432 AD, he had another vision. He saw a man coming to him from Ireland carrying innumerable letters. "And I read the beginning of the letter containing 'The voice of the Irish.' And while I was reading aloud the beginning of the letters, I myself thought indeed in my mind that I heard the voice of those who were near the wood of Foclut, which is close by the Western Sea. And they cried out thus as if with one voice, "We entreat thee, holy youth, that thou come, and henceforth walk among us." And I was deeply moved in my heart, and could read no further; and so I woke."
Saint Patrick went back to Ireland as a missionary. No outside religion had penetrated Ireland in a thousand years. Saint Patrick founded more than 300 churches and baptized more than 120,000 people. His ministry was so influential that he came to be known as the one who "found Ireland all heathen and left it all Christian."
At the age of 16, Saint Patrick was captured by Irish raiders and taken to Ireland where he became a slave to the chieftain of Ulster. One night, after six years of slavery, Saint Patrick heard a voice, "Behold, thy ship is ready." He traveled two hundred miles on foot to a place where he knew no one and had never been. He wrote in his autobiographical account, "After this I took flight, and left the man with whom I had been six years; and I came in the strength of the Lord, who directed my way for good; and I feared nothing till I arrived at the ship. And on that same day on which I arrived, the ship moved out of its place."
Patrick made his way back to Britain, found his family, and could have lived out the rest of his life in relative comfort in the land of freedom. But in 432 AD, he had another vision. He saw a man coming to him from Ireland carrying innumerable letters. "And I read the beginning of the letter containing 'The voice of the Irish.' And while I was reading aloud the beginning of the letters, I myself thought indeed in my mind that I heard the voice of those who were near the wood of Foclut, which is close by the Western Sea. And they cried out thus as if with one voice, "We entreat thee, holy youth, that thou come, and henceforth walk among us." And I was deeply moved in my heart, and could read no further; and so I woke."
Saint Patrick went back to Ireland as a missionary. No outside religion had penetrated Ireland in a thousand years. Saint Patrick founded more than 300 churches and baptized more than 120,000 people. His ministry was so influential that he came to be known as the one who "found Ireland all heathen and left it all Christian."
11 Comments:
Good Post... it would surprise you how many people even here in Ireland don't actually know much if anything about St. Patrick
great post, thanks!
Great little insight Mark. It's a little humorous and sad that a holiday that is celebrated by getting drunk and trashed, evolved from a missionary to Ireland having turned the country back to the Lord.
Seems a bit backwards but nonetheless, Happy St. Pats Day!
Cheers!
The remarkable life of Patrick once again proves that the point of our greatest bondage can become the starting point where God wants to use us the most. God allows us all at some point to suffer defeat, to be captured, and then to courageously struggle to find the vehicle He has provided for our rescue. So many people avoid the call to return in strength to the former place of bondage to be God's healers. Others cry out in their own defeat and we are invited to hear them. Would God enable an army of Twenty First Century Patricks bravely desiring to satisfy the voices that call to them.
That is awesome Mark. Thanks for sharing. May the same be said of Mark Batterson and WA DC!
Wonderful post!
Great day to share this with others!
Thank you.
Great post, Pastor Mark. Today I argued, over at my blog, that the Irish saved the Bible. See what you think: http://galsforgod.wordpress.com/2010/03/17/have-you-thanked-god-for-the-irish/.
Thanks for the history lesson, Mark! It still impresses me when I hear that common men, or the least expected, are called by God to carry His name to the nations. One can only hope to be one of them.
Peace not walls!
Angel
Amazing story, thanks for sharing! Praise God for how he used Patrick!!!
May we all be so courageous in our obedience to the Lord!
Another note on this - Green is worn by the Catholics, Orange by the Protestants and the white on the flag represents peace between the two.
Awesome! Amidst all of his accomplishments, he still considered himself an "uneducated sinner". My friend and I created a short video about Patrick. You can see it here http://tinyurl.com/yj69nl4
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