Celebrating St. Patrick

By |Published On: March 17, 2018|Categories: Inspiration, Stories|

The way people celebrate St. Patrick’s Day nowadays has almost nothing to do with honoring the remarkable Christian missionary who, hundreds of years ago, took the Gospel of Christ to Ireland!

Patrick was born into a wealthy family in Britain around the year 387. At the time, pirates from the wilderness of Ireland used to raid wealthy farms in Britain to capture livestock and people as slaves. During one of those raids, 15-year-old Patrick was kidnapped and became a slave in Ireland for six long years. After searching desperately for a way to escape his master, he broke free and headed to France on a boat. And it was in a monastery in France where he heard the Gospel.

After he came to Christ, Patrick felt great compassion for the very people who had once enslaved him.

And so, through years of preparation, he never lost sight of one dream: to travel to Ireland and share the Christian faith. When he returned to Ireland in his 50’s, he courageously led thousands to the Lord. His untiring zeal and contagious enthusiasm won the hearts of the people of Ireland; so when Patrick died on March 17th in the year 460, he was greatly mourned.

Whether you are wearing green today or not, be encouraged by the life of this great missionary, Patrick of Ireland. Truly we stand on the shoulders of giants in the Christian faith, and today we celebrate the life of just one of them. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

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