Radical!

Galatians 2:20(NIV) 20

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

I know the 17th was actually St. Patrick’s official day, but, I did the blog on Purim that day, than I was busy with overnight guests!

Well, when I grew up St. Patrick’s Day was a day to wear green, and clover pins, and goofy stuff with leprechauns and rainbows! The parade always ended with dinner and a lot of drinking at local bars. That is a distorted representation of St. Patrick!

I was not Roman Catholic, so I never grasped the significance of most of the real Saint. As I have gotten older, and a little wiser, I have come to realize that the story about St. Patrick, as told by the ‘rainbow-4-leaf clover and leprechaun’ promoters, is a lie! Remember how Satan comes to ‘steal, kill and destroy? He also comes to mock and pervert and lie about every holiday that lifts up God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. He has the ability because he was thrown to earth to rule and wreak havoc among the uninformed, telling stories exactly opposite of God’s truth. Since we are smarter than him, we need to ferret out the truth as it aligns with scripture, and history. And, we need to do it with every holiday dedicated to God. (Next one is Easter).

So, back to Patrick. He was only 16 years old when he was kidnapped by a marauding band of raiders and taken to Ireland against his will. These godless men would pillage and steal from any land and take the young and the strong back to their country as slaves. This was in the 5th century, and Ireland at that time was pagan dominated by the Druids who worshiped many gods, none of them THE God. Patrick was a slave shepherd on the beautiful countryside of Ireland where he had a lot of time to think, pray, and reflect on the God he had learned about in his home far away. While he didn’t give God too much thought in his home, the home of a nobleman, now with nothing but God and shepherding sheep on the hillsides of Ireland, God became very real to him.

Years later Patrick was released back to his homeland through supernatural means. Apparently the Holy Spirit birthed in his heart a love for the Irish, and he was compelled to return to Ireland to tell his former captors about Jesus! When he returned to Ireland his only goal was to tell this pagan ungodly nation about the love of Jesus. And he did! One way he did it was through the lowly clover so prevalent on the ‘Emerald Isle’. He would show the sweet little plant with three leaves how this one plant had three distinct parts, just like the Godhead had the Father, son and Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, even the clover has been distorted with the addition of a 4th leaf, and the ungodly reference to ‘luck’.

God used Patrick mightily in Ireland to set captives free amid a dark, pagan and barbaric culture. He was totally sold out to God, and it was clearly seen by the Irish people, and widely accepted. He was radical in his thinking, compared to their sinful, brutal and barbaric thinking. Still, these Irish people accepted Patric-and his good news about Jesus. He is generally credited with bringing God to Ireland and changing the course of that nation for good over the next generations.

My Dad came from an Irish family, so I have an interest in Ireland. We should all be interested in this man who, with God’s help, changed a culture for good. We now live in a culture much like Ireland before Patrick! Ungodly decisions are being made by our government that trickle down to the person who does not find out for themselves what God says on the topic. That’s not what God expects us to do. Go back to the Book and find out for yourself, or ask a trusted Pastor or leader. Remember, the enemy of your soul has polluted every good and Holy thing so that it will appeal to our sinful nature. However, just like with Patrick in Ireland, what satan tried to destroy, God turned it around for good! Just think, that was the 5th century and here we are in the 21st century and still talking about the impact of Patrick!

Lord, please allow us to have the influence of Patrick in each of our encounters-daily!