Dear Friends,

Last week on Thursday was St Patricks day, a day in which people all over the world remember a man called Patrick who was a missionary to Ireland. I admit that many people celebrate in wild and unruly ways.....not often in a godly manner, but if we look past the celebrations themselves we find a man who was devoted to Christ and a great inspiration to us in our faith.

Patrick was not actually Irish, but was English (there's a bit of irony in that) and as a teenager was kidnapped by pirates and taken to Ireland. While in Ireland he learned to speak Gaelic (the Irish language) and also drew very close to God with his prayers. In fact in his book "Confessions" Patrick wrote that he may have prayed as many as 100 times a day. I guess Patrick was so close to God that his thoughts were always with God and he was truly a devout believer and follower. After 6 years as a slave, Patrick had a dream telling him to escape which he did, and a boat was miraculously waiting for him at the port and he was given free passage back to his homeland.

When home he began to study the scriptures because he wanted to serve God with his life.......and one night he had a dream. In the dream an Irish man was calling him to come back to Ireland saying, "We beg of you, holy boy, that you should walk once again among us." So Patrick realised that God was calling him to be a missionary to the Irish people. After he completed his studies and becamse a Bishop, Patrick returend to Ireland as a missionary.

Ireland was a country ruled by Druids, Chiefs and rituals (including human sacrifice) so there were many challenges facing Patrick. The turning point came on night when the druids were holding a special annual festival where they lit a special fire. Patrick and some of the new believers waited until the precise moment and lit their own fire which they called the Easter fire (it was Easter). The druids were angry that their ritual was being distrubed and tried to put the Easter fire out, but it wouldn't go out. They put sand and water on it, but the fire would not be extinguished. God was showing them a miraculous sign. This event changed the opinions of many people and after this is was easier to preach the gospel in Ireland.

Some things stand out about Patrick.........one was his devotion to prayer. Another characteristic was his willingness to stick at it until the end (he lived in Ireland over 30 years), but for me the most amazing aspect of his life is this: Patrick was willing to give up all his hopes, dreams and personal ambitions so that he might help people who he would otherwise have never cared for. He wasn't Irish, and the Irish were considered primitive then (not being in the Roman Empire) but he gave up all to obey God and be a missionary. Its no wonder then that God honoured Patrick and the whole nation of Ireland was permanently changed.

If you or I would do the same..........if we would devote ourselves to prayer and to obey God, and if we would lay down our own personal ambitions so that God may do what he wants with our lives..........we too will make a huge difference in this world. We may not get all the frills, comforts and pleasures we want, but in the end our lives will have been worthwhile and have been a great blessing. I believe that Patrick is a great inspiration to our faith........and we should learn from him and others like him. Let us serve God will all our lives.

The Lord be with you - and I pray that this email will light and Easter Fire in your life this Easter. I pray that the fire will never go out either and that it will stay with you to encourage and build you towards a greater love for Jesus.

Cheers
David