A Wee Bit of History About St. Patrick

Why do we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?

Happy Home Fairy, I don’t understand why you endorse this drinking holiday! 🙂

Well, if St. Patrick were around today, I am fairly certain that you wouldn’t see him at the local pub with a green beer in hand.  Nor would you see him hanging out with leprechauns, or hunting down pots of gold.

In fact, he was a pretty amazing man with a pretty inspiring story.

Today’s post will hopefully give you some fun and interesting facts about St. Patrick’s life that you can share with your kiddos as you prepare to celebrate on March 17th.

St. Patrick is one of the most celebrated religious figures around the world.

At the age of 16, St. Patrick was kidnapped by a band of pirates from his hometown in the Roman British Isles (W-w-what?! St. Patrick is not even Irish?!  Yup — did I just blow your mind?).  He was then sold into slavery in Ireland.

As a slave in Ireland, St. Patrick worked as a shepherd and drew close to the Lord while spending time in the fields with his sheep (talk about being a good steward of his time!).

But St. Patrick eventually escaped and returned to Britain where he studied to become a priest.

One night, St. Patrick had a dream that the voices of the Irish people were calling him to come back to Ireland and tell them about Jesus.  When St. Patrick woke up, he packed his bags and moved to Ireland once again – this time on his own free will.

God used St. Patrick in so many ways as he obediently ministered to the Irish.

• He laid the groundwork for the establishment of hundreds of churches in Ireland.
• St. Patrick loved teaching the Irish communities about God.  He used clovers, a popular Irish plant with 3 leaves, to illustrate the Trinity – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

**A super great visual to share with your Happy Buddies!**

• God also used St. Patrick to bring about a massive religious shift to Christianity by bringing the Gospel to the people in the Irish government system.  As more and more people of power and influence came to know Christ, they set the example for the whole land, and Christianity spread like wild fire.
• There is even a legend that St. Patrick drove all of the snakes out of Ireland — and to this day, Ireland actually does not have snakes.
• St. Patrick’s mission in Ireland lasted 30 years until he went to be with the Lord on March 17th.

Now do you see why this holiday is so much more than what the Irish pubs advertise? 🙂

When sharing this information with your kids, point out that St. Patrick was BRAVE and BOLD in sharing his faith.

St. Patrick wasn’t afraid to go back to Ireland – the place that had once held him as a prisoner.  He saw a greater need for people to know Jesus and that was more important to him than his own doubts, fears, or even comforts.

Oh, how I long to have courage like that – reaching out to the people in my world and telling them the Good News of Jesus Christ!  And I desire for my kids to grow up and walk in that kind of faith, too.

That kind of faith is way better than a pot of gold.

Happy History of St. Patrick-ing! 🙂

“And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Romans 10:15