Patrick: From Slave to Missionary
This is an electronic version of our Glimpses for Kids children's worship bulletin inserts.
These are designed to present Christian biographies for Children's church, educational or worship ministries.  Patrick.
I sat alone, always alone, inside a small cave
during one of Ireland's frequent thunderstorms. Although I was protected
from the rain and lightning, I knew that a pack of wolves or warriors
could attack and I would be trapped, with only one way to escape.
I reached for the few berries I had found in the wilderness yesterday.
To take my mind off my hunger, I squeezed my eyes shut and remembered
my parents' faces. I wondered if they too had been captured, or if they
were still alive in Britain.
Captured by Irish pirates
I shivered at the memory of the day fierce pirates, armed with horned
helmets and spears, attacked our home. I had been captured and taken to
Ireland where I was sold to a cruel warrior chief who killed any slave
foolish enough to try to escape.
Watching my only companions, the sheep, huddle together only intensified
my deep longing for human friendship. My loneliness was so intense that
I hugged my knees and rocked myself for comfort. I guess it looked silly
to be doing that at seventeen years of age, but I had no one to watch
me. That is, no one but God.
Friend of God
In the midst of those sad, lonely days tending the sheep, I began to know
God. One day I bowed my head inside that small cave, and felt God's love
comforting me! I stopped my rocking, as I sensed that I was no longer
alone! I laughed with joy to realize that the God of the universe was
with me in that tiny cave!
Days turned into weeks. As the seasons changed, I moved the sheep from
one green pasture to the next. My love for God grew as we walked and talked
together on those hillsides. I faced dangers from wild animals, warriors,
and my own master's anger when he came by to check up on his sheep.
But God surrounded me. My spirit was so moved that in a single day I
would say as many as a hundred prayers, and almost as many in the night.
I rose for prayer before daylight, even when frost covered the ground
or the snow fell. After a while, the snow and rain didn't bother me any
more. I delighted in God's friendship. He led me to places that were special
to him and taught me how to forage for food there. He miraculously provided
for me as I tended the sheep.
So many times, I regretted not learning more about God when I was younger!
I had been too busy having fun with my friends. God was good to me in
spite of my childish attitudes.
Voices in the night
As I slept under the sky one night, I dreamed I heard a voice say, "It
is well that you fast (go without food for a time). Soon you will go to
your own country."
From then on, I thought about going home. A short while later, I was
stunned to hear a voice say, "See, your ship is ready." A ship? I thought.
There wasn't a ship or sea for 200 miles! For six years I had lived on
Ireland's rocky pastures, with God as my friend. I knew it was His voice
telling me about the ship, so I went in God's strength to find the ship.
I found the ship, but only after much prayer did the captain agree to
let me sail with them. I was finally leaving Ireland, the land of my captivity!
When I reached my home, I found my parents alive and delighted to see
me. I was eager to learn more about this God who walked with me on the
lonely hills of Ireland. Even though I was home with the people who loved
me, I couldn't forget Him.
Visions from God
One night at my parents' house, I saw a vision of a man named Victoricius.
He came to me from Ireland and his arms were full of letters. He gave
me one of the letters and I opened it. "The voice of the Irish," it said.
As I read the letter, I heard the voices of people near the Western Sea
in Ireland calling together in unison, "We ask you, holy boy, come and
walk among us once more."
 Was
God calling me back to Ireland? Back to the land of my captivity? Back
to those who worshipped idols and sacrificed human beings?
I couldn't stop thinking about the dream. I thought Victoricius may have
been an angel and perhaps those letters were real prayers of the people
of Ireland. I didn't know, but I was thrilled that God was still speaking
to my heart! I was glad I hadn't left him when I left the sheep in Ireland!
A few nights later, the voices from Ireland called me again as I was
praying, but I couldn't understand what they were saying. At the end of
the prayer, God said, "He that has laid down his life for you, it is he
that speaks in you." Now I knew for sure that God was calling me to return
to Ireland--not as a slave this time, but as an evangelist to tell his
wonderful gospel.
Find out what happened when Patrick went back
to Ireland in part 2 of this "Glimpses for Kids" children's
worship bulletin insert.
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