Into Your Hand I Commit My Spirit

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

1 In you, O Lord, do I take refuge; let me never be put to 

  shame; in your righteousness deliver me!

2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily!

  Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me!

Today we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. There will be wearin’ o’ the green. There will be songs, festivities, and a viewin’ o’ John Wayne’s best movie ever, “The Quiet Man.” ‘Tis a day indeed.

St. Patrick is a saint in the church for a reason though, and this devotion was planned in advance without any idea it would fall on St. Patrick’s Day. Consider these facts on Patrick:

At 16, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and taken as a slave.

After 6 years, he escaped captivity and returned to Britain

He became a Bishop and returned to Ireland to convert the Irish to Christianity

Patrick arrived in Ireland in 432 AD and began his ministry, establishing many churches and converting many

In Romans 1, Paul writes: “Paul, a servant (slave) of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by His resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of His name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.”

Give time today to think about St. Paul and St. Patrick. Note God gave them the strength to overcome and to grow through circumstances beyond imagination for us, to which they both dedicated their lives to God to return and share God’s mercy on those who put them through trials and torment.

We pray: God, give me the strength to overcome and to thrive. Amen.