The wooden boats tossed to and fro in the heavy seas just off the coast of Britannia. Big, powerfully built men, their long hair bundled up on top of their heads, iron swords in sheaths fastened at the hip to their belts, surveyed the tempestuous sea as they set sail for Ireland.

Patrick lay bound in the cramped hull, one of many captives crammed into the small boat. The sixteen-year-old was motionless, frozen in a state of shock. His father's estate lay behind him in smoking ruins. Fortunately, his parents had been away from home and were still alive, but Patrick's life as a pampered aristocrat's son was over. Now he was a slave to a race his family considered barbarians.

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Several hours later, the boat landed on the shore of the strange land. Ireland! It was very different from Britannia. There were no Roman roads, no Roman architecture, no amphitheaters, public buildings or baths. The Irish even preferred to live out in the wilds with their extended family rather than in towns. Even more ominous, Ireland knew nothing of Christianity and its virtues. Instead, it clung to its pagan rituals, which were led by Druid priests.

The contrast between Ireland and his beloved Britannia only served to intensify Patrick's fears. As he gazed around the slave camp, Patrick realized that thousands of Britons had been captured and brought to Ireland. Eventually, the slaves were organized and marched off to the primitive homes of their new owners. Putting one weary foot in front of the other, Patrick numbly walked the path his captors had forced upon him. What lay ahead for him, he did not know.

Born to Wealth and Privilege
Magonus Sucatus Patricius (Patrick) caught his first glimpse of the world around the year 385 A.D. Born into a British upper-class family that was nominally Christian, Patrick lived out his childhood and youth in the sort of privilege that only aristocratic birth can bring. Part of that privilege included a Roman education and a house full of servants to meet all of his needs.

Surprisingly, out of this life of ease and lax spiritual commitment was born a successful missionary. At the end of Patrick's life, Ireland had essentially left its pagan roots and become a largely Christian nation, with many men and women eager to give their whole lives to God for the sake of the Gospel. Indeed, a stream of missionaries flowed out of Ireland over the next few centuries, bringing most of the barbarian tribes of northern Europe into the Christian fold.

Yet, how did Patrick come to know God so intimately, growing up in a nominal Christian family? How did he overcome the pampered nature of his childhood to withstand the rigors of a missionary life in Ireland? Part of the answer, it must be remembered, is that nothing is too great an obstacle for God to overcome. So God plucked Patrick from his life of ease and comfort and made him into a man of God. This is the story of how God made a rugged missionary out of Magonus Sucatus Patricius.

A Slave Cries Out to God
Now a slave, Patrick spent his days tending his master's sheep and trying to learn a new language. He was caught in an alien world of gods and goddesses, magical practices and spells. Once a free man living under the protection of Roman law and a son of a wealthy governmental official, Patrick's fall into slavery left him feeling hopeless. Caught in the slough of despond, Patrick slowly began to turn to the God he had willingly neglected as a youth. Patrick started praying day and night to the God he did not yet know. In prayer, he poured out his fears and anxieties to God. Shepherding on the slopes of Mt. Slemish, Patrick's heart began to formulate the words to what would later become his famous prayer: