As children, we grew up celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day by wearing green to prevent being pinched although those who did not, would run for their lives to escape it.

Until recently, I was unaware of the real story of Saint Patrick which is quite fascinating!  Per Wikipedia, “According to the Confessio of Patrick, when he was about 16, he was captured by Irish pirates from his home in Britain and taken as a slave to Ireland, looking after animals; he lived there for six years before escaping and returning to his family. After becoming a cleric, he returned to northern and western Ireland. In later life, he served as a bishop… and by the seventh century, he had already come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland.”

Not only did I find it interesting that he was originally from Great Britain, stolen by Irish pirates, but to know that even after escaping and returning home, he voluntarily went back to Ireland to save souls. That is a remarkable act of forgiveness and obedience!!

Additionally, I discovered that he was known for Saint Patrick’s Breastplate. Wikipedia indicates that it is a, “…Prayer of Protection, also known as The Deer’s Cry or The Lorica of Saint Patrick or Saint Patrick’s Hymn…  It calls for Christ’s protection using a lorica (shield or breastplate). This prayer outlines Saint Patrick’s spirituality and his keen awareness and perception of the battle between good and evil and thus the importance of praying for protection on a daily basis.”

There are several sections to his prayer, but I would like to focus on only one of them:
Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me, Christ in me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

My question to you is, “What daily prayer would you put on your breastplate for protection?”

Thank you for your time. Be Blessed… LR Maddox
This was a slight deviation from the Unity series which I hope you enjoyed.  I will continue the series in the next post.

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