Reluctant Heroes

This month I'm reflecting on St Patrick as it's St Patrick's Day 17th March; and King George VI - with all the Oscar success of the The King's Speech. I recently shared with you a favourite poem of King George VI and the Queen Mother.

But what do St Patrick and King George VI have in common? 

Answer - they were both reluctant heroes.

King George VI reluctantly became King when his brother, King Edward VIII, chose abdication in preference to abandoning his marriage plans to a divorced woman. The oscar winning The King's Speech depicts George's journey from stammering obscurity to King of Great Britain.

St Patrick was not Irish, neither can he have been particularly keen on Ireland originally, because when he was sixteen he was captured by Irish raiders and sold into slavery there! He escaped six years later when God appeared to him in a vision and showed him how to escape. Some years later God sent him back to Ireland as priest and he later became Bishop of Ireland.

Which reminds me of the prophet Jonah who when summoned by God to prophesy the destruction of Nineveh, ran in the other direction! It took Jonah three days of whale captivity for him to change his mind!

Listening to God is a challenging business. I wonder if you've ever wanted to run from the call of God? I know I have! When God called me to become a missionary, I wanted to run away. I was reluctant, because I thought God would send me to India or Africa. Thank goodness God knows our hearts and uses us where we are and where we can most effectively serve him.

In order to follow God's leading, we need God's strength. I love this prayer attributed to St Patrick. Try praying it aloud several times:

I arise today

Through the strength of heaven:

Light of Sun,

Radiance of moon,

Splendour of fire,

Speed of lightening,

Swiftness of wind,

Depth of sea,

Stability of earth,

Firmness of rock.

Celtic Treasure

'I can do all things through him who gives me strength.' Philippians 4:13

Putting your hand into the hand of God

'So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.' (Isaiah 41:10 NIV)


Many folk by now will have broken their New Year resolutions. But does it really matter? The Bible doesn’t tell us to put our trust in man-made resolutions, but in God. During these uncertain and troubling times, we especially need to put our hand into his, and trust him to guide, strengthen and support us.  


'Stop stressing. I'm here for you. Hold on to me and let me sort things out.' (Isaiah 41:10) My translation!


To put your hand into God’s requires surrender - a letting go into God. I sometimes visualize this as falling back into his arms. 


* So let's imagine putting our hand into the hand of God now. Can you visualize this? 


I love this famous poem sometimes referred to as 'The Gate of the Year'. It was this poem that the Queen Mother, a devout Christian, asked to be read at her funeral. This poem was a source of comfort throughout her life and she had  it engraved on the gates of the Memorial Chapel at Windsor Castle, where her husband, King George VI, was interred. King George VI (you may have seen Colin Firth as the King in the 'The King's Speech'), quoted it in his 1939 Christmas broadcast to the British Empire. 

I said to the man

who stood at the gate of the year

“Give me a light that I may tread safely

into the unknown.”

And he replied: “Go out into the darkness

and put your hand into the hand of God.

That shall be better than light

and safer than a known way!”

So I went forth and finding the Hand of God

trod gladly into the night.

M. Louise Haskins (1875-1957)