The Power of Three

A shamrock plant that suffered death under my black thumb has come back to life, and is the guest of honor at our kitchen table for the month of March. Of course, it’s also there for St. Patrick’s Day, which celebrates a British-born missionary to Ireland who lived about 1,500 years ago.

Named “Sucat” at birth, he was born into a nominally Christian higher class family. At 16, he was captured by pirates and taken to Ireland, where he was sold into slavery. During that time he witnessed great ignorance and cruelty, including a captured prince roasted alive.

He escaped after six miserable years and went to France to become a monk. Renamed “Patricus” (Latin for “Patrick”), he had a vision at age 45 of Jesus calling him to preach in Ireland. Returning to work among his former tormenters, in three decades he reportedly founded more than 300 churches and baptized more than 120,000 people.

The shamrock? One story about his ministry concerned an Ulster king who couldn’t quite wrap his mind around the doctrine of the Trinity. Patrick plucked a three-leafed clover to show the king that the three leaves off one stem were like Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The king finally understood, believed, and was baptized.

Lessons from St. Patrick? Many! One, that God may call us away from our comfortable apathy to a place of aloneness and pain but also potential spiritual fruitfulness. We can be grumpy that our lives are hard, or go forward, trusting God to use us in places that are way out of our comfort zones. My writer/speaker friend Cindy Secrest McDowell wrote a great column about St. Patrick and places of stretch. Click here to read it.

St. Patrick’s three-in-one shamrock illustration led me to think about other “trios” of scripture that pack enormous truth. These came to mind (capital letters added):
“May the GRACE of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the LOVE of God, and the FELLOWSHIP of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” –2 Cor. 13:14
“We have heard of your FAITH in Christ Jesus and of the LOVE you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the HOPE that is stored up for you in heaven.”—Col. 1:4
“We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by FAITH, your labor prompted by LOVE, and your endurance inspired by HOPE in our Lord Jesus Christ.”—1 Thess. 1:3
“GRACE, MERCY and PEACE from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.” –1 Tim. 1:2, also 2 Tim. 1:2b
“HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is the Lord Almighty, the whole earth is full of his glory.”—Isaiah 6:3. “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is the Lord God Almighty, who WAS, and IS, and IS TO COME.” –Rev. 1:8.
And finally, the simple trio of truths that make up the Gospel message:
“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance:
“That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
“That he was buried,
“That he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”—1 Cor. 15:3.

Don’t forget that last one, for it’s THREE WEEKS until Easter!