How to Make This St. Patrick's Day Way More Meaningful.

This next Tuesday, March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day. But, who was St. Patrick? It is not about shamrocks and wearing green. And it most certainly is not about drinking beer. Want to make this March 17th St. Patrick’s Day very meaningful? Know his story, and then come visit Ireland.

When he was only a teenager, Patrick was kidnapped. From his home in Britain, he was taken to Ireland. While a slave for six years, he embraced the gospel. As a new convert, he became a passionate evangelist. He finally escaped Ireland, and returned home where he was able to receive biblical training. However, he sensed that God spoke to him and told him he would someday return to Ireland as a missionary. Remarkably, he did, 25 years later. In 432 AD he returned to the place where he had once been a slave. 
 
Patrick’s impact was profound. He continued as an evangelist, a missionary, a profound educator, and a discipler of people in the things of God. He helped people to become students of Scripture. 
 
Patrick transformed a nation. Ireland went from paganism to Christianity. The Church in Ireland began sending missionaries to other nations. I invite you to come visit the nation which he transformed. He changed it from an uneducated pagan nation to a country with a vigorous church helping to spread the gospel to the world. This Tuesday, March 17, I invite you to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by signing up to visit Ireland.

Before we go to Ireland, I want to invite you to come to England with us from July 9-17, 2025 for a tour in which we will cover the sites of the John Wesley Evangelical Awakening of the 1700s, important English historical locations (example: Shakespeare), and gain an understanding of contemporary British life. Check out the incredible July 2025 itinerary here.
 
To register, go to this site and write in “Jim and Rosemary Garlow” as your hosts, with ID # 36429, here.

And then – stay for a few more days and go with us to Ireland July 17-21, where we will see many historical sites as well as some associated with John Wesley in the 1700s and St. Patrick in the 400s.

Day 9 - Cork, Cobh, Blarney
Depart England on your flight to Cork, Ireland. Our representatives will meet you at the airport and transfer you to your Irish bus as we head for Cobh. Here, you will visit the Heritage Center. From this port, between 1845 and 1860, 2.5 million people sailed to America. If you had an ancestor who came from Ireland to America, chances are they departed from this very place. Find your family name on the archived passenger lists. You can enjoy the multimedia exhibition and the railway station that has been completely refurbished in the style of the era. Visit Blarney Castle and Blarney Woollen Mills Shop. At the Castle of Blarney, you will see the fabled Blarney Stone.

Day 10 - Ring of Kerry, Waterville, Muckross House
Delight in some of the most spectacular scenery as you travel the Ring of Kerry. Pause at the seaside village of Waterville. Here, Charlie Chaplin owned a summer home, and Payne Stewart was Club Captain of the local Golf Course. Visit the 19th-century Muckross House.

Day 11 - Adare, Rock of Cashel, Dublin
Enjoy the beauty of the thatch-roofed streets of Adare. The church here has a Norman Castle at its center. See the Rock of Cashel, the traditional seat of Irish kings. Here, St. Patrick is thought to have converted the King of Munster. The present ruins are from structures built in the 12 and 13th centuries, during the Norman era. Continue on to Dublin.

Day 12 - Dublin
We begin our journey this morning with a stop at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The church was transitioned from a Catholic church to the Church of Ireland over the centuries. Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver’s Travels and a critic of British rule, was a pastor here. John Wesley spoke and administered communion here on one of his numerous visits to Ireland. Take a walking tour of Trinity College. Founded by Queen Elizabeth I in 1592, it is the oldest college in Ireland. We’ll visit the Old Library here and see the Book of Kells, an ornately illustrated Bible produced by Celtic Monks around 800 AD. Enjoy lunch at The Church, a pub that was originally a church Wesley preached at on his first visit to Ireland. Enjoy an afternoon to explore and shop on your own as you walk along the Liffey River or visit the various museums. 
 
Day 13 - Return to the USA
Say farewell to Ireland this morning as you return home with memories of the people and places of England and Ireland!
 
We sure hope you can come with us – both to England, and to Ireland. 
 
To register, go to this site and write in “Jim and Rosemary Garlow” as your hosts, with ID # 36429, here.

Blessings,
Dr. Jim Garlow
CEO/Founder
Well Versed

Rosemary Schindler Garlow
Co-Founder
Well Versed