I love superheroes. Growing up I was into both Marvel and DC. I had the action figures, watched the cartoons, and wore underoos. Yeah, I admit it and sometimes I wore them as clothes, not underwear! My brother Joe collected comics and whenever I had the chance, I would read them. He was 14 years older than me, so a lot of the comics were from the 60’s and 70’s. Spiderman was my favorite growing up, but when Marvel movies started coming out in 2008, I grew a new affinity for Captain America. I was drawn to his sense of integrity, loyalty, and resilience. 

Another thing I like about “Cap” is his shield. It is both offensive and defensive in nature. He slings it like a mortal man would a frisbee to subdue his foes and uses it to defend himself from everything the enemy throws at him. When you start to think about it, Captain America’s shield operates a lot like God does. He is there to give us strength when we feel weak and protects us from the attacks of the enemy when we are going through difficult times. God is my strength and my shield. 

“The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.”– Psalm 28:7

God is my Strength

As I look back on my life so far, there have been good seasons when I felt bulletproof, and everything was going my way. I found favor almost everywhere I turned during these times, and things were rolling. My business was thriving, I worked for a very successful MLB team, and I had a box full of championship rings. My mindset was that as long as I stayed the course and honored God with what I did, success would continue. Man, if life was just that easy.

There have also been plenty of difficult seasons when I felt like I couldn’t do anything right. The effort was there, but the results were not. It was as if I was banging into the wall expecting it to fall, only to end up with a sore shoulder and a sense of frustration. My mindset was I will just outwork the situation and grind away until something positive happens. I’m a guy so I can fix it. I don’t need any help. I will figure it out and I will NEVER ask for directions! Ok, that last part is off topic, but it’s true, right? We don’t need no stinkin’ Siri! 

However, when I kept working at it and things stayed the same, I ended up exhausted with little to no results. That’s when I realized when I am at my weakest, I lean on God for strength. I look to Him more during times of need. I believe that God loves to use weak people, the ones who everyone counts out, the underdogs. Why? Because God is glorified even more in these situations. People look at the result and realize that without God there is no way the outcome would be successful. More of God, less of me. That’s the goal.

“He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.”- Proverbs 2:7,8

God is my Shield

When I think of a shield the first thing that enters my mind is an arrow or a bullet flying through the air and it glancing off the shield’s rounded or flat surface. The shield provides warriors in battle with the ability to defend themselves and is a source of protection. I think back to all of those trying times when I was feeling beat down and sometimes even wondered “God, why are you allowing this to happen?” Little did I know that as I was complaining about the rock that hit me, it was just a fragment of the boulder that He deflected that would have crushed me.

God is our shield, our protector. He allows us to go through difficult times so we can grow into the men that He needs us to become so we can do His work on Earth. He also knows how much we can handle. Think back about a previous trial that you went through and what you learned from it. I’ll bet the wisdom you gleaned from it prepared you for the next trial you had to endure. God will strengthen us in the trials and protect us as we our navigating our way through them. 

“But you, LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high.”– Psalm 3:3

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