Today, my guide drove me through the Valley of Elah, where David fought Goliath. Of course, we have all heard the story since we were kids. David was the youngest in his family. His older brothers fighting in King Saul’s army, were frustrated and frightened by the gargantuan Philistine who bragged like a playground bully, that he could take on any one of the Israelites.

David arrived on the scene to bring lunch for his siblings and when he saw the situation, he volunteered for the job. After everyone got off the floor from laughing, they finally said, “Oh, what the heck?” David was fitted with armor but they didn’t make it in his puny size. Finding the whole thing far too cumbersome, David finally took the armor off and faced Goliath with nothing but prayer and a sling-shot. You know the rest.

Thinking about this event, I began to wonder: What kind of armor do I put on when I claim to be in God’s service? Does armor delude me into thinking I’m accomplishing some divine mission, all the while getting in the way? Far too often, we view only the obvious sin as the brick wall between our plans and God’s plans. Seldom do we consider other qualities or situations, things good in and of themselves but getting in the way nevertheless. Does the Bible speak against armor? Not at all. It’s just that in David’s particular case, it was not appropriate.

Sometimes, even the very gifts from God weigh us down. We can lean on the gift more than the giver. Talent, intellect, public speaking ability, all gifts, also fuel for arrogance and self reliance. Or maybe we love our religious traditions more than we love God.

All of us wear our own personal armor. The trick is to know when to use it and when to cast it aside. The real armor is God anyway.

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