A Shield of Faith

There is something very crucial to a Star Fleet Vessel: shields. A shield is a force field created to protect a vessel not only from enemies, but also from natural occurrences as well. It is projected around a ship in times of attack and danger.

Shields are mentioned quite often in the Star Trek world; I have seen how having shields has saved my favorite crew (of Voyager) as well as other Star Trek crews several times. I always thought it would be cool to have my own shield - there are even many scientists working on developing such a thing - I'm excited for when they do. However, I wanted to share a perspective that I have on Star Treks shields and how they relate to faith...

First off, I'll start with a scripture from Ephesians when it is talking about putting on the armor of God; "stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparations of the gospel of peace;" then it goes on to my favorite part - the reason for this blog... "Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench the fiery darts of the wicked."*

The shield of faith! It's funny because on Star Trek, a shield is something that is not seen unless it is hit. An enemy wouldn't even know a shield was up until their weapons were stopped by it. In real life though, you can look at a person and be able to tell that he or she has faith. If faith is strong enough it can be seen in a persons countenance.

I've seen episodes of Star Trek where when desperately trying to keep their ship and themselves safe; the crew diverts all power from everything including lights, turbo lifts, life-support, replicators, and even weapons to the shields so that they may survive. Shields have proven critical to their survival. When every offensive tactic has failed they rely on their strongest defense. It is the same in our everyday lives as well: when all else fails we can rely on our faith in the Lord.

Shield strength is determined by the power put into it. It is the same with us: the power of our faith depends on how much effort we put into building it. The way a crew maintains their shields so as to be ready for use is simple - regular everyday maintenance. We can do the same for our shield of faith. We do this by saying our prayers, reading scriptures, going to church, and so on - everyday! Not just when we feel like it or when we need it. I've never heard the captain of a Star Fleet vessel say "oh check the shields and make sure they are working" in the middle of a battle. On the contrary - he or she simply states "raise the shields" without a doubt that they will work.

I can testify that we will be able to have that same confidence in our shield of faith - when we need it to protect us it will have the necessary strength - if we are constantly building it up a little at a time every single day.

*Eph 6:14-16

A Child's Perspective

Although my favorite show is Star Trek: Voyager, I also love all other Star Trek shows and movies. the second Star Trek series is called Star Trek: The Next Generation. It is centered on the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise; a science vessel on a long term mission to explore the galaxy. On this ship they allow for the families of the officers to stay on-board. There is an episode titled "Imaginary Friend" that has always stuck with me.

In the episode, a young girl named Clara has an invisible friend named Isabella. Clara would often talk about her friend to members of the crew, but no one thought much of it - thinking it was just an imaginary friend - a phase she would pass through. However, Isabella was not as imaginary as they thought. It turned out that she was an alien being that lived in a nearby nebula that had chosen to only show itself in the form of a young girl to Clara. After a while, Isabella wanted to see more of the ship than Clara had shown her. Many parts of the ship were off limits to the children for safety reasons. They two tried to see the places of the ship where they are not allowed several times. Each time they were caught  and Clara would tell them that Isabella wanted her to go. Clara was told very strongly each time that she was not allowed to go to certain places. This upset Isabella very much it made her so angry that she began to destroy the ship. When the Captain of the Ship - Captain Picard - discovered that Isabella was real he began speaking to her and she appeared to him.

Captain Picard offered her power-energy for her and her people if she would not destroy them. Their conversation was quiet interesting...

Isabella told the Captain, "You should be destroyed. You are cruel, uncaring creatures." She went on to say that they were unfair to Clara. 

"In what way did we mistreat her?" Captain Picard asked.

"You wouldn't let her do what she wanted to... or go where she wanted to..."

Captain Picard then Replied, "You've seen this ship...all of us...from a unique perspective - a child's point of view. It's must have seemed terribly unfair and restrictive...You must understand how deeply we care for [our children]. When our children are young, they cannot always understand what might be dangerous. Our rules are a way to keep them from harm."

Isabella then understood and was able to see how young Clara was and that she needed to be kept safe. Isabella after realizing she had been wrong left the ship and it's crew unharmed. 

I like this episode because I believe it can easily relate to our relationship with Heavenly Father. He gives us rules-commandments, and sometimes we may feel that they are 'unfair and restrictive.' In reality it is the contrary. He gives us these rules to keep us safe. We still have the ability to chose if we want to obey the rules or not, just as Clara had chosen to go where she was not allowed. If our Heavenly Father did not care, then He would not give us commandments to follow, but He loves us very much and wants us to be safe. Right now we can only have the 'child's perspective' where we don't understand the big picture - all of the dangers. I can testify that if we submit to the Lord and trust in Him we will find safety and peace.

A Body of One

One of my favorite T.V shows growing up was Star Trek: Voyager. My whole family and I love Star Trek. Voyager is the story of two crews thrown together. It started with newly appointed Captain Kathryn Janeway of the, recently constructed, state of the art science vessel, Voyager, and Chakotay, captain of a Maquis vessel. The Maquis are a terrorist group; several Maquis members are former members of Starfleet, including Chakotay. They rejected a certain peace treaty that was formed between the federation and an alien race. Captain Janeway's  security officer was undercover on board Chakotay's vessel. When the Maquis vessel went missing in 'the badlands,' Voyager was sent on a rescue mission to find it.

Once they arrived in the badlands they were pulled by a beam into another quadrant of the galaxy. This was done by a powerful alien being known as the Caretaker. The crew of Voyager discovered that the same thing happened to the Maquis vessel. Chakotay's vessel was destroyed, but Voyager rescued the crew. There were many casualties including several high ranking members of both crews. The technology that was used to bring them there ended up getting destroyed along with the Caretaker. Both crews were stranded together in the Delta Quadrant! Captain Janeway and Chakotay discussed the situation and decided that their only option was to join together in order to survive. They agreed to become, "one crew, a Starfleet crew." Captain Janeway appointed Chakotay as her second in command and the two crews were forced to work together.

In life, often times we are thrown into difficult situations; whether it's being far from home, or being around people who we don't really know or get along with. We have to remember that we are all sons and daughters of God. Most of us are working towards the same goal - to go back home to be with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

Once they got their barrings they discovered they were over 70,000 light-years from home; which was at least 75 years at maximum speed. Obviously this meant they were going to be together for a long time.


Even though they all had the same goal - reaching home - neither crew had an easy time adjusting to being together. There were several confrontations that occurred for quite a few months. Eventually after going through many battles and trials together, they all discovered how much they needed each other and both crews became one.

In 1 Corinthians 12: 13-14 it says,
"For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit."

We are many members - but one body; in verses 15-26 it explains the importance each part of a body has. Just because we have a hand, doesn't mean we don't need a foot. Each part is important and they all come together to work as one body. Each part needing the other. It is the same in life, work, church, and home and family - we need one another. Like the crew of the Voyager discovered, we won't get very far if we fight against each other. By no means are we able to be best friends with everyone around us, but Jesus taught, "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." - John 13:34

It wasn't until the Voyager and Maquis crews began to have respect for each other and understanding of their differences that they began coming together as one crew. They became like a big family; they learned to love each other and endure together. "And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it." -1 Corinthians 12:26