09/01/2026
Most people read Psalm 23 and picture a quiet religious moment.
But a shepherd reads it like a field manual.
When David wrote, “You anoint my head with oil,” he wasn’t being poetic. He was being practical.
In the ancient world, sheep were constantly attacked by tiny enemies. Flies that laid eggs in their noses. Parasites that crawled into their ears. Infections that started small and ended with madness, injury, or death.
A sheep under attack would panic.
Rub its head against rocks.
Injure itself trying to escape what it couldn’t see.
So the shepherd would do something intimate and intentional.
He would take oil.
He would place his hands on the sheep’s head.
He would cover the vulnerable places.
The nose.
The ears.
The eyes.
Every opening where harm could enter.
That oil didn’t make the sheep stronger.
It made the sheep protected.
When the oil was present, the flies stayed away.
The irritation stopped.
The restlessness calmed.
Peace returned.
David wasn’t saying, “God makes me impressive.”
He was saying, “God keeps me safe.”
This wasn’t about appearance.
It was about covering.
The anointing wasn’t a spotlight.
It was a shield.
God’s anointing is not always loud.
Sometimes it’s silent prevention.
The battle you never had.
The attack that never landed.
The breakdown that never happened.
The chaos that never reached your mind.
Some of the greatest evidence of God’s presence in your life is not what you survived, but what never touched you.
The shepherd anointed the head because that’s where direction lives.
That’s where decisions form.
That’s where fear begins.
And God says, “Let Me cover that.”
You’re not crazy.
You’re not weak.
You’re not failing.
You might just need fresh oil.
Because when the Shepherd anoints you, the enemy doesn’t need to be defeated.
He just needs to stay away.
“You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.”
Not because life is easy.
But because I am covered. 🕊️
