What a perfect name for Jesus! Do you know how a shepherd actually cares for his sheep? Besides watching them during the day, he gathers the sheep at night into a small pen, and the shepherd himself sleeps across the entrance to the pen. If a wolf or another animal tried to attack the sheep, it would have to get past the shepherd first. Jesus is our constant protection! We might not always know what’s good for us or get what we want, but the Good Shepherd has the master plan. And in the words of Psalm 23, the protection of our Shepherd becomes abundantly clear.

Sheep would be helpless if not for the shepherd. Flies like to torment the sheep by laying eggs in their nostrils which turn into worms and drive them to beat their heads against a rock, sometimes to death. But an ordinary shepherd knows what to do. He would “anoint the head with oil,” removing the torment, bringing peace…. Thou anointest my head with oil... a line from the 23rd Psalm. Thousands of years ago, David wrote that Psalm, clearly in the power of the Spirit. Such an explanation so many years later helps us understand our God’s incredible love for us.

The Shepherd’s oil of protection is poured over our heads every day of our lives. With that knowledge, all we have to do is trust Him. The Lord is my Shepherd… I shall not want…

About the author: Previously the priest at St. Francis of Assisi in Lake Placid for 21 years, Rev. Elizabeth L. Nelson is now the Priest at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church in LaBelle.