Psalm 23:5b You anoint my head with oil.

There are those who contend that in the Christian life one need only have a single, initial anointing of God’s Spirit. Yet the frustrations of daily dilemmas demonstrate that one must have Him come continuously to the troubled mind and heart to counteract the attacks of one’s tormentors. This is a practical and intimate matter between myself and My Master.

It is both a logical and legitimate desire for us to have the daily anointing of God’s gracious Spirit upon our minds. God alone can form in us the mind of Christ. The Holy Spirit alone can give to us the attitudes of Christ. He alone makes it possible for us to react to aggravations and annoyances with quietness and calmness. When people or circumstances or events beyond our control tend to “bug” us, it is possible to be content and serene when these “outside” forces are counteracted by the presence of God’s Spirit. – A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 by W. Phillip Keller, Pg. 141

As believers, we will face situations where our faith is tested and/or deal with petty annoyances from people which can result from a number of things. Dealing with these situations are not easy. But as believers, we are to run to the Lord and lay these things at His feet while asking Him for His peace and wisdom. These situations may be out of our control so to speak. As the Lord’s anointed, we are called to a higher standard, and we are to have the mind of Christ and react in a way that is pleasing to Him. Personally, I’m learning to stay in a constant posture of prayer for God’s peace, wisdom, and protection. Unfortunately, dealing with people, there are those who don’t want to see you succeed so they will do anything to stumble and trip you up by applying harassment, intimidation, ridicule, lies, manipulation, and so forth to bring you down. If you find yourself in a situation like this, it’s probably best for you to remove yourself from that environment while immediately praying to God for His wisdom, peace, and protection. He is our Great Protector and Defender! The Lord is Faithful for He never fails! We may also find ourselves in other situations where our faith is tested. But remember that God is sovereign and in control in all of our circumstances! Remain in an attitude of prayer and always look to the Lord for His wisdom and guidance. He will sustain us while giving us His peace and grace for the road ahead.

The important thing in all of this is that we ask for a daily anointing of God’s Holy Spirit and for Him to form the mind of Christ within us so that we can react in a way that is pleasing to Him regardless of our  circumstances. When negative thoughts come to my mind, I pray and ask God for forgiveness and not to think of those things again. Not as often as I should, but there are times I will meditate on Philippians 4:8 paraphrasing: “Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely – meditate on these things. I need to do a better job to meditate on this verse more often and not just sometimes. The key is to have the mind of Christ, so let’s pray for the Lord to form this mind in us.

Often the mass media that are largely responsible for shaping our minds are in the control of men whose character is not Christlike, who in some cases are actually anti-Christian. The only possible, practical path to attaining such a mind free of the world’s contamination is to be conscious daily, hourly of the purging presence of God’s Holy Spirit, applying Him to my mind. 

Just as one asks Christ to come into the life initially to assure complete control of one’s conduct, so one invites the Holy Spirit to come into one’s conscious and subconscious mind to monitor one’s thought life. Just as by faith we believe and know and accept and thank Christ for coming into our lives, so by simple faith and confidence in the same Christ, we believe and know and accept with thanks the coming (or anointing) of His gracious Spirit upon our minds. Then having done this, we simply proceed to live and act and think as He directs us. – A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 by W. Phillip Keller, Pgs. 144-145

2 Corinthians 10:5 Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.