Get Prepared!
With all of the natural and some man-made disasters, we have been encouraged by many governmental agencies such as FEMA, Red Cross and others to put aside food and water. We have also been encouraged to have a grab-and-go bag in case we have to evacuate from an area. Many stores are now dedicated to Emergency Preparedness and are full of dried foods and different types of stoves to use in an emergency if the power goes off; they have water barrels, big and small, so one would have water as well. There are shows about “Preppers” who have taken preparedness to a high level; sometimes done with common sense, and without.
Looking at all of this, it is true that there are two major types of responses to a multiple list of emergencies that can come our way. The first is the ability to “hunker down” in one’s living quarters, or “get out of town” if one is escaping from a weather disaster of some kind. We do need to be prepared for these types of emergency responses. I can remember that while I was growing up, most homes had pantry’s full of food. Going to the store every day was a sign of poor organization. Also, there were shelves of home bottled foods; gardens were everywhere and people, for the most part, had the ability to survive in their homes if the power went down. The cities were a different story. Most were in apartments, and they depended upon the corner grocery store. People were quick to help each other then as they are now in an emergency.
It seems that in the last few years there has been a growing concern with many about their ability to survive in many areas; there are concerns about our dollar; the soundness of it. We are watching inflation eat up most of our incomes. Many have lost homes due to the housing bubble. Many have lost jobs in the last few years. There is a sense of unease with many. There are more and more people who are now in earnest preparing for a time when bad things could happen. This could be anything from weather problems, to power shortages, or grid collapses; it could come from another stock market crash or housing crash; it could come from a national financial collapse and people are nervous.
Another Area of Preparedness? Different Than Food and Water?
Common sense would tell us that it is wise to plan ahead in all areas of our lives. Our pantries should be full. We shouldn’t be dependent upon daily visits to the store. We should have money saved if possible and a stash of cash if the power goes down and we need some money. World history certainly has shown us that thinking ahead and planning ahead is a good thing. A good way to start is a three day, then three weeks, then three months plan. It makes good sense and certainly can’t hurt us, but what else should we think about?
Let’s address another preparedness view. It is the “prepare to be compassionate” view. The first step is that it can’t all be about us. It is about family and neighbors. We have to be able to stay clear of “survival at any cost” and in turn care about those around us. For the most part we do fairly well in localized emergencies.
If Things Really Fall Apart
We haven’t been hit on a national level since the Great Depression. I don’t mean that we haven’t had national emergencies but they still have been in localized areas. We watched New York, Washington D.C. and a field in Pennsylvania during 9/11. For the most of us, it’s over our televisions. We have watched tornadoes, floods, and hurricanes. They haven’t hit the entire country at the same time. When something truly hits, that will have a major effect upon our country, states and cities, then we will have to give even more careful thought about what kind of person we will be under those types of situations.
I can remember the Watts riots in Los Angeles. I had just moved to Long Beach, California and there were tanks in the streets. There were also six cities at the same time that were on fire over the issue of segregation. Everyone understood the riots. Everyone hoped that the government would find a way to settle and then fix the situation. Luckily for America, America did fix the problem. Dr. Martin Luther King made a difference and a peaceful door was opened. It could have gone differently. The powers of disruption were alive and well at that time. Just look at the Vietnam War Protests. We made it through that event thanks to some very brave people and people who desired to work the problems out.
Where are we today? Do we have the ability to work some major disturbances out? Could we put calmness out there in our neighborhood instead of knee-jerk reactions? Would the neighbor to neighbor help still be there, even if you didn’t know your neighbor if you were in the cities or if people were coming from other towns to your town for help? If it seemed that the order and rule of law was collapsing? It seems that there are many that are tightly strung now. People are nervous and are saying it aloud. I’m not saying that there isn’t reason for concern. What I am asking is: how are you going to handle it?
Prepare to Be More Christ-Like Than You Have Ever Even Thought of Being!
The reason I have given this so much thought was a scripture that stuck out in my reading of the New Testament the other day. Christ was talking about how man cannot serve man and God at the same time. He pointed out that we really had to choose whether we were just going to give into our mortality and selfishness, or were we going to choose to be different; more Christ-like. The words sacrifice, meekness, patience in suffering came to my mind along with many other words that describe the attributes of Christ. Christ tells us that all these attributes that he has we can learn. We are to learn about those attributes and change! He tells us that we can do this and need to do this.
Then my eyes saw these verses in Mathew 6: 25-31. Look them up. The verses talk about how God takes care of the fowls in the air and the lilies in the fields and that we need to have faith that he will take care of us in our times of need as well as in our day to day events. As I read that several times I thought that we have another area of preparedness that has to be worked on. We need to prepare to lean upon our God and trust that no matter what, if we try our best to be as Christ-like as possible, we will be sustained and nurtured by our God. Miracles will be possible. Sacrifice can create miracles. Patience and kind words can turn away anger and rage from frightening events.
We need to plant our potatoes, so to speak, and not wait for someone else to take care of us. We need to do our part. We need to be wise and prepared but if in the event all heck truly breaks loose, let’s not forget who we are. I would rather share what I have than lose the spirit. I would rather lift people up and be a bearer of hope in darkened times than just survive at any cost. As a counselor I have watched people overcome some very large negative events that have happened in their lives and come out stronger. We have abilities to be wonderful in some truly awful circumstances.
Something to think about.
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