ARE YOU READY?
RaJean Vawter
Do you have insurance plans: medical, home, automobile? Why do you spend your money on insurance? Is it because you don’t trust God to take care of you and to provide for you? No. It’s because you believe that insurance is a wise investment because life doesn’t always go the way we’d like it to.
That is the same kind of reasoning each of us should make when it comes to preparing for disaster. It’s not a lack of faith. It’s merely wisdom because the world is simply not a safe place. Think about it . . . . . . When a disaster comes, whether it is short-term or long-term, if we aren’t prepared to meet our own needs and the needs of our family, how are we going to be able to meet the needs of our neighbors? How are we going to shine the Light of Christ in a darkened world? Do you know how to share the Gospel in such a way that enables another to understand, repent, confess and give themselves to Jesus? Are you prepared to help meet their physical needs?
Needless to say, our world has become so scary that people can either ignore it all, live in their own fantasy bubble, hoping that it won’t affect them – or – become paralyzed with fear.
Neither of those choices are options for a child of God. According to the Word of God, we’re supposed to follow the example of the sons of Issachar in 1 Chronicles 12:32 . . . who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do .We must be the same way. So, what season are we in?
Daniel 2:20-22 says there are appointed times set by God. When these times (seasons) happen, there are things that we need to know and be able to accurately interpret because these particular seasons cannot be altered. When God sets a time, things will occur exactly the way God ordained. By prayer, we can hasten, delay or diminish the prophecy but it will happen. In other words, if we’re following God, we can’t have our heads in the sand. We must be informed.
Examples of people who understood their times are:
Examples of when people stuck their heads in the sand:
In each season God looks for people willing to listen to Him say, “These are my plans. I want you to know what they are so you can cooperate with Me during this season.”
When we consider possibilities, what kinds of crises should we prepare for?” Here where I live in the country it would be. . .
So, what season are we in right now? We’re in the time of the end of life as we’ve always known it. According to scripture “something” bad, unpleasant, hard and painful is coming and we need to acknowledge that fact and prepare as best we can. We need to prepare spiritually by getting our act together with God and by deepening our relationship and ability to hear His voice and to gain strength emotionally to handle stress better. It is our responsibility to strengthen ourselves spiritually and emotionally, building ourselves up in our “most holy faith.” (Jude 1:20) No one can do it for us.
Practically, what do we need to know? What should we do? Ask yourself,
what would you need if you suddenly had no electricity, computers, ATMs or credit card use, phones or running water, the banks were closed and the stores were out of everything? These questions are so scary most people refuse to think about the possibility, allow themselves to become paralyzed with fear or convince themselves that “it will never happen here” and do nothing. Some even believe that preparing for such events are unscriptural and a lack of faith. But is it?
Noah worked for 120 years to prepare for disaster.
God gave Joseph a 7-year PLAN for a 7-year long disaster.
And here’s my favorite: God told Moses, “I will teach you what you shall do.” Exodus 4:15
So, the first thing to do is to make a plan. Without a plan, the whole idea of preparing for disaster will just overwhelm you and you’ll end up doing nothing. That’s why I’m trying to stimulate your thinking.
When you make your family plan, designate a contact person so everyone can contact the same person and find out about everyone else. In a disaster, it’s easier to get a hold of someone far away than it is locally. It’s also easer to get a text message through.
People who live in a city need to learn the evacuation routes and decide where they’d go if they have to leave. If your family plan will be for everyone to come to your house, how are you going to handle an influx of people? Don’t assume you can go to someone’s house without their permission.
The answer is to get started preparing ASAP if you haven’t already. And if you have started, speed it up. Disaster prep takes time, effort and money. Few of us have bank accounts we can empty to spend a lot on necessary supplies. The most important thing though is to get started. If you’ll just start, you’ll find that God will help you in big and small ways.
Ten years ago, Gary and I taught disaster prep. We found that most men immediately think in terms of getting a generator. A generator is certainly a good idea but it’s only good as long as you also have gas or propane to run it. You probably will want some water first. So I’d advise you to stock up on water. Learn how to store it and how to purify it. After water, here are some other things you will need:
Start by preparing for 3 days in what we call a Go-box, then a week, a month and so on. In other words, take it one step at a time.
Above all, don’t fear. Just get started.
Preparation and faith is not either/or. It’s both, and.
JUST DO IT
RaJean Vawter
Do you have insurance plans: medical, home, automobile? Why do you spend your money on insurance? Is it because you don’t trust God to take care of you and to provide for you? No. It’s because you believe that insurance is a wise investment because life doesn’t always go the way we’d like it to.
That is the same kind of reasoning each of us should make when it comes to preparing for disaster. It’s not a lack of faith. It’s merely wisdom because the world is simply not a safe place. Think about it . . . . . . When a disaster comes, whether it is short-term or long-term, if we aren’t prepared to meet our own needs and the needs of our family, how are we going to be able to meet the needs of our neighbors? How are we going to shine the Light of Christ in a darkened world? Do you know how to share the Gospel in such a way that enables another to understand, repent, confess and give themselves to Jesus? Are you prepared to help meet their physical needs?
Needless to say, our world has become so scary that people can either ignore it all, live in their own fantasy bubble, hoping that it won’t affect them – or – become paralyzed with fear.
Neither of those choices are options for a child of God. According to the Word of God, we’re supposed to follow the example of the sons of Issachar in 1 Chronicles 12:32 . . . who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do .We must be the same way. So, what season are we in?
Daniel 2:20-22 says there are appointed times set by God. When these times (seasons) happen, there are things that we need to know and be able to accurately interpret because these particular seasons cannot be altered. When God sets a time, things will occur exactly the way God ordained. By prayer, we can hasten, delay or diminish the prophecy but it will happen. In other words, if we’re following God, we can’t have our heads in the sand. We must be informed.
Examples of people who understood their times are:
- Moses
- Jeremiah
- The people in Nineveh understood the window of opportunity for repentance that Jonah delivered. The prophesied season of judgment did occur 150 years later. It was not only delayed but it was minimized by prayer and true repentance.
- Daniel had power and authority and could have lived according to man’s calendar. But instead, he sought God as to what He was planning for his generation, the season he was living in.
- Joseph knew the season and got a plan
- Simeon and Anna knew the season of the arrival of the Messiah.
Examples of when people stuck their heads in the sand:
- The people in the days of Noah.
- The people of Sodom in the days of Lot.
- The people in the days of Jeremiah.
- The people in the days of Jesus who did not recognize the day of their “visitation.”
In each season God looks for people willing to listen to Him say, “These are my plans. I want you to know what they are so you can cooperate with Me during this season.”
When we consider possibilities, what kinds of crises should we prepare for?” Here where I live in the country it would be. . .
- Tornadoes - We just had six last weekend that tore up 55.5 miles.
- High, straight-line winds
- Flooding
- Drought
- Train or truck accidents with chemical or explosive materials on-board. This happened near me in 2008.
- Terrorism – Also in 2008 there was a dirty bomb threat over the Grand Saline salt flats. We also have our share of people living here whose religion teaches them to support terrorism either directly or indirectly.
- War. Of concern currently are North Korea, Iran, Syria, Russia and ISIS.
- Crime of all sorts and active-shooter situations – When we first moved to the country, an irate father shot and wounded the Canton High School coach. We learned a few years ago from experts in the field that organized crime, drug and human trafficking along with Mexican Cartels operate in every city, county and rural area in the U.S. In addition, as the economy gets worse; we can expect the anger and frustration level of struggling people to increase to the point of violence.
- And then there are the economic crises that we are continually in. This is the one that scares people the most because, unlike the Great Depression, this is world-wide so we’ve never been here before.
So, what season are we in right now? We’re in the time of the end of life as we’ve always known it. According to scripture “something” bad, unpleasant, hard and painful is coming and we need to acknowledge that fact and prepare as best we can. We need to prepare spiritually by getting our act together with God and by deepening our relationship and ability to hear His voice and to gain strength emotionally to handle stress better. It is our responsibility to strengthen ourselves spiritually and emotionally, building ourselves up in our “most holy faith.” (Jude 1:20) No one can do it for us.
Practically, what do we need to know? What should we do? Ask yourself,
what would you need if you suddenly had no electricity, computers, ATMs or credit card use, phones or running water, the banks were closed and the stores were out of everything? These questions are so scary most people refuse to think about the possibility, allow themselves to become paralyzed with fear or convince themselves that “it will never happen here” and do nothing. Some even believe that preparing for such events are unscriptural and a lack of faith. But is it?
Noah worked for 120 years to prepare for disaster.
God gave Joseph a 7-year PLAN for a 7-year long disaster.
And here’s my favorite: God told Moses, “I will teach you what you shall do.” Exodus 4:15
So, the first thing to do is to make a plan. Without a plan, the whole idea of preparing for disaster will just overwhelm you and you’ll end up doing nothing. That’s why I’m trying to stimulate your thinking.
When you make your family plan, designate a contact person so everyone can contact the same person and find out about everyone else. In a disaster, it’s easier to get a hold of someone far away than it is locally. It’s also easer to get a text message through.
People who live in a city need to learn the evacuation routes and decide where they’d go if they have to leave. If your family plan will be for everyone to come to your house, how are you going to handle an influx of people? Don’t assume you can go to someone’s house without their permission.
The answer is to get started preparing ASAP if you haven’t already. And if you have started, speed it up. Disaster prep takes time, effort and money. Few of us have bank accounts we can empty to spend a lot on necessary supplies. The most important thing though is to get started. If you’ll just start, you’ll find that God will help you in big and small ways.
Ten years ago, Gary and I taught disaster prep. We found that most men immediately think in terms of getting a generator. A generator is certainly a good idea but it’s only good as long as you also have gas or propane to run it. You probably will want some water first. So I’d advise you to stock up on water. Learn how to store it and how to purify it. After water, here are some other things you will need:
- Food – canned, freeze-dried, and dehydrated. I learned how to can so I could take advantage of sales on beef, chicken and vegetables.
- Non-food items – toilet paper, cleaning supplies, soap, shampoo, candles, lanterns with extra oil and wicks, blankets, matches, etc. Some of these items you probably already have but just don’t realize how important they are or how to adapt them.
- Medical needs – band-aides, hydrogen peroxide, anti-biotic creams, prescription meds, etc.
- Cash, gold and silver
- Tools – shovel, axe, bow-saw, basic handyman tool set
- Transportation needs - bicycle
Start by preparing for 3 days in what we call a Go-box, then a week, a month and so on. In other words, take it one step at a time.
Above all, don’t fear. Just get started.
Preparation and faith is not either/or. It’s both, and.
JUST DO IT
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