A. Introduction
It is an axiom of biblical emunah (faith) that the wise are always prepared. This 'preparation' or 'preparedness' (or 'prepping' to use the modern vernacular) concerns all aspects of life - physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.
Noah Was a Global Prepper
Noah did not wait for it to rain before building an Ark and his trust (faith) in Yahweh was immensely practical and might be summarised into a simple statement: Yahweh takes care of His people provided they are obedient and make such physical preparations that are required of them. For Noah it was the construction of the Ark which he started 120 years before the crisis or catastrophe that would become the worldwide flood. Not many would be prepared to exercise that kind of emunah (faith). In other words, preparation in advance is always the wisest:
"The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it" (Prov.27:12, NIV).
Fate of the Scoffers
Many have scoffed at me over the years for teaching this simple emet (truth). "The Lord will take care of all my needs," is the usual retort which, though absolutely true and thoroughly biblical, is rarely applied properly. Thus one well-known modern evangelist who decided he would go evangelising on the other side of the world with only the clothes he was wearing and without cash 'trusting in the Lord' eventually realised his foolishness and selfishness: for though he was more than able to provide for himself and his family, he at length acquired an entitlement mentality and expected others to provide for him. Taking his reasoning to its logical conclusion, he realised that if every believer were to take this attitude that soon the entire Messianic Community (Church) would starve.
The First Disciples
He also came to realise that Yah'shua's (Jesus') command that the talmidim (disciples) go into the mission field "without purse or scrip" (Mt.6:8, KJV) was not a general command but only for a specific mission that was never required again. Indeed, later the Master told His witnesses to adequately prepare and to even arm themselves against bandits on the road (Lk.22:36). That is why Paul supported himself on his missionary trips as a tentmaker (Ac.18:3).
Phoney 'Relying on God'
What some call 'relying on God' turns out in any case to be indirectly 'relying on men' but by other means, and parasitically at that. Having done all you can, then it would not be wrong to trust in Yahweh to provide through others but not to expect provision of others.
Making a Preparedness Threat Assessment
Every wise believer makes a prayerful 'Preparedness Threat Assessment', particularly in difficult times. Thus one wise German farmer in 1943, seeing the way the war was going for his country, started buying as much gold as he could afford. When his nation was utterly destroyed and poverty and hunger stalked the land, the farmer not only had food to feed his family and relatives who sought him out for help, but had enough gold stored away so that he could reboot his business after the war and become prosperous. Most had not so prepared and either suffered, died and (in the case of women, sold themselves into prostitution) remained in poverty.
Planning Far Ahead in the Beast System
In our day we are facing total global economic collapse. There is no way it cannot happen. And in a time not too far down the road, believers will, we are told in biblical prophecy, not be allowed to trade by the Beast System that will be fully in place and which even now is being set up (Rev.13:16-17). Many are wisely not only planning ahead for the imminent Collapse of society but are looking ever further down the road at the the Great Tribulation (Rev.7:14) and combining the two needs by learning how to become self-sufficient. We all have to learn to be farmers or market gardeners.
Identify the Threats That May Face You
In this section of the NCCG.ORG webpage we will be offering you some simple advice as well as pointing you to others who have a lot of expertise. The first thing you need to do is to identify the threats which include:
- 1. Natural Disasters, which will depend on where you live (e.g. floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, long winters, arid climate, etc.);
- 2. SHTF Scenarios, such as economic collapse, political instability, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats, riots, wars, etc.;
- 3. Personal Threats, such as economic problems, job loss, debt, mortgage, home invasions, etc.; and
- 4. Locational Dangers, obstacles or dangers specific to your geographical location that could leave you vulnerable (terrorist threats, chemical/biological threats, infrastructure weaknesses, crime, poor access to supply routes, escape routes during a disaster, etc.)
Threat Assessment
The next phase of preparedness is assessing the threats by assessing how these dangers will impact you and determining what needs to be protected:
- 1. How will each potential threat affect you, your family, property and survival plans?
- 2. How will each situation affect your overall preparedness efforts?
- 3. What areas in your plans, security or overall preparedness efforts need addressing? and
- 4. What steps will you need to take to protect yourself, your family and your property?
Threat Management
Finally, you will need to calculate how you will manage the threats and to take immediate protective actions that will help prevent or minimise your exposure to these potential threats:
- 1. Plan what can you do to minimise your risk;
- 2. Develop appropriate emergency plans and threat reduction for each situation;
- 3. Be prepared to 'bug out' if the situation calls for that action; and
- 4. Do intelligence work by seeking information from multiple sources (this website will help point you in the right direction). Make sure you have a good way to gather information before and after a disaster hits (e.g. consult survival websites and books, radio, intercom, etc. Some have already become radio hams and have set up shortwave radio networks. Do research on communities who are already being forced to live like this like white South African farmers.
The Fate of Those Unprepared
Consider those who have gone through disasters who did not prepare. Any number of natural disasters in recent history will furnish plenty of stories where government agencies failed to adequately help its citizens, or didn't help at all (e.g. the Department of Homeland Security in the USA during various hurricanes). Do not rely on the government to help you. When anarchy descends, the government is rarely the friend of the citizen and is in any case strapped for resources. When law-and-order break down there is no government anyway. Consider what happened to Venezuela, a nation which suffered complete collapse in 2018. All nations will go through something like that.
Get Serious
The wise man takes water and food storage very seriously. In an age where being manly is looked upon with disdain, this is very definitely the time for men to become men again and to become the protectors and providers they were created by Yahweh to be:
"Be on your guard; stand firm in the emunah (faith); be men of courage; be strong" (1 Cor.16:13, NIV).
Men Must Become Men Again
Emasculated men will not fare well. In this respect, catastrophe can become a blessing in disguise...if you are adequately prepared. It will soon straighten out gender rôles. In many of the scenarios you come to assess, you will realise that you will have to stand alone for days, weeks, months, and in some cases years.
Time to Wake Up
If this has shocked you, that is good. You need waking up. It is better to be shocked now, when you can still do something, than later when you will be helpless and at the mercy of the mob. We will help you presently to start making your preparations.
How Long Could You Survive?
Be aware that when the SHTF ('Sh*t Hits The Fan', i.e. disaster), food will run out in the shops within 24 hours or sooner. How long could you live off the supplies that you currently have? One day? A week? A month? During a long-term disaster, which is what you should be prepared for, your food supplies and your ability to acquire and preserve new food are going to decide whether you make it or not.
Water
Had you even considered storing water? Most forget this. Man cannot live without water for more than four days. As services in cities break down, your water supply will be cut off. Filling a bath tub may last you a short while but not for long. Do you even have a way of purifying water or sterilising it? What if you don't have a bath tub? This is why you need somewhere where you have easy natural access to clean water. This is why you need to P-L-A-N in advance and make early economic investments.
"In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has" (Prov.21:20, NIV).
The Spiritual Dimension is Essential Too
The spiritual dimension is essential in preparedness. Without revelation, you won't know the best way to prepare. Only Elohim (God) can tell you where to be, when, and how to get your storage program underway. Physical preparation is not enough. Even the best laid plans can go disasterously wrong without the direction of Elohim (God). There's a lot to learn! I know of many who were well prepared foodwise but whose homes were overrun and their stores stolen when the streets became lawless. Many were killed by gangs because they didn't have any means of protecting themselves. They were defenceless. That is why many include guns and ammunition in their storage program (where that is legal). This is a reason getting out of the cities is essential. Read about Sarajevo during the civil war in Bosnia and discover how people survived. The people with the guns were the ones who made it.
Staying Alert
Above all, you need to be alert and to resist society's tendency to dull your senses. The government will never tell you the truth and those who live in socialist societies where they are taken care of from cradle-to-grave are going to be amongst the worst hit because they won't know how to take care of themselves and their families at all.
"So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled" (1 Thess.5:6, NIV).
Time is Short
Never assume that you have lots of time. You don't. Those with little money to spend on prepping can succeed if they start early. I know very poor people who started early and by just buying one extra can of food a week with their tiny incomes have managed over a couple of years to build a respectable storage system. They simply acted in emunah (faith), trusting in Yahweh to guide them. Some of them have devised all sorts of ingenious ways of providing for themselves by developping, for example, indoor hydroponics systems and are already well on the way toward self-sufficiency.
Pro-actively Trusting Yahweh is the Only Way to Survive
This is how you trust in Yahweh to provide for you, by doing what you must and doing what you can. True emunah (faith) is pro-active. Those who refuse to do anything will suffer. The rest will have difficulties to be sure but they, and their families, will in most cases make it to live another day to serve Yahweh and lead successful lives as society rebuilds itself. Even so, the wise among the survivors will begin preparing for the Final Catastrophe before the Second Coming! Once you have become self-sufficient, continue developing your skills and involving others in community. There is always greater safety in numbers but pick the people you share with wisely and by revelation. It may take only one turncoat to destroy everything you have built up for disaster not only brings out the best in people ... but the worst too. Only Yahweh can guide you in that.
Further Homework
[1] Section E, Prepping and Survival, on our Alternative Media website.
Acknowledgements
[1] Offgrid Survival, 5 Things the Bible Can Teach us About Preparedness
(12 September 2018)
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