People, get ready

​Escape Apathy

In order to succeed, we must believe that we can. And before we believe that we can, we must be convinced that we should.

Complacency and apathy are the mortal enemies of our future. When I was young and unwise, I was full of excuses like "Everything will be okay" and "There's not much I can do." Now that I know better, I'm often shocked at the volume of the collectively issued shrug that I hear coming from comfortable Westerners. No, folks, everything will not be okay if we do nothing. All we need to do is look back over the course of human history and consider the many catastrophes, wars, and famines that have already occurred in every corner of the globe. How many people have died or suffered horribly in the wake of these events for reasons that could have been avoided if proper preparations were made? Prepping is like insurance.

The world's governing bodies have learned from the past and are taking action. Perform a little bit of research and you will discover that the governments who can afford to do so have been stockpiling resources at an accelerated rate in anticipation of something bad just around the bend. Do you figure that they might know something the average citizen doesn't? Wouldn't it behoove us to follow suite? We can't rely on the government to take care of us when things get rough because: 1) they might not want to, and 2) they could never store up enough to provide for everyone for very long, so the rank-and-file citizens will be left wanting.

It's very telling that the German government is now requiring citizens to stockpile ten days-worth of food and water in case of national emergencies. 

The prudent person sees trouble ahead and hides, but the naïve continue on and suffer the consequences. (Proverbs 22:3)

Here's something to think about: We live in a unique time in history, post-Industrial Revolution, and technology has made it possible to cram massive numbers of people into small spaces with no access to land for farming or ranching. At this point, most of us wouldn't know how to perform those activities even if we had the space. We've become completely dependent on a system of pipes and vehicles to get us the resources that we need (and to take away the refuse that we don't want). What will happen to the throng of humanity packed into cities if the system breaks down?

The reality is, It's a horribly fragile system. So many things could cripple it--an EMP, a thermonuclear attack, a well-aimed solar flare, a shift in climate, an economic collapse, or widespread civil unrest. The question is not if, but when one or more of these things will happen. The Doomsday Clock kept by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is now set at three minutes before midnight, a graphic reminder of the continuous danger in which mankind is living.

But let me get off my soapbox. I'm a realist, and I know...

I could preach until I'm blue in the face about the need to act today to secure tomorrow, yet most people wouldn't take my advice. I'm merely one voice in a sea of influential voices, and, unfortunately, there are far more factors lulling you to sleep than there are waking you up. My hope, however, is that you will heed the Word of God more than you do the word of Alexander Lawrence. So allow me to point out what the Bible has to say about the days that lie ahead.

Know Bible Prophecy

When the apostle John was taken to heaven in a vision, one of the first things that he was shown was the future release of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (Revelation 6:1-8). These horsemen represent hardships that will trample over much of the world--war, famine, pestilence, and wild beasts. An incredible one quarter of the earth's population will be killed as a result of the Four Horsemen. After seeing the horsemen, John saw a string of supernatural plagues and a time of Great Tribulation under the heel of the Antichrist. Finally he witnessed the triumphant return of Messiah Y'shua (Jesus). We can be sure that the Four Horsemen are fast approaching because we have mere decades remaining before the return of Messiah (read this for some of the evidence).

Besides John, numerous other holy men were given visions of the last days. The prophet Daniel saw much war and political maneuvering leading up to the end, and he was shown a great and terrible beast representing an end-time kingdom that would crush and devour many other kingdoms. The prophet Enoch saw that "in those days" (a euphemism used throughout the Bible to describe the end of the age) the nations would be overthrown, but powerful families would rise again to build new kingdoms which God would devote to total destruction. Y'shua (Jesus) prophesied that "nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of birth pains" (Matthew 24:7-8).

The prophet Ezra gave us a similar testimony in two segments:

They that till the ground shall mourn: for their seeds shall fail through the blasting and hail, and with a fearful constellation. Woe to the world and them that dwell therein! For the sword and destruction draws nigh, and one people shall stand up and fight against another, and swords in their hands. For there shall be sedition among men, and invading one another.... Because of their pride the cities shall be troubled, the houses shall be destroyed, and men shall be afraid. A man shall have no pity upon his neighbor, but shall destroy their houses with the sword, and spoil their goods, because of the lack of bread, and for great tribulation. (4 Ezra 15:13-19)

Woe is me! Who will deliver me in those days? The beginning of sorrows and great mournings; the beginning of famine and great death; the beginning of wars, and the powers shall stand in fear; the beginning of evils! what shall I do when these evils shall come? Behold, famine and plague, tribulation and anguish, are sent as scourges for amendment.... Behold, the victuals shall be so good, cheap upon the earth, that they shall think themselves to be in good case, and even then shall evils grow upon the earth--sword, famine, and great confusion. For many of them that dwell upon earth shall perish of famine; and the other, that escape the hunger, shall the sword destroy. (4 Ezra 16:17-22)

Notice that Ezra points the finger at good and affordable victuals (food or provisions) as one of the culprits for people's complacency. During the first stages of the decline of the Roman Empire, a poet coined a phrase for this kind of thing: "bread and circuses." As long as the government provided citizens with cheap food and entertainment, the populace would scarcely concern themselves with the empire's problems or their civic duties. When there is an abundance of resources, short-sighted human beings tend to forget their dependency on the Most High. This attitude even creeps into the Ekklesia (Assembly) of Messiah, which is why Y'shua told the assembly at Laodicea, "You say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked" (Revelation 3:17). Such people are deceived, and Ezra reminds us that the bottom is going to drop out from under them, and they will be completely unprepared for the fall.

We could spend hours reading through other prophetic passages like these. The men who wrote these oracles were separated in time by hundreds and even thousands of years, yet they all saw this: that the end of the age would be preceded by widespread chaos and calamity. If we take the prophets seriously, then we have no reason not to get our life in order and our provisions ready now.

The apostle Peter warns us in his second epistle that many who live in the latter days will scoff at what the prophets have foretold about the end of the age. They will lose faith because of the delay between the Crucifixion and the Last Days. However, the Day of the Lord will still come with a fury, exactly when it should, and the earth will be immolated and remade. Then all wickedness will be judged and all righteousness rewarded. Peter says,

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Since everything will be destroyed in this way, think of the kind of holy and godly people you ought to be as you look forward to and hasten the coming of the day of God.... But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to have the Lord find you at peace and without spot or fault. Think of our Lord’s patience as facilitating salvation. (2 Peter 3:11-15)

Peter reminds us that this planet and everything in it will pass away in a blaze--not only can you not take anything with you into the next life, but all of the work that you've done on earthly things, for earthly purposes, will amount to nothing . That being the case, we should live pure lives pleasing to God, lives that focus on perfect and eternal things.

And keep in mind that the main reason for the delay of the apocalypse is that God is patiently waiting for more of us to hear the Good News and accept salvation by Messiah's sacrifice.

After hearing from the prophets of God, are you ready to take wise action?

Once you've decided to affect positive change in your life, the first order of business is honest self-examination. You must develop a strong faith and a godly lifestyle that is unhindered by anything impure.

Seek first the kingdom of god

I often find it sad when I see people preparing for calamity in the world without first considering eternity. Many who see the danger ahead are fearful because of it, and they go about securing a future for themselves with great determination because this present life is all that they have. The futility of it is heart-breaking. Why worry about adding a paltry handful of years to life on this cursed earth, when an eternal death awaits you at the Judgment? "What does it prosper a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?" (Mark 8:36).

But even among those who have put their trust in Y'Shua, some are depending on their own efforts to make it through. That also is tragic, and foolish. The Bible says, "Unless YHVH builds a house, its builders labor at it in vain. Unless YHVH guards a city, a guard watches in vain" (Psalm 127:1). Oftentimes, believers keep depending on themselves because they aren't on intimate terms with the Father, and they don't have intimacy because they haven't executed the carnal self.

You see, it's impossible to walk in the Spirit while we are wallowing in the muck. We must take up our cross and die to self if we desire God's blessing. Y'Shua taught that "whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it." Death is systemic, and there is no coming back from it (until the Resurrection). Likewise, the Way of Christ is a thorough abandonment of everything unwholesome. Paul wrote, "Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:11). Considering ourselves dead to sin is a daily choice, even a moment-by-moment choice, not a once-for-all decision. The old man has to be put away continually and completely so that the new man can reign.

In 12-step addiction recovery programs, the fourth step is to take "a fearless and searching moral inventory." This is not just for addicts. In order to be well, truly well, each of us must be totally honest with ourselves and with God. It is only when we admit the exact nature of our wrongs and repent from them that we find freedom from ourselves and can begin a relationship with our creator. "If we make it our habit to confess our sins," says the Scripture, "in his faithful righteousness [God] forgives us for those sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Then can we draw near to the Father, for the pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5:8).

It seems backwards to the carnal mind, but the Word is clear that if we put the things of God foremost, and if we desire righteousness more than earthly riches, then Adonai will provide us with every good thing that we need and more. That includes, above all, supernatural peace and joy. It also includes God's favor, comfort, and supernatural assistance in times of distress.

I want God to have my back when I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death. Don't you? If he's for us, what can prosper against us? All the preparations in the world will amount to nothing if he isn't with us, but if he is with us, then, like David, we can face the Sauls and the Goliaths and the hoards of Philistines, and we will not be shaken. David said, "He rescued me from my strong enemy... he rescued me, because he delighted in me. YHVH dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me" (2 Samuel 22:18-21).

God is going to supernaturally protect and provide for those who love and obey him. Believe it! For it is written,

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty....
You will not fear the terror of night,
    nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
    nor the plague that destroys at midday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
    ten thousand at your right hand,
    ​but it will not come near you....
“Because he loves me,” says YHVH, “I will rescue him;
    I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call on me, and I will answer him;
    I will be with him in trouble,
    I will deliver him and honor him.” (Psalm 91:1-15)

"For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." (1 peter 3:12)

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practical steps to take

Make a family emergency plan

Chances are high that you will not have all of the members of your family in close proximity when a catastrophe occurs. You might be at the office or running errands while loved ones are at home, or at school, or visiting friends. If the telecommunications grid suffers a failure, family members could be lost to you.

The simple solution is to decide now where the family will meet up in the case of a grid-down event. Everyone in the family needs to know exactly where to go or where to remain during an emergency. The plan should be burned into each member's memory through frequent verbal repetition, so that there's no chance of anyone forgetting it and leaving the rest of the family in a pickle.

Think through different scenarios. What will you do if your son attends a different school from your daughter? What if a location becomes unsafe, and a family member has to move to different region? What if it becomes impossible to reach your optimal meeting place in a timely manner? Have a plan B, and perhaps a plan C.

Once you have your plans in place, each family member should recite them by memory each week until it's thoroughly ingrained.

Build a 72-hour kit

Next, put together a kit of essentials to sustain your entire family through a 72-hour plight. This is just good, common sense, because hurricanes and other natural disasters frequently plunge entire cities and territories into short-term states of emergency. There are many pre-made kits that you could purchase, or you could take the cheaper route and assemble them yourself. Numerous websites have published lists of supplies to consider adding to your short-term survival kits. Here's one such page that I recommend from Survivor's Fortress.

"If anyone does not take care of his own relatives, especially his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." (1 Timothy 5:8)

Pick a Retreat and assemble your gear

A decision must be made: will you "bug out" to somewhere besides your normal residence, or will you hunker down ("bug in") where you're at? Folks in rural areas will often prefer the latter, and city-slickers the former. Those on the outskirts of an urbanized area could either go or stay, and will have to weigh the pros and cons of each.

For many of us, staying in place long-term is a questionable tactic. Our property is either not fit for farming or ranching, lacks access to water, or is indefensible. If you fall into that category, your task is to network like mad until you find an established homestead that will take you in after the collapse (or at the least a land owner hospitable to the idea of starting a commune if the situation calls for it). Poll your friends and family first. If they don't have a place, ask them to connect you with any of their acquaintances who might. And of course pray that God will make the right connections happen.

If fleeing to a retreat post-collapse is your best option, and if the location you've chosen is a long way off, then you'll need to assemble comprehensive bug-out bags for you and your loved ones. A bug-out bag is a backpack filled with all the supplies that you'll require to survive a long break from civilization. Unlike a smaller 72-hour bag, a retreat-ready BOB is a camping backpack or large military rucksack filled with everything but the kitchen sink. Below is a decent but not comprehensive list of items to have in your BOB:

• A sturdy, metal canteen and several plastic water bottles (filled, of course)
• Lifestraws and purification tablets
• Versatile knife
• Compass (I have two, one of which is in a combo device with a whistle, thermometer, and magnifying glass)
• Multi-tool
• Sharpening stone
• Lightweight tent or tarps for shelter
• Sleeping bag
• Ground pad
• Strikers, lighters, and hand-crafted tinder (like cotton balls covered in petroleum jelly) in waterproof storage
• Dehydrated meals, bars, and trail mixes
• Powdered electrolytes
• Fishing kit
• Cooking stove, pots/pans, utensils, and fuel tabs
• Pot scrubber and camp soap
• Hand towel
• Pack towel
• Climate-appropriate clothing that can be worn in layers (two full outfits ONLY)
• Poncho
• Good hat
• Working gloves
• Folding shovel
• Camping axe
• Sunglasses with a strap
• Firearm and ammo
• Comprehensive first aid kit
• Medications
• Insect repellent
• Sewing kit
• AM/FM radio/charger combo with crank (some even have USB ports)
• LED headlamp and glow-sticks
• Mylar survival blankets
• Maps of areas you'll be traveling
• Pen, pencil, and small note pad
• Survival books
• Bible
• Personal hygiene items
• Small valuables and important documents
• [optional] Gas mask
• [optional] Geiger counter

Make sure that the items you pack are as light as possible without being cheaply manufactured. Each unnecessary ounce will become your enemy when you backpack all day, for days on end.

Also, once you have your gear purchased, you need to practice with it and learn how to use it. You don't want to try learning on-the-fly in a high-stress situation.

​In addition to the bug-out bags, consider having an alternative method of bug-out transportation. That brings us to our next step...

Get REady to Roll

Walking to a remote bug-out location is fine, but why walk for long distances if you can drive or bike? The trunk of my car fits about six 5-gallon gas canisters, so I bought some inexpensive cans from Wal-Mart and filled them with gasoline and fuel stabilizer. It would be ideal to have these with me in the car at all times, but I keep them at home because I found that they stink up the car quite badly (and I'm not eager to lose the precious few brain cells that I have to gas fumes).

A few cans of gas won't get most cars very far, so if your bug-out location is hundreds of miles away (as is ours), or if you have to abandon your car for some reason, then you'll need a different set of wheels. Each member of my family has a bicycle, and we have a rack that allows us to transport the bikes on our car. We have extra tires, chains, a portable air pump, and a compact bike repair multi-tool. The adults' bikes are equipped with saddle-bags that we can use to transport additional supplies beyond what will be in our backpacks.

If worse comes to worse, we can trade the bikes and accessories for whatever we need at the time. Survival-ready equipment like that will be very valuable after the Collapse.

Store Long-Term Supplies

This should go without saying, but you absolutely must stock up on food and water. Store as much as you can at the home where you know you'll eventually end up. The food will keep you going while you work on your homestead, whereas hunting and foraging will net less calories and severely impact your time. Also, consumables are great for bartering.

Concentrate on purchasing these types of foods:

• Soft and hard grains
• Beans
• White rice
• Wheat, white, and all-purpose flours
• Pastas
• Cornmeal
• Oats and oatmeal
• Canned and dried meats
• Canned and dried fruits
• Canned and dried vegetables
• Coconut oil (has a very long shelf life)
• Salt
• Sugar
• Raw honey
• Powdered milk
• Canned butter
• Powdered eggs
• Dried herbs and spices
• Bouillon cubes
• [optional] Wine

Well-dried and properly packaged foods can last for decades if stored in a cool, dry place. Canned foods have a much shorter life span but may still last as long as five years.

Don't forget that you'll need a way to cook your food. A wood-burning stove is the best long-term solution, but you might want to have other types of stoves and fuel as backups.

Stored water should be replaced every six months. I recommend using stackable water containers with handles so that you can easily carry the containers to and from the source of water.

Ultimately, you'll need a way to grow food and draw water from the land. Your stores will run out sooner or later, and then what? Stealing isn't an option. Will you go running to whatever remains of the government (likely a military dictatorship), looking for a hand-out? Personally, I wouldn't put my family's future into the hands of an unknown and possibly unmerciful secular organization.

The only viable long-term survival strategy is to start a farm. The sooner you can get started, the better. Buy heirloom seeds that will provide you with a good assortment of plants that will in turn produce more seeds. Then buy chickens, dairy goats, sheep, and other animals that you can use for food. An aquaponics system is also a wise investment.

I've provided links to some of my favorite survival supplies on Amazon. Click the button below to see them now.

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See Recommended Resources

Buy Precious Metals

Hear me on this: Nearly all of the money that you have in banks, stocks, bonds, and paper cash will disappear. The global economy is in dire straits, and once we hit the tipping point for any reason at all, that make-believe digital currency and printed paper that you've accumulated will mean jack squat. Modern money is just a bunch of I.O.U's being passed around in a man-made system that will no longer exist. Hyperinflation will turn our dollar bills into toilet paper.

This kind of thing has happened many times throughout history, but in the past, countries operated with more-or-less individual economies. Today, everything is connected. Some countries, like Greece and Venezuela, are already experiencing an economic crisis, but the rest of us are not far behind. Many wise financial experts have been warning that the bubble we're in will inevitably burst, and when it does, the global collapse will be epic. Now is the time to ditch cash in favor of commodities.

We've already discussed food; now let's talk rare metals. For a while after a grid-down scenario, precious metals will have little value. After all, people will be desperate for the basics in order to survive, and rare metals won't help with that. But eventually, as a new global order emerges from the ashes of our current world, gold and silver will become very valuable again, as they have been since the dawn of time. How do I know that for sure? The apostle John foresaw it as part of his vision of the destruction of the end-time economic powerhouse called Babylon:

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The world’s businesses cry and mourn over her [the great city], because no one buys their cargo anymore—cargo of gold, silver, gems, pearls, fine linen... (Revelation 18:11)

If you have a reasonable amount of savings, then you should seriously consider changing the majority of your cash into hard assets.

The great thing about gold in particular is that it never corrodes, but silver and platinum-group metals are also rare and highly resistant to degradation. A combination of these metals may be desirous, but you'll have to weigh the pros and cons yourself.

Don't get Overwhelmed

As you do the hard work of preparing for the future, you may at times feel overloaded and discouraged, even helpless. Remember to take it one step at a time. You may not be able to catch up to others who began prepping earlier, and you shouldn't necessarily try. Release yourself from the responsibility of being less wise yesterday than you are today, and trust that God can multiply your efforts in miraculous ways. Do the best that you can given the time that you have remaining.

Keep coming back to the scriptural fact that stress and anxiety are simply what happens when we don't believe that God is who he says he is. Then pray for more confidence in Adonai's strength and goodness.

Don't work yourself to death. Remember that God built us to require rest on a regular basis. He calls this the Shabbat, or Sabbath, and the command to observe a day of rest every seven days was engraved onto stone by the finger of YHVH when the Ten Commandments were given at Sinai. We ignore that command to our own detriment.

Simply be diligent in your efforts, be prayerful always, and rest when God says to rest--then leave the results up to your heavenly Father. He is a good father, and he will not forget to help us so long as we love and obey him. Amen.

Never worry about anything. Instead, in every situation let your petitions be made known to God through prayers and requests, with thanksgiving. Then God’s peace, which goes far beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your hearts and minds in union with the Messiah Y'Shua. (Philippians 4:6-7)