Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Why I Am Not A Prepper

The prepper movement is growing. And it has been for a while now.  The reasons behind it often seem quite valid to me. Whether it's a natural disaster, another great depression on the horizon, or the complete failure of the power grid. Those are all great reasons to "be prepared". But how you go about your preparedness is often where my similarity with the movement ends.
 
I was reading a blog post the other day about "the 7 foods you shouldn't stock up on" and it got me thinking.
If you're a prepper and you're simply saying, "For the next natural disaster, I am going to be prepared!" then more power to you! Way to plan! While everyone else is getting into fist fights down at the grocery store for the last can of tuna, you'll be home, knowing that you've got enough food and supplies to comfortably get you through the next few weeks (or months!) of turmoil.

 
What happens though when the food runs out? "But I have 3 years worth of food stored up!" you say. All right, what then after 3 years? What if we're living beyond just a natural disaster? What if life as we know it now ceased to exist? Having bunkers filled to the brim of food and supplies works well...for as long as that holds out.
 

I guess in a way, I am a prepper. But I'm a different kind. Instead of stocking up on things I want to know how to do things. I want to be prepared to feed my family off what comes from the homestead. Meat, milk, greens, fruits, and even grains. I want to be prepared to save seeds. I want to be prepared to breed and raise animals. I want to know how to feed our animals when the feed store isn't available. I want to know how to sew clothing. I want to know how to make soap, to care for our dental and medical needs, to do things without the use of electricity, propane, solar panels, wind turbines, or fuel. I want to be prepared with sanitation, with a clean water source, with a sustainable heat supply for our home in the winter. ...
I want to be prepared for if and when life does a 180 and we go back to the life people have known for thousands of years. That's my preparation.
 
I want to pray that the Lord would have mercy on my family and that He would bless our land, our animals, our efforts. For without Him, our lives would be nothing. He has given me a mind to learn and apply skills, but ultimately the success of our family comes from the Lord, as does the sun, rain, and everything that grows. I want to be obedient to His word and His leading. For our sufficiency is not of ourselves, but of the Lord.
 
Have these thoughts ever crossed your mind?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm of the same mind-set as you. We are homesteaders, not preppers. Many similarities between the two however your post makes the proper distinction of how Christians are to prepare. If we as Christians are about His work, living a quiet life and working with our hands then we will be prepared to take care of our families and help others.

God bless to you and your family.

April

Daws said...

We feel the same way. I actually bought the book Living Off Off Grid on your recommendation and we are reading through it together. It contains a lot of truths that we hadn't considered before, but it makes so much sense.

I think prepping is just the "thing" for right now.

Really enjoy reading your thoughts.

Toni (texas)

Mountain Home Quilts said...

Toni-
I am glad you picked up a copy of the book. It is well worth the read!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me here.
Blessings,
Heather

Mountain Home Quilts said...

April-
If I could change anything about where we live (and this would be the ONLY thing I would change) it would be to homestead in more of a community of like minded folks. What a blessing to be able to not have to "do it all" yourself and to trade and barter with your neighbor! Helping each other out is a wonderful blessing.

Thanks for your comment!
Blessings,
Heather

Holly said...

I've seen several people/friends cycle through a prepper stage. For them it's more of a fad because the movement is "popular" so to speak. They do it in unrealistic extremes by purchasing a bunch of stuff- MRE's,gas mask,survival kits and such- that sits in a closet, yet they have not taken the time to learn any new skills. For us this is life. Any New skills we learn we apply them to our daily life. We are growing this homestead to live now, not for "just in case something bad happens". I too do not like to be called a prepper. We homestead and this is a way of life not phase or fad!

barbaradougherty126 said...

yes, the world is scary these day, but God is going to take care of me and that keeps me from running out and buying every prepper-fied invention, lol. I want to learn how to do everything necessary too. I don't have animals yet, but they are coming soon.

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