How do these work together?
Honestly, I’ve heard both sides of the argument when it concerns preparedness.
Christians should always trust. God will provide. It’ll all work in the end.
vs
You’re on your own in this world. No one is going to take care of you but yourself. There is no guarantee provisions will be available when SHTF.
Both sides have valid points. So what do I do?
I lean into a hybrid that I’ve noticed among so many other preppers I’ve come across.
Yes, we should trust that God will provide. I’ve personally seen Him do it multiple times in my life. While at the same time, we should understand that He has also asked us to be ready.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: this world is unstable but you don’t have to be. God didn’t promise living in this world would be easy but He gave us the provisions and mentality to prepare for whatever comes our way.
There are multiple places in the Bible where God instructs believers to be ready and be prepared. Today I want to share three of them with you.
Examples of Biblical Preparedness
1. Famine in Egypt
Genesis 41:29-30 There will come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt, 30 but after them there will arise seven years of famine, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt.
If you’ve read the story of Joseph, you’ll recognize this part. This was when Joseph was still in prison and Pharaoh had a dream that his magicians couldn’t interpret. God gave Jospeh the interpretation which led to him rising to power as second in command and in charge of preparing for the coming famine.
God warned the people of Egypt what was coming: seven years of plenty and seven years of famine. Seven years of stocking food and preparing for what was coming, and seven years of being wise with that reserve and distributing it out to the people of the land.
They followed God’s instructions and the people survived.
2. Manna from Heaven
Exodus 16:5 “On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.”
This is a unique situation for preparedness. When the people of Israel wandered the desert for forty years, God sent bread from the heavens to feed them on a daily basis.
Now how amazing would this be?
He instructed the people to only take what they would need each day but on the sixth day, take double so they could eat on the Sabbath.
He provided for them constantly yet still expected them to prepare for their day of rest.
3. Parable of Oil
Matthew 25:8-9 “And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’”
Jesus shared this parable story among many others throughout His ministry. This parable was about ten virgins waiting for the bridegroom so they could walk with him to the wedding feast. They were instructed to keep their lamps lit because they weren’t told when he would arrive. Five prepared and brought plenty of oil but the other five were considered foolish because they didn’t prepare.
Since they weren’t ready, the groom showed up while the five foolish were out looking for more and ended up not being able to join in the feast. Their foolishness cost them their place at the table.
I understand this story may sound harsh but the fact of the matter is they were all equally warned of the night’s events and should have been just as equally prepared.
This story also refers to what Jesus said in the chapter before.
Matthew 24:44 “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
We have no idea when Jesus will return but we need to be ready.
What does this have to do with Prepping?
For me, this is my foundation. The very first Bible verse I memorized as a six-year-old was Proverbs 6:6 “Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.”
Yes, I grew up on the King James Version. I personally find it beautiful.
It seems I had prepping established in my blood. I also have a history of hoarding–or as I grew up hearing: being a Pack Rat. Working through that title as I grew older helped me see the importance of keeping what is actually needed vs all the extra unnecessary stuff.
There is no guilt in wanting to be ready. There is no guilt in trusting that God will provide.
Whether you’re a believer or not, knowing that preparedness has been around since the beginning of time should be encouraging for you.
Plenty of people prepare for winter by stocking up during the harvest season. Just like the ant and other creatures of this world.
Although we have more provisions available to us throughout the year now, we can still prepare for seasons of hardship and famine.
Until next time,
Happy Prepping!
*The passages referenced in this post were in the ESV translation (except for Proverbs 6:6) and copied from https://www.biblegateway.com.
