September is National Preparedness Month here in the USA. Since 2004, many people have come across this event in all kinds of media. And most, I’m sure, focus only on the physical items.
Don’t get me wrong. The physical items are important. One of the posts I saw the other day suggested a pocket flashlight. Having had first-hand experience with a dark Walmart last spring, I totally get the value.
But as a family of faith, physical items are certainly not the only kind of preparedness. And as a couple that focuses on teaching, physical is again not the only kind.
When we have faith in Christ, we can endure all things. Being prepared for the unknown is great. However, being prepared for the eternities in my mind is way more important.
Spiritual preparedness is not just blind faith on a Sunday sitting in the pews. It’s daily prayer and scripture reading that keeps us on the straight and narrow path that leads back to Him.
When we take the time to pray to our Heavenly Father about the future and the things we need to prepare for, and truly listen, He will guide us in the direction we should prepare for. Creating the perfect 72-hour kit is great. Yet I bet scriptures might not have made it on your list of gear to grab.
In an ideal world, we would have time to prepare and take everything. That won’t happen in a true emergency. We need to pick and choose. I think taking your faith with you should rank pretty high on the list.
When disaster strikes, a 30-second pause in prayer as a family can help everyone stay calm and focus on the critical things. A short prayer might help calm your mind as you drive through the fire to get to safety.
After faith comes learning. No amount of physical preparedness will save you if you don’t know how to use the tools you already have.
Daily skill learning will help you through hard times. Being prepared is not only about disasters. It’s about living the best life while being ready for whatever may come. Job loss and car accidents occur way more often than when wildfire burns down your house. Yet we rarely prepare for these events.
Skills come through practice. You might be the worst cook on the planet today. But with practice you might get past the burning water stage of life and learn to provide healthy meals for your family. A few burnt biscuits along the way to success.
Any skill can be learned. Carpenters did not come into the world creating prefect works. Surgeons spend years in school before they are ready. And their learning never stops. Why should yours?
When you go to grab that 72-hour bag and run, the skills you learned will come with you. And they conveniently won’t cost you weight like a physical book would.
Having an open mind to learn keeps your mind young and nimble. Besides, we don’t get to take the physical when we move on from this life. Give yourself the most to carry on with you.
Faith and learning are critical to preparedness. Don’t get so wrapped up in the physical that you forget that.