Bible

The short answer is yes, Christians should be preppers! Unfortunately, there is much negativity about preparedness for those who don’t understand what preparedness is all about. This is true for mainstream and the Christian community. This article should help clear up some misconceptions.

Christian Preppers – Lack of Faith?

One of the biggest arguments I get when I talk about preparedness from a Christian point of view is that it shows a lack of faith in God’s provision. This couldn’t be farther from the truth!

From the very beginning, and I mean “the beginning,” man was responsible to prepare his crops for a future harvest. We see this in Genesis 2:15 NASB, “Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.”

Can you imagine Adam’s conversation with God about having to “cultivate” and “keep” the Garden of Eden?

Adam: “Hey God, why do I have to work and cultivate the land? Why can’t I just have faith that you are going to cause the plants to grow and produce fruit and vegetables without me doing anything at all?”

Some Christians believe that they shouldn’t take any responsibility in the food they eat and their own provisions for emergency situations. But this view doesn’t hold water when they run to the grocery store every week to buy groceries for their pantry or put gas in their vehicles. Why don’t they just trust the Lord and have faith that food will appear in their pantries and gas will miraculously show up in their gas tanks?

Bible Examples of Preparedness

The one story in the Bible that speaks to preparedness the most is the story of Joseph and the years of plenty and famine in Egypt. You can find the story in Genesis 41. In this story, Pharoah has a dream and young Joseph interprets it for Pharoah. Joseph tells Pharoah…

Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseers in charge of the land, and let him exact a fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance. Then let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming, and store up the grain for food in the cities under Pharaoh’s authority, and let them guard it. Let the food become as a reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which will occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land will not perish during the famine.” Genesis 41:34-36 NASB

Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream and advice saved a nation and ultimately his own family! Later, after Jacob (Joseph’s father) dies, Joseph tells his brothers who are fearful that he might pay them back for selling him to slave traders in Egypt…

…Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. So therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” So he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. Genesis 50:19-21 NASB

Another example of preparedness found in the Bible is again, from the Book of Genesis. In the story of Noah’s Ark, God tells Noah to build an ark which will contain two of every unclean animal and seven pairs of every clean animal on the Earth (Genesis 7:2).

In order to prepare for his family and all of those animals, the Lord told Noah to prepare food. We read in Genesis 6:21 NASB, “As for you, take for yourself some of all food which is edible, and gather it to yourself; and it shall be for food for you and for them.”

More Bible Scriptures on Prepping

The Book of Genesis doesn’t hold all the Scriptural basis for preparedness or “putting some back.” Other Scriptures include the popular verses about the ant.

Go to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise,
Which, having no chief, Officer or ruler,
Prepares her food in the summer
And gathers her provision in the harvest. Proverbs 6:6-8 NASB

More wisdom from Proverbs would include Proverbs 14:15 NASB, “The naive believes everything, But the sensible man considers his steps.” And, Proverbs 22:3 NASB, “The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it.”

Prepper Is Just a New Word for Common Sense

But in reality, being prepared isn’t a Christian or a non-Christian thing. It is just common sense. We are so used to going to 24 hour stores and getting anything we want. We eat fruits and vegetables that are imported from all over the world. We are so spoiled compared to our great great grandparents and those who came before them! They were really preppers!

Before our modern conveniences and transportation system, families had to think through and prepare for their families. They didn’t have a seed catalog to order from, they needed to save seed from their previous growing season. They didn’t have freezers, they had to smoke and salt their meat. They couldn’t run to the store if they forgot sugar. They had to plan out and be very purposeful about what they stored and ate.

We are just so far removed from that time that the idea of putting some food storage back or preparing for an emergency seems like weirdness or extreme living to most people. The truth is, preppers are just being responsible for themselves and their families.

1 Timothy 5:8 NASB says, “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

13 F.A.Q.s About Preppers You Need to Know

Christian Preppers vs The Last Days

Sometimes, when people think about preparedness, they are thinking about THE APOCALYPSE, like in the Book of Revelation. Scenes from the Left Behind series come back to mind. This might be the case for some, but most Christian Preppers aren’t preparing for “The Tribulation.”

Being prepared means that Christian Preppers are ready for natural disaster type emergencies that happen every season like hurricanes, blizzards, tornadoes, earthquakes, fires and floods. Being prepared means that someone has paid off debt and isn’t acquiring new debt. Preparedness means that you can make due for a few weeks due to a job loss because you have money in savings to pay bills and food in your pantry to eat from. Being prepared just makes sense, but it goes against our modern consumerism way of living.

Christian Preppers Have a Perfect Opporutnity to Be a Blessing to Others

When it comes down to it, Christian Preppers have a great opportunity during an emergency to be a blessing to others. Whether that is providing information and know-how or actual gear or food, preppers can shine the light of Jesus during stressful times. As James 2:15-17 NASB says, “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.”

Christians should prep. It is Biblical and just common-sense. And as Believers, we should always be ready and paying attention to what is happening around us. As Jesus said in Matthew 16:2-3 NASB, “But He replied to them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times?”

I pray you use wisdom and discernment in your preparedness.

Peace,
Todd

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