Saturday Morning Commentary: Crossing The Threshold to Peace

     This post may turn some of you off, but I feel this must be said.  If you call yourself a "Christian Prepper", I am speaking to you.  You may not agree with me, but I hope you will give me the courtesy of listening to what I have to say.  My only purpose is to get you across "the Threshold."

     As the tension in the air grows, I am discerning a distinct difference among my friends who are "awake."  Everyone is pretty much on the "Prepper" page.  The very essence of "preparing" means to pre-position assets for an undefined event (or crisis); whether it be a hurricane, an ice storm, a comet from outer space, a busted sewer line, grid-down situation, economic collapse, civil unrest, martial law, or terrorist event.  We are no longer taking things for granted.  We are storing supplies and making contingency plans to get through whatever is coming.
     And we know something is coming.  A few years ago, the thought began circulating that America was changing from the country that we knew as kids.  At that time, the view was kind of fuzzy, not exactly in focus.  But today, the picture of America is sharp, well-defined and clear as day.  We know our world has changed!  There is no hiding it, and it is in plain sight.  Forces are aligning themselves to destroy the very heart of America, and I feel the need to speak to a deeper significance of "prepping."

     Because we are all sensing the pressure and the distress of these uncertain times, the urgency to gather together all the necessities to survive such a scenario (in whatever form it comes) has overtaken our lives.  I see those "preppers" who have huge stockpiles of everything they think they will need to get though "it".  With every new threat to our freedom, or new peril to our economy, environment or health, they buy some more "stuff" to calm the anxiety.  I wish I could make them understand one thing .... there's not enough beans and rice, guns and ammo, generators, or toilet paper to give you the peace of mind you are seeking.  You must cross over the threshold of counting on material lifelines to depending on the salvation of Christ.
     Now, before you think I am saying, "There is no need to prep at all.  God will take care of me"; please listen carefully.  I am not saying that at all!  Jesus clearly told us to be awake, stay alert and be prepared.  Read Matthew 24:42-44!  “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.  But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.  So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."  He gave us a brain and He expects us to use it.  He doesn't want us to sit idly by, and do nothing; we are to prepare, with the ultimate preparation focused on His return.

     That means we are not to put our faith and trust in those "things".   Yes, we will need them to help us persevere and endure.   There are actually two parts to being prepared, and all your stuff, all your training, and all your arrangements will help you to accomplish the basics of prepping.  But, I'm afraid there are too many people who are concentrating on accumulating more gold and silver, more solar panels, and the perfect hideaway, and then discovering that it's never enough.  It doesn't bring them peace.  They are trying to store up their security.  I want everyone to understand that your only real security lies in the saving power of believing in Jesus Christ as your personal savior.  He is the only way to feeling at peace in this crazy, mixed up, evil world.   What is happening to our world is bigger than the next Presidential election,  what is happening in the Eurozone, or the value of the dollar.
     And there are those who say, "I just don't see how 'They' can ever bring us down!  We still have the Second Amendment; we're too prepared and too strong-willed to ever give in to tyranny."  Again, they are putting their trust in human factors.  What we are experiencing is Biblical.  It was foretold thousands of years ago through the Prophets, and just over two thousand years ago by the very One who will come to judge this wickedness and Evil.
     So, if you are experiencing the worry, and the torment, and the despair of the times in which we live, then I'm pretty sure you are making ample preparations to ride out the storm.  But if you're still missing the peace that all that prepper stuff should be giving you, then take that final step and abide in Christ.    Prepare the best you can, but rest in the peace that passes all understanding..... stay focused on your relationship with Him and hold on to the protection and stability He provides.  All else pales in comparison.

Psalm 62:5-6       "Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.  Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken."