Prepping

What's a Prepper? Prepper (noun): An individual or group that prepares or makes preparations in advance of or prior to any change in normal circumstances or lifestyle without significant reliance on other persons (i.e., being self-reliant) or without substantial assistance from outside resources (govt., etc.) in order to minimize the effects of that change on their current lifestyle.

Mayberry from his blog describes what a prepper is ..........

As times get tough, and the bad news keeps coming in bushels, many folks are asking themselves the question, "What should I do"? Many search the internet for answers, using terms like "preparations", "how to be prepared", or maybe "preparing for what's to come"....

Some folks stumble across the term "prepper" or "prepping", and dig a little deeper out of curiosity. Some worry about their survival and search along that line. Or they arrive by one of a hundred other possibilities.....

I am a prepper. Survivalist. Whatever you want to call me, it doesn't matter. Five years ago, I had a good paying job, my wife and I got the "big" mortgage, the SUV, a nice big boat...... Then I lost my job. I struggled and struggled some more, sometimes working 3 jobs. I saved our house from foreclosure on the courthouse steps.

Things got a little better, but I just couldn't help but see that for every step I took forward, the world found a way to kick me two steps back. I've got a decent job now, and my wife works, but we're still barely keeping our family's heads above water as the price of life outpaces our "cost of living" raises.....

About 18 months ago, I came to the realization that things just weren't working anymore. Our money didn't go nearly as far as it did before. Whatever we had saved was eaten up by life, and I was in a place I didn't want to be: living paycheck to paycheck, doing without basic needs, with no safety net whatsoever. I've got a family to feed, shelter, clothe, and care for. Our situation was not good.....

I began my search. I read and read and read some more. I burned down the internet looking for answers. I looked for ideas I could use to simplify our lives, cut our expenses, and rebuild our savings for the proverbial "rainy day". I stumbled across folks who are living in "voluntary simplicity", living "off grid", building "unconventional" homes, and homesteading in self reliance. Being one who has always done most everything for himself, these things appealed to me.

As I continued to search the internet, I came across many blogs and websites on every topic under the sun. Being a voracious reader, I learned a great deal in a short span. In May of last year, I had an epiphany: bad times lay ahead. I accurately predicted the current financial crisis back then, and with my new found knowledge, I don't see much hope for recovery any time soon. I've learned that our "global economy" is nothing more than a great Ponzi scheme, and I've come to realize that the only way to insulate one's self from the collapse of that scheme is to prepare for self reliant living.

Am I way out there in left field? Maybe. But left field is getting pretty crowded these days! But the way I see it, at worst, I'll have saved my family a tremendous amount of money by paring things down to the bare essentials, stockpiling food, medical supplies, and emergency gear (and yes, that includes a few guns, and ammunition) at today's prices versus tomorrow's inflated prices. At best, I may have saved my family's lives.

It doesn't hurt at all to be prepared for what life might throw your way. Think of how different the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina might have been if the people of New Orleans had prepared. Whether it's the loss of a job, the loss of a mate, a natural disaster, financial collapse, or alien invasion (just kiddin'. Maybe..... heh heh heh), whatever your motivation, it's just good sense to have plans and preparations in place for the unknown. We buy insurance to cover us against the unknown and the unforeseen, and that's exactly what preps are. An insurance policy for life's unknowns. We do it for our families, and our friends and neighbors, because that's what life is really all about. That's why I'm a prepper......

The Marlinspike Sailor by Hervey Garrett Smith

The Complete Book of Decorative Knots by Geoffrey Budworth

Lock Picking

Visual Guide to Lock Picking (Third Edition) by Mark McCloud

How To Open Locks With Improvised Tools by Hans Conkel

The Complete Guide to Lock Picking by Eddie The Wire

Navigation / Tracking

Ranger Handbook by Dept. of The Army

U.S. Army Map Reading and Land Navigation Handbook by Dept. of the Army

The SAS Tracking & Navigation Handbook by Neil Wilson

Diving

Certified Diver’s Handbook by Clay Coleman

Diver Down: Real World SCUBA Accidents and How to Avoid Them by Michael Ange

DAN Pocket Guide to First Aid for Scuba Diving by Dan Orr

Mindset

On Combat by Dave Grossman

On Killing by Dave Grossman

Sharpening the Warriors Edge by Bruce K. Siddle

Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Military / Prep

The Warrior Elite: The Forging of SEAL Class 228 by Dick Couch

The Finishing School Earning the Navy SEAL Trident by Dick Couch

Down Range: Navy SEALs in the War on Terrorism by Dick Couch

Sheriff of Ramadi by Dick Couch

Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell

Ghost Wars by Steven Coll

Chosen Soldier: The Making of a Special Forces Warrior by Dick Couch

The Complete Guide to Navy SEAL Fitness by Stewart Smith

Get Selected! for Special Forces by Major Joseph J. Martin

Shooting

Green Eyes & Black Rifles by Kyle E. Lamb

Fitness / Health

Maximum Fitness: The Complete Guide to Navy SEAL Cross Training by Stewart Smith

Daniels’ Running Formula by Jack Daniels

The Abs Diet by David Zinczenko

Why do we need to prepare, if I am a strong Christian and believer in Christ....and I believe that the Lord will provide for us at the time when it is needed?

The Lord has told us through scripture to work for what we need..."fruits of your labor." All the while trust in Him to direct and help you procure what it is that you and your family need.

The Lord said that as a consequence of sin we must obtain our food by the sweat of our brow. This is how he says it will be. Thus we should not expect our provisions to come to us without our sweating for them. The Lord has said in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “If someone is unwilling to work, neither let him eat.” When we talk about work, it is not just referring to your 9-5 job, but sweat and toiling about procuring necessities, tending a garden, or livestock, canning, gathering and procuring goods in preparing for a disaster or unforeseen layoff, etc.. Basically Prepping! All the while remembering to always thank the Lord and ask for His guidance and wisdom...God comes first!

To be able to work for our daily bread and afterwards to enjoy the fruits of our labors is a blessing of God. Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 informs us: “Surely I have seen what is good and excellent for a man: to eat and to drink and to see that which is good in all his wearisome labor in which he toils under the sun for the few days of life which God has given to him, for this is his lot. Moreover, every man to whom God has given riches and empowers him to eat from them and to accept his lot and to rejoice in his labor, this is a gift of God. For he will not think much about the days of his life, because God bestows the gladness of his heart.” Remember this life is a gift from God......enjoy the fruits of your labor....do not get lazy and overly dependent on the Lord to take care of you......you must take responsibility and do for yourself... Proverbs 13:4 states, “The soul of the lazy craves and gets nothing; but the soul of the industrious is abundantly filled.” As the Lord also said, he who does not work shall not eat. When we talk of Gods will and providing, we also need to think in the aspect of his giving you wisdom and the tools necessary to prepare.....He has provided you with the funds to procure supplies and lay in a larder for you and your family. He wants you to live....especially to help care for others and spread His Holy Name. Many that did not heed his calling and recognize the signs He gave to warn you of danger. The signs all lit up bright and arrows pointing to hazards ahead....start prepping, but if you ignore His signs you may not be as blessed, as if you were to heed his calling.

The Lord could use miraculous means to feed us, if he so wished, just as he gave the manna from heaven, and as the Lord Jesus fed the four and the five thousand. Yet he chooses to work through the natural means he has established in this world. He could populate this earth if he so desired by using his divine power to create multitudes. John the Baptist said he could raise up descendants for Abraham from the stones on the ground. Yet the Lord chooses to populate the earth through the natural procreation of us husbands and wives. In like manner, to provide for us he uses the natural means of the sun and the rain that produce crops and food for all his creatures. He uses the natural means of our labor to plant and to harvest, and to work at our jobs. He uses the natural means to provide our daily bread, provide us with the necessities of life and the preparations we need in order to prosper. He has no need to perform miracles to feed and to clothe us when he already has put in place the natural means to provide us with food and clothes. Nor does He need to use His divine power to do what He has given us the power and ability to do for ourselves. He keeps giving us the signs longing for our human minds to comprehend his will. Remember to pray for His guidance and be willing to follow His lead in the preparations you make.

The Lord directs us to observe and to imitate the ant. Proverbs 30:25 tell us that the ant works and stores up its food in the summer. Proverbs 6:6-11 tells the lazy bones to wisen up by considering the ant and what it does. The ant stores what it needs in the summer and gathers its food at harvest time. The lazy, on the other hand, just lies around sleeping and resting. To the lazy comes poverty and scarcity. We are urged to wisely follow the ant's example by working hard at the present to lay aside what we will need for the future. Working and saving for our future needs and eventual retirement are God's will and plan for us.

Those who will not work and lay aside for their future needs, thinking they only need to trust in the Lord to provide, will have a rude awakening. When they find themselves in need and complain of their want, the Lord will say, “Well, why didn't you work and save up what you would need? I would have provided for you through your labors and given you enough to set aside what you need now. You have no one to blame for your want but yourself.”

Simply stated: we pray for the necessities of life, work to earn them, and trust our Father will bless us with what we need for our body and life as the fruits of our labor. Let us not allow anyone to burden our conscience with the thought that our working to provide for ourselves and for our future needs dishonors the Lord and shows a lack of trust in him. For working by faith and trusting that he will bless our labors honor him. Work hard for your future...God is providing for you now....How?

1)He is giving you the strength through good health for you to labor and prepare for you, your family, your neighbor, your church and fellow believers

2)He is put finances in place for you to work with in order to labor and prepare for your future

3)He has spoke to your heart and wants you to do the right thing and have good will - by you being prepared you may be able to help a brother in Christ that may not have been so prepared.

4)He has given you drive and determination in order to do his will - prepare as in Matthew 25:1-13 the ten virgins and the lack of lamp oil story. Don't get caught not preparing

5) He has provided you with thought and knowledge of the world - an insight to the future through scripture as well as through news and internet blogging. He has given you ample knowledge for you to establish your free will and do what you feel is prudent.

1 Timothy 5:8 "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."

Proverbs 27:12 "A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself; The simple pass on and are punished."

Luke 22
35 And He said to them, “When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?”
So they said, “Nothing.”
36 Then He said to them, “But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. 37 For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: ‘And He was numbered with the transgressors.’[d] For the things concerning Me have an end.”
38 So they said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.”
And He said to them, “It is enough.”

Proverbs 21:20 "In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has." It is considered wise to have stores ready for times of need, and foolish to use up all you have unnecessarily.

Proverbs 6:6-8. The ant is given as an example of how work can prevent disaster in the future.

Proverbs 31:21. This passage tells us about the godly wife. She makes provision for times of need. She does not fear the cold season because she has prepared herself for it.

ACTS 11:27-29 And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea: (Dearth, drought)

Here is a good example of a little church helping an established church. Praise the Lord! Just think about it, how God must have blessed that little church. It just goes to show that no matter what your size church is, the Lord can bless you mightily when you bless others. In spite of your circumstances. If your eyes are upon Jesus, the Lord will be with you!

When you walk spiritually in strong faith, you will be blessed one way or the other. The Lord is our helper and provider. To Him we will put our faith and trust in. No matter what troubles our eyes see or how we feel, we need to trust Him. We need to put our faith and trust in Him, to help us through our trials.

GEN. 41:47-49 And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for it was without number.

GEN. 41:53-57 And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, were ended. And the sevens years of dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph; what he saith to you, do.

And the famine was over all the face of the earth: and Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.

This famine was terrible, but any famine is grievous if people suffer and die, or are hurt in any way. Bless their hearts! This is a good example as to why we should always have food in storage. You never know what will come around the corner and it’s just plain smart to be prepared. You know as well as I do, that a portion of the world is in very grievous famine right now as it is. As you finish storing up what your family will be needing, then try storing up extra to help others. Try to always be a blessing and help others as the Lord has helped you.

PROV. 6:6-15 Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man. A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.

This is the Word of God, but you get the idea here. People should "not be lazy. "During times of plenty you should be wise and store up food for times of lack.You're not storing up gold and wealth, but food for your family. How much wiser and sound thinking is that? Job lay offs, sicknesses, bad weather and storms not to mention national problems. You never know what troubles and trials will come, and we should all be good stewards of the resources that the Good Lord gives to us.

The Lord is our provider, yes. What if He is providing for you right now for a time when you will need it later? Good question, huh? You will have to seek the wisdom of the Lord as to what to do. I am only giving you this information and recipes because it’s what the Lord told "me" to do. I really care about what happens to His beloved children, and that means you. Information such as I have, I give to you. "Not for commercial use" but for "individual families." May you be blessed!

PS. 34:9-10 O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him. The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.

We will not have everything that we want, but as we praise the Lord in our times of need we will be blessed. We don’t always get the answers the way we expect but sometimes in unexpected ways. Our deepest needs are "spiritual," and from there things are added upon us as gifts from the Lord. "Spiritual nourishment" even in dire poverty, will sustain us and lift us up. Jesus is the answer, the only answer to our problems. He cares, he really does! Jesus loves you and knows what you are going through right now and the future.

God allows hardships to come into our lives to help us grow more dependent upon Him, but He never forsakes His children. Our help is in the Lord. On Him is our strength and true happiness. You need to know that you need Him more than you need your desires fulfilled. He will carry us through our problems and sustain us as we learn to lean more and more upon Jesus. We need to keep our eyes upon the Lord.

Survival / E&E

Spycraft

Climbing / Mountaineering