The Youth Minister, Cleve Stafford, at the White Rock church of Christ in Dallas, Texas, wrote this article recently, about the “Doomsday Preppers” phenomenon. He continued by asking what it would take to prepare for a different scenario – the return of Jesus. In this article he is looking at that in more depth:
If “preppers” are to be fully prepared, they need to have a written plan of what to do and when. First, they would need water. They would also need food to sustain them and medicine in the case of injuries. Next, they would need weapons to protect them from marauding looters. They would also need reliable, trustworthy family and friends to assist them in the quest to survive. Another all-important survival need would be a “dug-out” location, which is a place of safety and security. The only thing that no doomsday “prepper” has is an absolute foolproof plan.
Let’s look at the “Spiritual Prepper”. We too need a plan in writing. Fortunately, we have been given that in the form of the Bible which tells us what to do and how. Next on the list is water, of which we have plenty in the form of “living water” (John 4:10). As for food, the Word can feed the young with milk and the more mature can ingest the spiritually solid food (I Cor. 3:2; Heb. 5:12-14). We will also need medicine. God’s Word can heal us from our iniquities but we have something the physical “preppers” do not have: we can die and then live again (Rom. 6:4-5) – now that is a second chance worth getting excited about!
Any self-respecting “preppers” arm themselves to the proverbial tooth to be protected from the “outside” world and we should naturally do the same. As Christians, we are armed with a weapon that is even sharper than a two-edged sword (Heb. 4:12). We have an abundance of armor to go with that weapon (Eph. 6:10-20). We would also need a dugout location where we can be safe and secure among trusted friends, which we have in the form of the church.
“Prepper teams” need leaders, and we have those as well. The elders are to shepherd us (I Peter 5:1-2) under the direct leadership of Jesus (Col. 1:18). The only question left is, “Do we have a foolproof plan?” Yes, we do! You see, unlike that of the “doomsday prepper”, our future is guaranteed through the redemptive sacrifice of Christ on the cross when He overcame death, thereby securing for us a definitive victory in the future.
Not only has He provided us with a future, but He has gone ahead to prepare a place for us…and will come and get us (John 14:3). How cool is that? Want more security? Our Lord and Savior will never leave us, nor forsake us (Heb. 13:5b).
Are we not protected and blessed “to the hilt”, can we not live confidently without fear of the future?
Highland Lakes church of Christ 