In February 2007, the Church released two new pamphlets with the common heading “All Is Safely Gathered In.” One focused on Family Finances, and the other on Family Home Storage.
At the time, I focused more on the change in emphasis from getting in a year’s supply of food to encouraging a three-month supply, although there was still a subtext of storing more if possible. It seemed to me to be not so much a message that three-month’s supply is enough, as an acknowledgment that members were not getting in a year’s supply, and maybe changing the focus to three months would make it less intimidating.
That may well have been a factor, but there was a bigger movement that I did not appreciate at the time. Previously, Provident Living had focused on several subheadings:
· Home Storage
· Physical Health
· Spiritual, Emotional, and Social Health
· Education
· Employment
· Resource Management
The providentliving.org site had sections and guidelines for each of these areas. The subheadings are still on the site, but there is less information, and more of a referral to scriptures and gospel principles rather than tips on how to build your 72-hour kit.
To some extent, this may reflect similar trends of simplification and focus on the Spirit. Think of the transition to Preach My Gospel. Nothing essential was lost, though things certainly were simplified. In some ways, moving away from set discussions might make teaching harder, or more work, but there is a gain in spirituality and in inspiration that makes it better. This doesn’t mean that the six regular discussions, six new member discussions, missionary guide, study guide, and rulebook were bad.
By the same token, there is nothing wrong with tips for 72-hour kits and first aid training and plans for accumulating your food storage over a year, but sometimes we can get so caught up in what is interesting or clever or cute that we forget the basics. At times a reminder of what is most essential is good for us.
In addition, there is nothing more valuable than food storage and financial stability. As I have reviewed different disaster scenarios is my mind, those two items keep recurring as the most useful. You have to be able to eat, and there is a limit to how much peace of mind you can have if you are not debt-free.
So, what are these essential basics? The pamphlets are online at www.providentliving.org, but they are both very short.
Family Home Storage
· Have a three-month supply of food. If you have nothing, start by getting in a week’s supply and work your way up. Once you establish a three-month supply, store more if you can, but it is essential that you get at least that.
· Store some drinking water.
· Establish a financial reserve.
Family Finances
· Pay tithes and offerings.
· Avoid debt.
· Use a budget.
· Build a reserve.
· Teach family members.
I know that these steps have already made a difference for faithful saints, and times are coming when it will become even more important. The steps you take now need not be drastic. A few extra sale items bought each week quickly add up to a small food stockpile.
Financial reserves may seem more hopeless, because you can think that even if you were to save ten percent of each check, which would be sizeable, it would still take you ten years to have one year’s worth of income saved. However, interest compounds and new ideas for economizing come to mind once you focus on it, and you will find that even a slowly building nest egg brings peace of mind.
Many of you have 72-hour kits and camping equipment. That is nice, and there is a good chance that it will be useful at some point. Do not consider it enough. Regardless of what concerns you have now about the transitory nature of this period of your life, or other ways that you would like to spend your money now, or no idea of where you would put storage, consider the principles in All Is Safely Gathered In as essential. They came in a message from the First Presidency.
Other preparedness steps are good, and next month we will go over the expanded areas with questions that you can ask yourself about your own level of preparedness, and you can set some goals for the new year. However, before you look at the additional ideas, seriously look at your home storage and financial reserves, and see what you can do differently. Taking those steps will help you weather whatever storms may come.
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