Prepper Recon

And the mixt multitude that [was] among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?  We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul [is] dried away: [there is] nothing at all, beside this manna, [before] our eyes.

Numbers 11:4-6

In the past couple of years, a new term has been added to the American lexicon.  A “first world problem” is something unique to the small portion of the global population that have enough wealth to afford such luxuries that create these inconsequential annoyances. A “first world problem” might be that the water pressure in your shower isn’t as strong as you’d like, your phone is more than a year old, it costs too much to fill up the tank in your new car, or you went to the grocery and they were out of Jiff so you had to buy Peter Pan peanut butter.

We all catch ourselves grumbling from time to time about the most ridiculous inconveniences. If we really sat back and thought about it, most times, we’d realize how fortunate we are to even have the problem. God isn’t very appreciative of grumbling and ingratitude.

In today’s section of scripture, the people who have been freed from their bondage in Egypt grumble about the things they left behind. Rather than being grateful for the manna that was being provided, not to mention the fact that they were no longer slaves, they complained about how hard they had it.

This section of scripture has a lesson on a more spiritual level as well. Often times, God frees us from our bondage to sin yet we look back at the pleasures we are missing out on. Our selective memories conveniently forget how horrible the slavery was when were were bound by one particular sin or the other. We only remember the good times, forgetting the pain and heartache our sin brought to ourselves and those around us.

This week, try to make a conscious effort to be grateful for God’s provision and deliverance.

Come back every Sunday for a new Prepper Bible Study! The most important prep of all is knowing GOD. Jesus said “what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world yet loses his own soul?” Prepper translation: “What good will it do you to survive the coming economic collapse, nuclear war or even a zombie apocalypse if you don’t know you will go to heaven when you die.” A recent study found that 10 out of 10 people die! On that day we will meet our Maker. It only makes sense to be prepared for that day. Click here to learn more about knowing GOD.

Have a blessed day and happy prepping!

Mark

And the son of an Israelitish woman, whose father [was] an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel: and this son of the Israelitish [woman] and a man of Israel strove together in the camp; And the Israelitish woman’s son blasphemed the name [of the LORD], and cursed. And they brought him unto Moses: (and his mother’s name [was] Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan:) And they put him in ward, that the mind of the LORD might be shewed them. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard [him] lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him.

Leviticus 24:10-134

On a recent road trip, I finally got the opportunity to listen to a classic post-apocalyptic audio book that I’d been looking forward to. Alas, Babylon, the story of a nuclear holocaust in America was written in 1958 so I thought the language would be tolerable. No such luck. Just a few chapters in and the author thought it would be okay to insert a GD. Obviously, he he hadn’t read today’s verse and didn’t understand how seriously God felt about his name being thrown around and combined with a curse word.

Disappointed, I cut the mp3 player off and went back to listening to a selection of my favorite podcasts. You see, this has happened to me on many occasions. In fact, it happens more often than not. because it’s important to God that he not hear his name used like that, it’s important to me; and that take a priority over being entertained or educated by a book, movie or television show. As much as I was enjoying the audio edition of One Second After, I had to cut it off because at some arbitrary point in the book, the author used God’s name in vain.

Unfortunately, I don’t know of any good screening services that let you know the language content of books. I can guarantee you that you’ll never find that kind of language in my books.

For movies however, Plugged In provides a very valuable service for those of you who are willing to keep a vigilant watch over what you allow in your mind through your eyes and ears. Plugged In even offers an exact count of which profanities are used and how many times. They also advise viewers of sexual content.

My wife and I have been renting some of the classics from our local library. While the special effects may leave something to be desired, many of the old classics offer very good acting and screenwriting. The larger question is, what is your priority? Do you place your need to be entertained above pleasing God?

Come back every Sunday for a new Prepper Bible Study! The most important prep of all is knowing GOD. Jesus said “what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world yet loses his own soul?” Prepper translation: “What good will it do you to survive the coming economic collapse, nuclear war or even a zombie apocalypse if you don’t know you will go to heaven when you die.” A recent study found that 10 out of 10 people die! On that day we will meet our Maker. It only makes sense to be prepared for that day. Click here to learn more about knowing GOD.

Have a blessed day and happy prepping!

Mark