Self Reliance

I made a fun video about food storage the other day to post on here today and I cannot get it to upload. I have tried so many times and I'm just getting so stressed about it that I'm going to give up for now. But I'll share it later if I can get it to work.

Since the last month's VT message was about self reliance, and my VT companion thought that meant "food storage", it just got me thinking about it some more. We discussed that it is important to store food that you actually know how to prepare and that you'd actually want to eat. For me that means uber healthy nuts and seeds and some grains. I was able to share in a group buy through a website that I routinely follow and get a good deal on some of the previously mentioned items. I bought some mason jars through walmart.com (site to store) and then filled them up.

Last March, there was a "new approach" to food storage put out by the church. Here is a summary of what it means:

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  1. Gradually build a small supply of food that is part of your normal, daily diet until it is sufficient for three months.
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  2. Store drinking water.
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  3. Establish a financial reserve by setting aside a little money each week, and gradually increase it to a reasonable amount.
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  4. Once families have achieved the first three objectives, they are counseled to expand their efforts, as circumstances allow, into a supply of long-term basic foods such as grains, legumes, and other staples.

Of the new guidelines, Presiding Bishop H. David Burton says, “Our objective was to establish a simple, inexpensive, and achievable program that would help people become self-reliant. We are confident that by introducing these few, simple steps we can, over time, have more success.”

I guess it just hit me that around the world people keep experience catastrophes and who knows when it will be you that is experiencing one. Best to be prepared and have some food on hand in case you are no longer able to buy food at the store. Perhaps your catastrophe will be more personal, like a financial trouble (jobloss). If you have stored extra of the things you need now then you won't have to worry when a troubling time hits.

I was talking to someone recently about my decision to start using cloth diaper inserts in the gDiaper pants. They were saying that having cloth diapers is actually good for the same reason. If there is a disaster of some sort and you are depending on the store to buy disposables then what will you do when you cannot go there anymore? Just a thought...

It is all about being self-reliant. If we are self-reliant now through being diligent in keeping this commandment then we will be more able to follow the Savior and have charity by being able to help those who are in need. I encourage you all to set a goal or two, maybe something from the quote that you aren't currently doing your best in. Remember that God doesn't give us commandments that are only temporal, but all commandments have a spiritual side to them as well. Love you all!