Are You Tempting God?

For the past 5-6 years I have been writing about what I am calling "The Coming Storm."

Well the storm is now coming towards us and is upon our horizon.
What is interesting is that both heathen and Christian both see hard times coming.

We know from scripture that times are not going to get better, they are going to get worse.

2 Timothy 3:1  This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

God's Word has warned us that cataclysmic events will be taking place. War, famine, pestilence and natural disasters.

Have we had these types of events before? Yes we have, but not at the levels we have seen in recent days.

One does not have to be a believer to understand that hard times are coming. The air is so "thick" with this knowledge that you can cut it with a butter knife.

Over the years I have gotten many, many emails and it is interesting, I see two types of Christian.
First there is the Christian that says You do not have faith - God will protect us - He saved Israel with manna, He will do the same for us - Your just an alarmist, chicken little, sky is falling, you need to rely on God.

The second group of folks are those who see the writing on the wall and are doing something about it. They are making physical preparations knowing that hard times are coming.

For those of you who do not know, you can count me in the second group of people.

It is my hope to share with you from scripture why we need to be preparing and why I believe it is our duty as Christians to do so.

Proverbs 22:3  A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.

Proverbs 6:6  Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:

Proverbs 30:25  The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer;

We see example after example where God's people were warned in advance and then prepared themselves and their families.

We see Noah being warned of the rain and floods. He was told to build an ark. He was obedient and God spared his family. Please note that God did not drop an ark out of sky. It took Noah 120 years to build it. All the while he was warning / preaching to the people.

Noah prepared, the storm came, he and his family were sparred. Now God did not just "whisk" them away, they went through the storm in the ark that God told them to prepare and build.

We also see Joseph who was warned that a terrible famine was coming. He was given seven years to prepare.

Now, did Joseph lack faith? Do we view him today as an alarmist? Chicken little? Doom and gloomer?

No we don't in fact he is held in high regard because he acted on the warnings God gave and made proper preparations. Not only did Joseph save Egypt, he saved Israel and many other of the surrounding countries as well those who might have starved to death.

We see Lot and his family, they were warned of impending destruction. Now they did not have time to prepare, in fact they were told to leave now.

In fact Lot went to some of his family and they did not listen to him about the coming destruction.

Genesis 19:13 - 14  For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. 14  And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.

Like many out there, people are not listening. They see what is happening right before their eyes, but like the ostrich, they put their heads in the sand. Because of this, they and their families will become victims of the coming storm.

Genesis 19:15-17  And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.

16  And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.

17  And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

We see here even in Lot a certain reluctance, but he still was a righteous man and acted upon God's warning.

We as Christians are called to be aware and to foresee coming dangers and prepare for them in advance while we still have time.

Even the animals know to store up for the winter and hard times. But it is our free will that allows us to see the coming storm and do nothing about it.

Like with Noah, Joseph and Lot, God gives His warning and he expects His people to act on these warnings.

Matthew 24:7  For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

Luke 21:10 -11  Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: 11  And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

Friends, often people think that Christ is describing the tribulation, he is not. These things must come to pass prior. We know this by what is given of the very same account from the book of Mark.

Mark 13:7-8  And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet. 8  For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

These things are just the beginnings of sorrows. We are warned, it is here in black and white, perilous times are coming and in fact are here. Things are going to get worse not better.

Those of us who are bible believing Christians see the writing on the wall. Like Noah, Joseph, Lot and others in scripture, we need to be obedient and act on these warnings.

Folks, I am not the only one out there saying this. The holy spirit is moving in the church. This very same warning is coming from small town churches, pastors being sensitive to the spirit and preaching this from the pulpit. Solid brethren who blog on the internet, same message of warning. I just attended the Future Congress Conference, I had many people come up to me, people I have never known and who have never read my website say almost the exact same thing that I have been preaching for the past 6 years. They see the coming storm and as God's people, we need to prepare.

Even if these people did not raise up a warning, we still see it on TV, in the newspapers, on the internet. As I have stated before, even the heathen sees the warnings and the air is so thick you can cut it with a butter knife.

God is warning His people and we must act.

Look at what we have facing us…

- Earthquakes in CA
- Floods in the mid-west
- Hurricanes
- Bird flu - pandemics - illness & disease
- Financial collapse / Bank Holiday - Bank Day
- Manmade disasters / terrorist attacks
- Wars, revolutions, riots, crime, social unrest

We are sitting upon the cusp of the perfect storm, one that will effect just about everyone in the world.

How can you not see this and sit and do nothing?

Men of God, how can you sit idly by and allow your families health and welfare to be put in danger. 

Do you know that if you are doing nothing you are worse than the infidel?

1 Timothy 5:8  But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

Some of our parents, our grandparents and specially our great grand parents always kept food and provisions on hand. In fact it was very common to have at least a year's worth on hand. It wasn't till the dawn of the super market and mega store that we have neglected our duties to being good stewards in this area of providing for our family.

Folks like it or not it is prudent of us to at least have 30 days worth of food and critical commodities / necessities on hand to fulfill the needs of our families. And this is the bare minimum.

It is the enemy who has made being a good steward something that is wrong in today's world.

Scripture says…

Isaiah 5:20  Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Today people who are good stewards are hoarders, survivalists, extremists, domestic terrorists, and the list of negatives goes on.
 
Are You Tempting God?

Matthew 4:6-7  And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

7  Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

We can see clearly that by putting yourself in a dangerous situation and then expecting God to protect or rescue you is tempting God.

Now if it is God's Will and we have been called to put our lives in this situation, then that is a completely different matter.  The outcome in most cases is dying a martyrs death or paying the highest price for the sake of the gospel.

We have been given warnings, we see the writing on the wall, the Holy Spirit is speaking through many the same message all over the land. That message is for God's people to prepare for hard times ahead while we still have the time and ability to do so.

I strongly believe that by refusing to make preparations when God has given advance warnings is not only tempting God by ignoring God‘s warnings, but being disobedient to Him and denying the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Friend, if this is you, you are living a very dangerous life and putting not only yourself, but your families in harm's way due to the consequences of sin and disobedience to God.

God has given us plenty of advance warning. Just in the scriptures alone from Matthew, Luke and Mark alone that I have shared with you should give us heed for concern.

So with all that is going on in the world, the air so thick we can cut it with a knife, shouldn't we be taking God seriously and prepare for these dangers that lie ahead?

Joseph and Noah prepared and saved their families, are we better than them?

Look at it this way.

We have…

- Home owners insurance just in case our home is in danger or destroyed

- Auto insurance in case are car is damaged in a wreck or destroyed

- Health insurance in case we get sick or have a serious illness

- Renters insurance to protect and replace items that might be lost due to fire, theft or other damage

Why do we then shun, put down, disregard, having any sort of food and provision insurance so that our families health and welfare is provided for in times of disaster or upheaval?

You do believe in God's Word don't you?

You take it as absolute truth don't you?

You believe that we are living in the last days don't you?

Then wars, pestilence, natural disasters and the like are coming and in fact are here now.

You see perilous times right here, right now don't you?

Folks, no matter what you believe regarding the rapture and the timing of the rapture we are where we are. No one man has the all seeing all knowing crystal ball telling us exactly when the rapture will take place.

Don't believe me, look at Harold Camping. This was his third time at dating the rapture and guess what, we are still here. He was wrong.

We are told in God's word to trust in the Lord and not lean on our own understanding.

Listen, I stand on the imminent return of our Lord Jesus Christ. But I submit myself to Him and His Word.

We are told in scripture that only God knows the day and the hour

Matthew 24:36  But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Mark 13:32  But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

So I strongly believe that those who state that we do not have to worry because God is going to rapture us out are in fact tempting God. They are putting themselves and their families in un-needed danger, in turn they are sinning against God.

Now I know by now I am really upsetting people, getting the "he is a pharasee" "being legalistic", " how dare he judge me" thing going on.
 
Well I am just the messenger folks. What you need to do is ask yourself are you truly submitting to 

God's Word or are you just "cherry picking" what you want to hear and believe?

Lean not on our own understanding, lean only on God's Word.

Proverbs 22:3  A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.

Right there in black and white.

Are you a prudent / wise obedient person or are you a simple / fool disobedient person?

We know the signs, we see what is happening right before our eyes, it is our duty as Christians being obedient to Him to prepare for hard times.  This is a fact in light of God's  Word.

You know what you and your family need. We must be acting on God's council and make preparations for the Coming Storm now, before the storm hits.

Friend, IT IS the act of faith to take God's Word and then act on these warnings so that you and your family can "Survive The Coming Storm."

It IS NOT the act of faith to be tempting God.

It takes God's power working in us and knowing God Word to act on something that we do not know when will hit.

Hebrews 11:1  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Not Only You and Your Family - But Others

Christ tells us in Luke 19:13 to "Occupy Till He Returns"

1 Peter 3:15 tells us…

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

Not only should we be making preparations for the health and welfare of ourselves and our family, but we need to also be making preparations to offer charity and help others if we are called upon to do so.

Now am I saying that we need to turn our garage into a soup kitchen?

No, I am not.

But think that if we are able to assist a family in need and help them get over a rough time, don't you think that we will also have the opportunity to share the gospel?

See not only will we be able to share the gospel, we will be able to share the gospel with credibility because we did heed God's warnings when others did not. We saw the writing on the wall with others ignored it.

Now again, I am not talking soup kitchens or anything like that.
But what I am talking about is when the holy spirit moves you to reach out to a family or individual and be of assistance. This is an example of "always be ready."

Scripture says…

Ephesians 4:28  Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.

Where To Start?

One of the best places to start is to find a place where you can store your supplies. See if you have a place for your pantry, it is a lot easier to start.

Next you need to determine what sort of events and situations could possibly effect you and your family.

For example, if you live in California, then you need to be concerned with earthquakes. So prepare.

If you live in Kansas you need to be concerned with tornados.

Knowing and identifying these situations will help you better determine and prepare what you need to do and what supplies / critical commodities you will need to have on hand.

One of the best places to start is by educating yourself. There is a lot of great information out there. You can utilize your local library, the internet as well as people in your church who have been preparing.

Now you can't prepare for every event, even the US Army has the saying "adapt and overcome."

Also, do not buy into the hype that Hollywood has sold us all these years.

No there will not be some massive "zombie attack."

Nor will the world melt down into a mad max nuclear apocalyptic word. Take a look at Japan today. We do not see mutant biker gangs roaming the roads of Tokyo do we?

What I believe that we need to be preparing for is an economic downfall of the US dollar. In turn this will affect many people and in fact it will impact many countries.

There are people out there that say that this will bring on the reign of the antichrist. Could this be true? I could very well come about that way. But again we do not have an all seeing crystal ball. 
What this could do is bring about another dictator like we saw in WWII and the death of over 6 million Jews and thousands of Christians.

What we need to do is stop leaning upon our own understanding and lean upon God's Word. 
God's Word tells us to prepare, so we need to be obedient to Him.

Proverbs 22:3  A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.

Finally, it does not matter what we have been concerned with. Our job is to do the best that we can do with what God has given us stewardship over. We have a brain to think with and two hands to work with. He has provided for us the tools we need to do the right thing according to 
His Word.

What we need to do now is to act and stop making excuses while we still have time.

The one thing that will come out of all of this is that you will have a certain peace of mind knowing that you have done all.. and when that evil day comes… you will be able to stand.

Ephesians 6:13  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

By Ray Gano

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Survive The Coming Storm By Ray Gano
 
Insane spending by past and current administrations has led us into staggering debt. Paying back the loans and interest gathered in the attempt to spend our way out of that debt has become impossible.

The demise of the dollar is looming, poised to die in flaming downward spiral. When it hits bottom, this nation will fall into chaos like she has never seen before, plunging into third -world status. Food, gas, and most everything else will become drastically more expensive, coupled with a rise in crime. The "New Normal" for our nation will be upon us as these changes take place.

Hollywood has painted an apocalyptic world, filled with mutant "Mad Max" biker gangs and zombies as this nation's future.

What is sad is that the masses have bought into this false idea.
In this book the author, Ray Gano, takes examples from history as well as from a Christian biblical standpoint showing what you can do to prepare. Is your family prepared to Survive The Coming Storm.

The cost is $20.00 each with shipping and handling included in the price.

If you live outside the US, the cost is $25.00 each, shipping and handling also included..

I will be more than happy to add a something special in the book when I sign it, just let me know in the comments with the order, or email me what you would like me to sign.

Also, consider purchasing two so that you have one to give away as a gift or if you know someone who would benefit from the book.

If you live in the US, ($20.00) please use the following link - http://tinyurl.com/STCS-US-ORDER

If you live outside the US, ($25.00) please use the following link - International Orders Click Here

If you wish to pay by check, let me know so I can hold it for you. For those of you who wish to do that, here is our mailing address...

PROPHEZINE
PMB #230
651 S. Walnut Ave. Ste. D
New Braunfels, TX 78130-5764

Please make checks to PROPHEZINE.

Pray that God uses this book for His glory and that it will really do well and make the best seller list.

RAMPING UP FAST - Food - ER Bar 3600

Ramping Up Fast - Quake Kare's ER Bar 3600 Review

This is a series that I am calling Ramping Up Fast. In this series I am going to give you tips, products and How To's so that you can ramp up your preparations quickly by getting the bare essentials moving.

Once we have the bare essentials in place, we can then start building on that foundation. Today I am going to talk about Ramping up on food storage and introduce to you Quake Kare's ER Bar 3600.

If you have any questions or comments, please post them here.

If you would like to see a certain type of product reviewed or ask what I use in my preps, leave a comment and I will write an article or make a Survival4Christians video on that topic.

If you are not a You Tube Subscriber, check out http://www.youtube.com/user/survival4christians and please subscribe to our channel.

Stay tuned for more Ramping Up Fast and other videos here at Survival4Christians.

NEW S4C Contest - PZ FIRESTEEL KIT is The Prize

It's time again for another Survival 4 Christians Contest. 

Last time we gave away a great 4 DVD collection from Cloud Ten Productions to Denise L. It was a lot of fun and a lot of folks got involved.

This time we are giving away a PZ FIRESTEEL Kit. If you look on the right hand side, our top video you can watch the PZ FIRESTEEL IN ACTION. This is a must have for everyone who has an Every Day Carry kit (EDC). I have to also say that it is a pretty cool tool to have. Summer is still here and BBQs are still needing to be lit. Lite it with the PZ FIRESTEEL and you to can be Rambo for the day. 

 

Ok all kidding aside, this really happened to me.

 

Church Guys BBQ. I am in charge and we have everything ready except there is no fire. See we Independent Fundamental Baptists are not known to be carrying a pack of cigarettes. So no one really has the need to have a lighter or matches. 

 

Yep, here are about 30 -40 guys and no one has fire and guess who left his multi-tool at home which has his PZ FIRESTEEL? 

 

Yea... big time lesson learned. Multi-tool is now EDC with PZ FIRESTEEL attached.

 

Ok, enough of the stories.

 

How To Win

 

All you have to do is go to our YOU TUBE page and SUBSCRIBE to our Survival 4 Christians Channel.  

 

It is our goal to report on the worlds problems from a Christian perspective, but not only that, we are going to report on what you can do to better prepare for these problems with real world solutions.

 

So many folks out there have real concerns about what is coming down the pipe. We know Christ is returning, but to be honest we do not know when. I am one who does not believe that one day we are here, life is grand and the next day we are raptured out and all of a sudden the AC is on the scene and it is hell on earth. 

 

That is not realistic thinking. 

 

Like everything, things take time to be put in place. As things are put in place, we will see drastic changes in politics, religion, economy, generally how this world is run. 

 

Without going into details, it is getting tough out there and we need to know how to deal with it. 

 

We are not in the Tribulation, but we are on the path to it. How we navigate that path is also our decision. We can take the hard road and do nothing or we can try to do the best we can with our brains and hands God gave us and prepare for hard times.

 

I want to offer solid information that is helpful to every day people. That is why I have set up Survival 4 Christians.

 

So please go to our You Tube Page   

 

AND SUBSCRIBE NOW AND YOU COULD WIN  >>> http://www.youtube.com/user/survival4christians

By subscibing you will be automatically put into the drawing for the PZ FIRESTEEL. 

The Prophezine Channel has over 600 subscribers. I would like to keep things simple and shoot for 150 for Survival 4 Christians.  BUT if we go over 600, that is even better.

By doing this you are helping us get higher on the You Tube ratings. When we are higher, more people watch us. When more people watch us it opens the doors to share the gospel and people being effected.

 Thanks for being a Prophezine supporter and supporting our new outreach, Survival 4 Christians.

In His Service,

Ray Gano
Executive Director
Prophezine / Survival 4 Christians

 

JUST RELEASED - TEOTWAWKI - The City Version

You asked for it, I have compiled it and now it is here. TEOTWAWKI - The City Version!

I received many emails telling me that they can't raise goats, build a green house or know anything about solar energy and making your own bio diesel. People just wanted to know how to deal with living in the city in "The End Of The World As We Know It" (TEOTWAWKI) situation.

Well I have been working on this data DVD for over a month now. It has been hard, but it is well worth it.

To introduce to you the new data DVD, I want to mention just a few of the new 27 different folders we have on this data DVD.

Seniors - I got many emails from concerned seniors on living and surviving in a city environment. Home safety, self protection and how to do these things were a high priority. I have gathered some great information, check lists and very informative videos specifically to meet the TEOTOWAKI Senior.

Disabled - There are many PZ insiders who are physically disabled in one way or another and it was my desire to try to help them by equipping them with excellent information and videos as well. For example, disaster preparedness for a disabled person takes on a whole new meaning. This was a tough assignment but I have found some great resources, check lists and yes even videos too.

Emergency Prep - I took into consideration preparing with limited space, so I have really sought out a lot of information geared to that mindset. For example, ever think of what you can put in a five gallon bucket for storage? What about 6 day mobile resupply bag just in case you are stuck at work and can't get home. Grab & Go.. Bug Out Bag…pre-planning for emergencies?

Foraging in the city - Didn’t think it was possible? Think again. If it came down to it, could you clean a squirrel? A rabbit? What about a pigeon? There are lots of edibles in the city, but do you know where to look?

Finally a folder I want to really highlight and one I am very serious about….

Going Underground - Folks, in these days and times we are living in, we as Christians may need to go underground. But once we are underground, then what? How do we maintain secure communication, phone security, even personal camouflage and learning how to be "the grey man?" This is a reality that can take place, we need to be prepared no matter what. "On The Job Training" could literally cost you your life. Don't believe me, ask our brothers and sisters in communist China. Can you imagine what it would be like if Bibles were outlawed? What about even going to church and meeting with each other?

TEOTWAWKI - The City Version is 3.71 Gigabytes in size. 27 different folder topics, 535 different files including over 25 videos you can watch on your computer.

I am also adding for free three very special e-books and when you get this data DVD, you will realize these books alone are worth the price for TEOTWAWKI - The City Version. But you are going to have to order the data DVD to find out what those three books are.

ORDER NOW >>>

Why is Being Prepared Important to Me?

By Ray Gano

1 Timothy 5:8 (KJV)  But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

I am a student of Bible Prophecy. I say that because I know how the end of the story plays out and also who wins. With that said, I do not believe in a utopian world promoted by many out there. Man left to his own devices will always seek the greediest, most hedonistic, selfish path possible. 

That is why we who have accepted Christ as our personal savior pick up our cross and follow Him daily.

Knowing that we are in fact living in the last days of the last days, I believe that today's Western world is more vulnerable to both natural and man-made catastrophes than at any time in our past.

The science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke once said:

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

This statement is commonly known as Clarke's Third Law.  

We now live in a world that is so completely immersed in advanced technology that we depend upon it for our very survival.  Most of the actions that we depend upon for our everyday activities -- from flipping a switch to make the lights come on  to obtaining all of our food supplies at a nearby supermarket.  

If one would have viewed modern technology a mere 200 years ago, it would consider magic and may have even been burned at the stake.

I often get asked  "why are you always talking about being prepared?"

Our civilization has become very vulnerable. We forget where our food originates from and many believe that it comes from the "magic place" called Wal-Mart. In fact if Wal-Mart did not exist, there  are times that I wonder if modern man would have been able to survive.

Because I am a student of Bible Prophecy, I know that this world is not going to get better, but in fact things will get worse.

But if I were to set aside what I know from God's Word and what it speaks of in these last days, there are still several big picture factors to consider that work or and possibly even working together in a dangerous way, especially here in the US.

Economics: The U.S. national debt is a long-term threat to the nation's economy and current levels of government spending are unsustainable. Across the ocean and we see most of Europe is no better. In fact due to recent developments many nations in the European Union are in far worse shape. Greece, Portugal, Italy instantly come to mind. Still, governments spend like ther e is no tomorrow and that the coffers of cash are unending.  They forget the future generations who will be strapped with this buren and will not be able to repay these debts.

To say it plainly, our nation is in serious danger of bankrupting itself.

Compounding this issue is our dwindling manufacturing , which is laying off people daily. Due to this and other establishments laying off, the tax bases are also dwindling. Not to mention aging infrastructure, declining educational system, and our absolute dependence on foreign oil. Which thanks to the lack of serious response by our current administration, it will probably become much worse. It would not surprise me to find out that much of this lack of response is planned so that the government can seize the oil companies much like they did the banks and auto industries.

 In the U.S. and abroad, legislatures seems determined to spend us into oblivion all in the name of "peace and safety."

The outcome - no money

Resources: Whether you believe if the Peak Oil theory is correct or not, fossil fuels are becoming more difficult to extract and will become more expensive over time. Again I point to our Gulf oil "crisis."

 The U.S. cannot be energy independent given current oil and gas reserves. We need to invest in our own energy solutions and start producing once again. But will we? The powers that be say that we will not.

China and India's populations are growing and so are their energy needs. Alternate energy sources cannot fill the void, at least not right now. It will still take several decades to "ramp up" these infrastructures.  Unfortunately, modern civilization is based on access to cheap fossil fuels, and world governments seem to be oblivious to the need to prepare (e.g., start building hundred of wind turbines,  nuclear reactors, solar array farms, etc, now) for the future.

The outcome - dwindling energy solutions at a very high cost playing catch up.

Demographics:  The "baby boomer" generation is rapidly aging,  and coming into retirement.  This means there will be less workers, paying less taxes. Our retirees "nest egg" has been robbed multiple times by wall street, inflation, and constant rising taxes. Because of this the "baby boomers" are forced to dip into resources, that were set aside to help support their golden years. But more and more of these people's resources are gone. This issue also compounds the economic problems above.

Tack on illegal immigration which often in cases do not contribute to the tax system and we see an even stronger strain on the welfare system of today.

International Threats: U.S. status as a super power is being challenged by China, the Middle East,  and quite possibly even Russia. Those nations and others, however, will also face demographic and resource issues that will make them competitors for trade and scarce recourse, increasing the potential for conflict with our own country. Muslim Terrorist factions actors such as Al Qaeda and the like will continue to be a challenge as Islam grows worldwide with the push for a global caliphate ensues.  And just recently NASA has released a report that all countries remain vulnerable to the threat of electromagnetic pulse (EMP) due to out of the ordinary projected solar storms. Toss in the fact that EMP can also be caused by terrorist / manmade events and one can see the vulnerability.  

Wild Cards: This includes natural disasters, plagues and pandemics, earthquakes, asteroids, etc. – all those things completely beyond the control of humans that could wreak havoc upon civilization by destroying key infrastructure, cities and populations.

Society has faced many of these issues in the past, the difference being that contemporary Western civilization has become dependent upon the "magic" of technology to a degree unsurpassed in history. This is our own  "Achilles heel" or weakness. While there is a level of redundancy that provides some robustness, there is point when failures in one systems that will cause a cascading effect that will result in failures of other related systems.

We have lost many of the vital non-technical skills our grandparents generation had. How to raise chickens, milk goats, make cheese, even mend our own clothes.  Our society has become more dependent on the "magic" of technology. And if this technology is taken down.  The possible effect of large scale catastrophes is magnified by the probability of cascade failures in those technologies.

Now this is the worst case scenario. Personally I believe that what we will see in this nation in severe depression far worse than that of the depression of the 1930s. The reason it will be worse is due to the factors I named above.

Our industrial complex is basically gone, knowledge of lost skills is basically gone, our financial resources are basically gone .

Our hope lies within what we as Americans can do for our own family. But we as husbands, fathers and leaders of our family must never forget, that our true hope lies in the saving Grace of our heavenly Father who will see us through the good times and in the bad.

God has given us strong hands to work with and brains to think with. He is not some welfare agent in the sky. He is not going to rain pennies from heaven nor allow $20.00 bill trees to grow in our back yard.

What He will do is bless our efforts if we work now to plan ahead. He is not going to raise up a vegetable garden over night. But if we get out and till the land, plant the seeds and nurture our efforts, He will bless that effort with a bountiful harvest.

God's Word tells us to "occupy till He returns."  We need to be doing that. Why you may ask?

1 Peter 3:15 (KJV)  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:  

It is for the sake of the  Gospel that we must be ready always in good times and in bad. If we are not ready for the hard times ahead, how can we have the freedom to share the blessed hope of our Lord and Savior? There will be many who will be on their hands and knees just searching for that next scrap of food. Will people like them have the time to share the gospel? No they will not nor will they be in any position to do so.

That is why it is vitally important that we are busy at the task at hand and "be ready always" to share the gospel in good times and in bad.

We do this not only for the sake of our own families, but for those who we will be able to help.

Think about it. If you know that your neighbor down the road is hurting and in need and you are able to provide some beans, rice, maybe a dozen eggs, don't you think that they would be more open to hearing God's plan of Salvation? Don’t you think that because you are different and had the foresight to look ahead that you might have a higher degree of credibility than one who has fallen on hard times?

Knowing all of this; looking out upon the horizon, this is why I prepare.

I see a great need for bible believing Christians to be ready to share the Gospel. They are not going to hear about God's true love for them from the sugar coated charlatans who claim the title "pastor." What these people are in reality is mere hirelings who are fleecing the flocks.

So we need to be ready to fulfill the task at hand.

Mark 16:15 (KJV)  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

The time to prepare is now, while we still have the time and resources at hand.

When Christ returns, it is my desire to have Him find me hard at work for the sake of the kingdom.

I don’t know about you, but I want to hear those words…" Enter my kingdom my good and faithful servant."

What will you be doing when Christ returns?

What words will He speak to you?

Q & A - Single Woman - Gun for Protection & Hunting

Hi, Ray:
I am a single woman.  I appreciate all the info on your web site.  My question is:  if I buy a gun for personal safety and hunting I'll have to register it and, when the government outlaws guns, I'll have to relinquish it.  Wouldn't it be better to buy a small bow and arrow for hunting food and a stun gun for protection?  Perhaps you can point me to a discussion of this issue on your web site. God bless you, M

Hello M,

Very good question.

There are several things that you need to consider.

First, find out if where you live are you able to get a Carry & Conceal handgun license? If you can, that is the route I would go first.

I am one that for personal and home protection you need to get a handgun.  But on top of that, go and get your C& C as well so that you can carry it always. Now the nice thing about being a woman and having your C&C, you can carry a pretty nice weapon in your purse and you don't have a "gun signature" under your clothes. For us guys, it is a different matter, that is unless you are one of those guys who carries one those "european hand bags." 

I can hear it now..."Cute purse there buddy!"

So get a handgun first,but more on that later in this article.

I want to address your confiscation / relinquish issue.

My mind set is that if they want my guns, they are going to have to pry them from my cold dead fingers.

Second, the FBI estimates that there are over 200 million privately-owned firearms in the US.

If you add those owned by the military, law enforcement agencies and museums, there is probably about 1 gun per person in the country.

Now, if you want to get a rough idea of how many guns there are out there just look at how many people you see out there then multiply by a factor of estimated ownership.

The last best guess was about 350,000,000 to more likely 500,000,000 - that is 500 million guns out there. That would easily be 1 weapon for every man woman and child living in the US alone.

Don't forget the average gun enthusiast owns several firearms which includes pistols, shotguns, and rifles of all makes and models. It is often estimated that about 1 in 4 people that own any firearms, the average number of firearms in the home are approximately 4 guns each.

SO.. that is a lot of guns to try to take from the American public. 

What I have to ask is who in their right mind would try to disarm the entire American public? 

No one could and no one in their right mind would attempt it. 

SO are we going to lose our guns? As much as the conspiracy folks want you to believe that, it isn't going to happen. Yes there are cases such as New Orleans and such, but on a nation wide scale, the do not have the resources to take all the weapons from every American out there.

NOW.. with that said, start buying ammo now. Because what they will do is put a serious curb on the purchasing of ammo.

Here is a headline from Venezuela sept -2009

Venezuela Attempts Gun Control by Limiting Bullets
By Jeremy Morgan
Latin American Herald Tribune staff

CARACAS – Legislators at the National Assembly are set to take what appears to be a rather unorthodox approach to law and order in a society notoriously renowned for gunslinging and one of the highest per capita murder rates on the planet.

The defense committee at the legislature has been looking at a proposed reform of the 70-year-old Arms and Explosive Law, which apparently has yet to be brought into line with the Bolivarian Constitution adopted by referendum at President Hugo Chávez’s behest in late 1999.

So we can see that if they are to control the guns, they will do it via the ammo. So buy lots of ammo now. Even if you do not own a weapon and are possibly thinking about it, get ammo now. Consider it a "wise investment" for down the road.

Back to What Weapon To Purchase.

I am one who believes that you first weapon should be a handgun. This is a home protection weapon and self protection.

Now, based on your question I believe you might have been thinking of some sort of rifle, shotgun or carbine.

If you are thinking long gun, the second choice would be a shotgun. It is funny, I am writing a follow-up article to the 22 article titled "why I like the shotgun."

For home and hunting, the shotgun is a great way to go. I am one who likes a "pump" shotgun.

There is just something about hearing that CLICK - CLACK of pumping a round in the chamber.

Believe me, the bad guys know that sound too and get out of Dodge quickly because they know that buck shot with there name on it is coming next.

You can also use the shotgun to hunt as well. There are a whole mix of different ammo that you can purchase for the shotgun and you can very your loads.

Assuming you can carry at least 5 in the tube. You can make your first round bird shot for close range. They will not blast through walls and if it does, they loose there velocity.

Secondly you can put a couple of "00" buck shot followed by a couple of slugs.

Here is my reasoning.

First bad guy is going to be close range, the bird shot will take him out.

The second bad guy is going to be a bit further so, buck shot will take that person out.

IF there is a third, you have another round of "00" Buck.

Then if you have the bad guy driving the car who is going to fire upon you out your front/back door, you have some slugs that will go some distance and do a lot of damage. These will go through walls and if that person is hiding behind a car door, you can possibly still get him with the slug.

Gun Recommendations

Handgun - If money is a real issue, I like the hi-point Compact 9 0 AKA - C9. This shoots a 9mm, which is a round that I love. This weapon runs around $165.00 and all the reviews I have checked into, it is a great gun. Now the gun snobs out there don't like it but it is American made and has a life time warrantee no questions asked. Something goes wrong, you send it back to the company and they fix it or give you a new weapon. Hi point also makes a .380 and 45 acp version. But I like the 9mm for being compact and good for C&C. You can use it for C&C and home protection. The grip is small and fits nicely into a woman's hand.

I am also a big fan of the Walther P22. 10 rounds of 22 hollow point in anyone and they know that they are having a bad day. This is a great weapon for C&C, small, sturdy and has a weaver rail on the front so you can mount a laser sight or flashlight. I consider this more of a personal C&C weapon verses a home protection weapon.

Now for shotguns, I like the Mossberg 835 Ultra-Mag.

This is a great all around shotgun. Here you can see is the Turkey version which comes with a nice vented barrel to prevent "barrel rise" with adjustable choke and tapped out so you can put on a scope. This is great for general hunting Then when in home protection mode, you can put on a barrel that is made for slugs.

Great thing about the 835 is that there is a lot of third party accessories that you can purchase so it can be modified with a butt cuff shell holder, folding stock, bandoleer strap that holds 20 rounds of 12 gauge, front end flash lights, etc. All kinds of cool stuff.

These run about $250 - $350

Finally something to think about regarding a shotgun is the "legislative protection."

So if you are really worried about weapons being confiscated, the shotgun is looked at as a sporting arm by legislators and usually the last type of weapon to be banned or legislated against.  This is not always the case, but even in cities like Chicago it is legal to own a shotgun where handguns and large capacity magazines are completely banned.  This may be extremely helpful for the urban survivalist.

So I hope that I have answered your question here. Please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions that I might be able to help with.

Ray - STCS

Saturday, May 1, 2010

How Would You Handle The "Brass Horde"

During the age of the Mongol Empire, the Mongol armies spread across Eastern Europe and Russia raping, pillaging and basically leaving whatever was left as a waste land. These invaders were come to be known as "The Golden Horde."

Fast forward today and we remember the LA Riots, New Orleans looting, I even experienced it myself during the 1989 San Francisco earthquake. During all the confusion and the aftermath instantly after the quake, masses started stealing from the shops who's windows were broken and all within an arm's reach.  It got so bad that in some areas a "shoot to kill" order was issued. The earthquake struck at approximately 5:00PM, that night turned into hell on earth in some parts of the San Francisco bay area.

The horde was released.

In the prepper community we see " the Golden Horde" as a loosely organized mass of urban refugees streaming out of the cities in search of food and shelter after a natural disaster or social / financial collapse. Like locus, this mindless mass could possibly overwhelm local defenses,  "raping and pillaging" the country suburban area and stripping it of many of its resources while destroying everything in its path.

Now this sounds bad and is a situation that would most likely take place in the movies, but in real life a situation like this does not happen… in most cases.

But to be honest I am not worried about a mindless mass of people. These people are hungry  and pretty much are acting on instinct. They are not going to be very well organized, and lack really any true leadership. Some may be armed, but not willing to really "take a bullet" when it comes down to the rubber meeting the road. 

It is the group's "mass" that gives the "horde" its power. 

Aggressively confront then divide the mass and it will quickly give up and move on to another "easier" target.

But who I am worried about are the bugged out  Rambo wanna-be's traveling in their RVs who's idea of preparedness is cases of ammo, Spam & Budweiser. 

Let me introduce to you...The Brass Horde. 

The Brass Hordes are small groups of people, probably all deer hunting buddies who go out and play paint ball on the weekends and call it survival training. Now, nothing against deer hunting and paintball, I am a hunter as well; can't say I have played paintball though. Now airsoft wars are fun, but I am digressing here.

What these folks have neglected for maintaining good health and welfare, they have made up by being obnoxiously well armed. Thing is when the Spam and Budweiser runs out,  they will turn to what they love most their guns and ammo.

These are the groups I worry about.

Here is a very interesting story, one that is real world. The author who goes by the handle "BigBear" painted a very realistic picture. 

After reading this, I want to ask you, how would you REALLY handle this situation?  

I would like for you to hear your "end to the story" comments, so please post them below. 

The Brass Horde 

The Brass Horde at least tried to prepare.  They had a plan to leave the city, some supplies and a large stockpile of weapons. Their intent was to relocate to a remote site as a group and hunt for food. The small group is made up of family and close friends occupying the trailers used to escape the city. Unfortunately their resources are limited and unwisely thought out.

At first they have good luck taking a deer and several rabbits for a stew, all looks good. But after a week or so their water rations are getting low and their expensive filter systems are useless on the frozen lake. They are able to melt some water over the fire pit and on propane stoves but this consumes critical resources. Most of their daily man hours are spent collecting and transporting ice blocks to melt for water. The meat is running low, they are exhausted.

The Horde elders decide that a couple of the women should visit a nearby cabin and ask to fill their water jugs. The established local, not wanting to seem rude, invites the ladies into the warm cabin...the aroma of fresh baked bread fills the air. Warm cinnamon rolls and hot coffee are served over light conversation next to the wood stove. The ladies fill their water jugs from the solar powered well, thanked the local and reluctantly venture back out into the cold, it was the first time they had truly been warm since leaving the city.

That evening the women huddled around the fire telling the others of their days experience. A strong north wind brought frigid temperatures and a heavy snow started around sundown...the Horde retired to their campers to weather the night.

Then the propane runs out!

The temperatures quickly plunge after the heater went out in the far north trailer of the circled compound. The father whose survival skills were honed by many hours watching the discovery channel, decided to start a small wood fire in the oven to keep him and his wife warm. The ensuing inferno consumed two of their trailers and damaged the other six as over 10,000 rounds of ammo cooked off in the conflagration.

In the blinding snow the elders huddled for warmth around the smoldering ruins of their grand scheme...they knew what had to be done. After arming themselves and securing the women folk in the remaining heated camper, the horde took off for the neighbors cabin. The howling winds of the blizzard masked their plunder as they made off with six twenty pound bottles of propane, a chainsaw and five gallons of gas. The blowing snow filled their tracks as they retreated back to the compound confident in their escape.

Unbeknown to the Brass Horde the local had witnessed the entire thing from the warmth of the bedroom after being alerted by his growling dogs. Shouldering his gun he realized that confrontation was dangerous against eight heavily armed men and there was a good change he would die if shooting started. The local also realized that this was the first of many visits by the armed bandits who, made confident by their guns, would steal what they failed to store through proper preparation.

So he….. started baking cookies.

"Good morning, I have fresh cookies and hot coffee" shouted the local from his truck as he pulled into the Horde's compound. "You all look like you could use a treat on this cold morning" he continued. The men leerily looked at each other assuming that the local man had not yet discovered the robbery and was just being a good neighbor. The local waved and yelled "God Bless You" as he drove away. Over their snacks and wicked strong coffee the Horde laughed at how easy a target this cookie baking fairy would be...

Looking through the rifle scope from his vantage point in on the hill he saw no movement...the last one fell several hours ago.

Later that evening the local man returned to the compound, collected the bodies and placed them neatly in the largest trailer. Gathering the stolen items plus the Hordes guns and abundant ammunition for barter he proceeded to pour gas in each of the remaining campers then burned everything to the ground. Cyanide in the coffee and cookies.

A heavy snow that night covered over the remains and the evident "mass suicide" was not discovered until later that springs. It was chalked up to collapse related hysteria...no further investigation.

My Own Thoughts

How would you have handled the group and the situation?

Remember there are no police that are going to come to the rescue.

What would you have done differently?

Now this one struck me hard. Why? Because I am a God fearing Christian who has submitted his life to the Lord.

Several verses in the Bible that come to my mind is...

1 Timothy 5:8(KJV)  But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

Exodus 22:2 (KJV)  If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.

What Do I Believe?

In the simplest terms, a believer is absolutely justified in the use of deadly force if faced with a grave threat to him or his own family or members of his own church (his extended family). Not to do so is a violation of both Jewish and Christian's reverence for life.

Deadly force does not mean that the results necessarily ends in death. It may be simply the presentation of the weapon that provides the necessary deterrent against violence on the part of the offender.

Christianity is not pacifism. There are pacifists who are Christians, but a clear reading of Scripture doesn't imply pacifism at all. We seek peace and pursue it; we earnestly prefer to avoid violence, but we don't stick our heads in the sand. We live in a world where violence is commonplace; it's been that way since the fall.

Violent people have absolutely no restraint on their behavior; a believer needs to be at least as aggressive in defending himself and others. Whatever it takes. If you have to shoot someone and drop them to the ground, that's most unfortunate, but you didn't ask to be attacked. 

Please go to the "COMMENTS" section and tell me what you thought and how you would handle it.

Finally, do you have a pit in your stomach like I did after I read that?