~by Michelle

I grew up in a home where food storage was just a part of life. And I grew up hearing stories about the period early in my parents’ marriage when my dad was unemployed and their (our) food storage made a huge difference.

Sometimes people ask why Mormons have a food storage. This example from my parents’ life has been replicated time and time again. We can all fall on hard times, and having a little bit of food on hand can make a big difference.

Emergency preparedness in a more broad sense is also something that Mormons talk about and try to practice. There are even callings (assignments) in local Mormon congregations to help Church members and those in their communities be prepared.

I was sobered to read this story by Joyce Anderson, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who lives in the Los Alamos region of New Mexico. With the recent Los Alamos fire, her family had to evacuate. It’s a powerful post. It’s one thing to talk about food storage and emergency preparedness; it’s another thing to hear first-hand what a difference being prepared can make.

One of the things that stood out to me is that Joyce was not only prepared physically, but she was prepared spiritually. She was able to draw on her spiritual resources in a time of crisis.

The first post is about the evacuation. In was moved by the author’s faith, in her testimony of prayer, and in how emergency preparedness helped them be ready for this difficult time. The second post talks about how the Latter-day Saint home and visiting teaching programs and a focus on service are also part of Mormon emergency preparedness. (You can read more about “The Mormon Network” in this post.)

Stay tuned…there will be more to come from this author.

Running from the Fire: Our Escape

Running from the Fire: Serving and Being Served