Are You Ready?

Again, no stories.

The author shares in 4th chapter, which he has labelled the 3rd chapter because he decided not to call the 1st chapter a chapter at all – thus adding to the chaos that he says Jesus will fix in this world but I think could have been helped by making the 1st chapter the actual first chapter…

…but I digress.

The author shares that he rediscovers his wife and kids after he returns from each business trip.  Which makes me wonder just how long these trips are!  And he discusses the crisis and chaos of our world today.

This chapter ends with the question “Are you ready?”

I happen to be an emergency preparedness expert.

Yes, a dyed in cotton *actual* expert on emergency preparedness – a claim which is validated in part by the government’s willingness to actually pay me for this expertise.

So the question, “Are you ready?” isn’t a new one for  me.  In fact, it’s one that gets asked a lot in my circle.

Getting ready for an emergency like a Tsunami is much different than getting ready for something like a winter storm.  First of all, one you see coming with often several days notice.  You can lay in food and other necessities, check your batteries, and be prepared to settle in with a good book.  Maybe your knitting.  The other happens in front of you like a terrible nightmare where suddenly the water drains away from your feet and you are running for the hills.  Winter storms are the stuff of romantic movies while Tsunami’s are horror stories.

Which means the question shouldn’t be “Are you ready?”  The question should be “what are you ready for?”

The author argues that the world is in chaos, crying out for order and people are looking for *something* as a solution when the solution really is *someone*.  Jesus.

Here’s the thing:  If Jesus is the solution to a world in chaos from crisis and war – why is he the excuse for so many wars?

For many years now we’ve been trying to educate people on what it means to be ready.  We break it down into three simple steps:  Find out what can happen, have a plan, and build a kit.  We do this because we are increasingly aware that the government is not enough – people have to be prepared to take care of themselves until help will arrive.  Which in many scenarios is at least 3 days and sometimes (Puerto Rico) weeks or months away.

If you live in Kansas, the likelihood you’ll be hit with a Tsunami (climate change aside) is pretty unlikely.  On the other hand, tornado’s are a fact of your life.  So you build your plans around events like tornado’s, winter storms, nuclear war, and fire.  (Sorry about the nuclear war thing – unfortunately we have a lot of science in the hands of some not very smart or good people – so it’s a risk.)  You practice how to get to a shelter or how to escape a burning house.  You keep copies of important papers and you have a plan to communicate with people who care about you.

And you have a kit. This collection of tools is intended to help you survive until help arrives.  Something to create shelter from, water, food, flashlight, portable radio, first aid kit – the list goes on depending on what your potential disaster scenario is.

Which brings me back to the connection between being ready and Jesus.  Because again, the author argues that we are all looking for something to solve the crisis of our lives and of our times when we should be looking for someone – Jesus.

But, isn’t it a greater act of love and maturity to be willing to shoulder the responsibility for ourselves and be ready – and willing – to lend a hand to help those who need it?

Which goes back to my first observation in my first blog post – maybe Jesus exists in what is the best of each of us.  If this is true, then being ready isn’t about looking toward a specific being.  It’s about being part of that being – the part that means we’re there for each other no matter what the crisis.