And We’re Back!

And we’re back!

There’s been a flurry of activity behind the sabbatical at Preparedness Pro so that I could move it forward to what I really, really wanted it to be. And today I’m going to share with you the results thereof because chances are, if you’re reading this, then that activity will indeed impact you, and very soon too, I suspect.

Over the past several months I’ve been putting a major undertaking into play.  I’ve sorted through 15 years of belongings, including massive amounts of preparedness supplies; prioritized everything that I wanted to absolutely keep in storage, posted and sold the rest, and then prioritized and packed everything I was keeping that was NOT going on the road with me.

Ah yes, “on the road.” Let me tell you about that.

As you recall, Spiritual Preparedness is the #1 Principle of Preparedness. Without it a solid foundation of Spiritual Preparedness, our preparedness efforts can so easily be crazy, panic-ridden, misinformed, loony apocalyptic paranoia. But…with the Lord guiding us and helping us to discern between panic and peace, then it truly is possible to enjoy Peaceful Preparedness. 

Several months ago I was confronted with a major life change that totally blindsided me.  In my opinion, it was the worst thing I could ever imagine having to go through.  I can tell you that just in that regard the ONLY thing that has gotten me through it this far has been my strong foundation of Spiritual Preparedness.  In light of this change, I had been struggling to figure out what I was supposed to do next.  I fasted and prayed and prayed some more and more for direction. I did everything I could possibly do to find some direction amidst the turmoil.  One night in particular I felt like I was at the end of my rope! As I knelt in prayer that night I begged the Lord to direct me that I might have some PEACE amidst this horrible turmoil, and that I might KNOW that I could be proactive in my life rather than reactive as a result of this crisis.  I don’t’ believe in petitioning the Lord for every step we make, but this particular time I felt that it was so important that He guide me specifically.

During that night’s sleep, I found myself awake at 4:00in the morning. My mind was whirling with this “picture”, for lack of a better word, of me traveling all around and teaching the various classes that I’ve taught over the years, along with some new ones.  I saw myself specifically in a motorhome, with particular professional certifications accompanying my classes. I even saw how some of the new classes would specifically be laid out. I’ve never had a “vision” before, but if I had to call this experience anything, I would have to say that it was very much like what I would expect a vision to be.  But most importantly, I felt PEACE—the peace that I had been begging the Lord for each time I contemplated moving here or there or doing this or that, as a confirmation that I was on the right track.
This experience went on for more than two and a half hours. When I looked at the clock and saw that it was 6:30 in the morning, I prayed and offered thanks to the Lord for allowing me to finally have the direction and peace that I had been looking for, but could I be finished for a bit as I still had to drive 4 ½ hours back to my home that morning. *grin* I fell back asleep almost immediately and awoke refreshed and feeling SO wonderful knowing that I had a plan that HE gave me.

After I got in the car for the ride home that morning, I thought over my experience a little more. And I confess, I started doubting the sanity of it all. There were so many obstacles to my accomplishing what I needed to do in order to make it happen.  But then I was reminded that when God instructs us to do something, He provides a way.  And boy howdy did He do it!!  Within a week I had every single logistical obstacle resolved including a beautiful, Class A motorhome—an absolute miracle given that I don’t believe in building credit and there’s no such thing as a “subprime lending market” in the world of RVs; all my certifications that I needed—another miracle since every class I needed to take had been sold out for months ahead of time over a year; etc. etc.! It would take a 1500 word article just to tick off all of the miraculous things that have happened as I’ve been putting this plan into place. And I’ll tell you, that it’s only been because of all of these undeniable things that have happened that I know that I should be doing this, because otherwise, it’s a pretty crazy—even downright scary undertaking if I allow myself to stop and think about it!!

But WOW! What an adventure lies ahead! I’m SO truly excited to get to see and meet so many of you in person!! Expect to see lots of YouTube videos too in the near future, many of which have been filmed in the comfort of my coach!

I’m working diligently to get everything scheduled as my first official classes will begin the first week of March. I’ll be sure to post everything here including a list of all of the classes I will be making available.  If you want to make sure that I come to a town near you, be sure to comment below so that I can see it!

As for the classes I’ll be teaching, this year I’ll be focusing primarily on the first four Principles of Preparedness. With very little exception, if it doesn’t fall into those 4 Principles, then I’ll likely just be writing about it instead of teaching it live. By way of a reminder, those first 4 Principles of Preparedness are:

1: Spiritual Preparedness (core values, belief system, etc.)

2: Mental Preparedness (knowledge, skill, mental fortitude)

3: Physical Preparedness (Health, security/protection/defense, strength, physical logistics)

4: Medical Preparedness (Trouble-shooting health issues, nutrition, hygiene, preventative health, first aid skills, etc.)

That being said, if there’s a topic that you would really like for me to teach about, be sure to list that in the comments as well!  I may not do a live class on it, but I could always do a YouTube video on it or an article, perhaps. If you haven’t yet discovered our YouTube channel, be sure you check it out here. 

Along with all of this, I’ve adopted a new position that I will be implementing through all of 2015 and that is that I will NOT make any decision to do anything based on FEAR. It is my personal belief, and the teachings of the Christian religions all over the world that it’s the Lord that counsels us to be PREPARED. As such, it is my belief that it comes from a very holy and sacred place. I’ve been invited to all of these groups on Facebook that purport to be focused on the topic of being prepared and yet I am constantly barraged by fear-filled nonsense.  As I see and hear that kind of talk, I’m POSITIVE that any sort of panic-filled action towards preparedness is a counterfeit to the Lord’s way of being prepared. Others have not been the only offender in this regard. I too have fallen for that motivation sometimes as well. And in fact, even some of the articles I’ve posted on this site have far too much of that panic seasoning. But this year, I’ll be keeping all of that in check, because I need all of the Peaceful Preparedness I can get—and so do you, I suspect. *grin*

Here’s to a Peacefully Prepared 2015 and seeing YOU soon!