QUOTES RELATING TO EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
How long would your food supply last if there was a disaster? How many of you were prepared when the last snow storm hit? Did you have to brave the icy roads to get to a grocery store to replenish your pantry? Or could you sit back, relax, and enjoy the time at home with your family because you were prepared?
"The Church and its members are commanded by the Lord to be self-reliant and independent. (See
D&C 78:13-14) The responsibility for each person’s social, emotional, spiritual, physical, or economic well-being rests first upon himself..." (Spencer W. Kimball, "Welfare Services: The Gospel in Action," Ensign, Nov. 1977, 76)
"There is something in the Doctrine and Covenants, which says, 'And there shall be a great hailstorm sent forth to destroy the crops of the earth.' (
D&C 29:16). ...What are you going to do when that happens? Ah, brothers and sisters, … if you have your year's supply of food in your home, let the hails come, and the winds blow, and our storehouses in our homes…will be full just as they were in the days of Joseph, and we will be preserved. I like that plan. What good will be our greenbacks that we get from the government for security when all the crops of the earth are destroyed by hail?...You know in the days of Israel they worked this plan." (Matthew Cowley [Apostle from 1945-1953], "Matthew Cowley Speaks," Deseret Book, 1954)
Pam Taylor, "Taking the Bite Out of Food Storage," (Ensign, Mar. 1992, 72), mentions four basic steps to follow in obtaining Food Storage.
Eventually you will be prepared and will not fear (See
D&C 38:30). What one thing will you do this month to "Be Prepared"?
"There is a wise old saying 'Eat it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without'. Thrift is a practice of not wasting anything. Some people are able to get by because of the absence of expense. They have their shoes resoled, they patch, they mend, they sew, and they save money. They avoid installment buying, and make purchases only after saving enough to pay cash, thus avoiding interest charges. Frugality means to practice careful economy." - James E. Faust
"The revelation to produce and store food may be as essential to our temporal welfare today as boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah." Pres. Ezra Taft Bensen
"We will see the day when we live on what we produce." Pres. Marion G. Romney
"Ye Latter-day Saints, learn to sustain yourselves, produce everything you need to eat, drink or wear,..." Pres. Brigham Young
"When people are able but unwilling to take care of themselves we are responsible to employ the dictum of the Lord that the idler shall not eat the bread of the laborer". Elder Boyd K. Packer
"The time will come that gold will hold no comparison in value to a bushel of wheat." President Brigham Young
"Let every head of household see to it that he has on hand enough food and clothing and, where possible, fuel also for at least a year." J. Rueben Clark 1937
"There is a wise old saying 'Eat it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without'. Thrift is a practice of not wasting anything. Some people are able to get by because of the absence of expense. They have their shoes resoled, they patch, they mend, they sew, and they save money. They avoid installment buying, and make purchases only after saving enough to pay cash, thus avoiding interest charges. Frugality means to practice careful economy." James E. Faust
"The Lord has warned us of famines, but the righteous will have listened to the Prophet and stored at least a year's supply of survival food." Ezra Taft Benson
"Ye Latter-day Saints, learn to sustain yourselves, produce everything you need to eat, drink or wear,..." Pres. Brigham Young
"Too often we bask in our comfortable complacency and rationalize that the ravages of war, economic disaster, famine, and earth quake cannot happen here. Those who believe this are either not acquainted with the revelations of the Lord, or they do not believe them. Those who smugly think these calamities will not happen, that they will somehow be set aside because of the righteousness of the Saints, are deceived and will rue the day they harbored such a delusion." (Ezra Taft Benson - October Conference, 1980 Ensign, Nov 1980:32-33
"...when we really get into hard times, where food is scarce or there is none at all, and so with clothing and shelter, money may be no good for there may be nothing to buy, and you cannot eat money, you cannot get enough of it together to burn to keep you warm, and you cannot wear it." (President J. Reuben Clark, Jr. - Church News, November 21, 1953, p.4.)
"We continue to encourage members to store sufficient food, clothing, and, where possible, fuel for at least one year. We have not laid down an exact formula for what should be stored. However, we suggest that members concentrate on essential foods that sustain life, such as grains, legumes, cooking oil, powdered milk, salt, sugar or honey, and water. Most families can achieve and maintain this basic level of preparedness. The decision to do more than this rests with the individual. We encourage you to follow this counsel with the assurance that a people prepared through obedience to the commandments of God need not fear." The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Ezra Taft Benson, Gordon B. Hinckley, and Thomas S. Monson) June 24, 1988 in a letter to General Authorities and the following Priesthood leaders in the United States and Canada: Area Authorities (formerly Regional Reps.); Stake, Mission, and District Presidents; Bishops and Branch Presidents.
"Maintain a year's supply. The Lord has urged that his people save for the rainy days, prepare for the difficult times, and put away for emergencies, a year's supply or more of bare necessities so that when comes the flood, the earthquake, the famine, the hurricane, the storms of life, our families can be sustained through the dark days. How many of us have complied with this? We strive with the Lord, finding many excuses: We do not have room for storage. The food spoils. We do not have the funds to do it. We do not like these common foods. It is not needed -- there will always be someone to help in trouble. The government will come to the rescue. And some intend to obey but procrastinate." The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.375
"Should the Lord decide at this time to cleanse the Church -- and the need for that cleansing seems to be increasing – a famine in this land of one year's duration could wipe out a large percentage of slothful members, including some ward and stake officers. Yet we cannot say we have not been warned." (God, Family, Country, p. 383.)
"You do not need to go into debt to obtain a year's supply. Plan to build up your food supply just as you would a savings account. Save a little for storage each paycheck. Can or bottle fruit and vegetables from your gardens and orchards. Learn how to preserve food through drying and possibly freezing. Make your storage a part of your budget. Store seeds and have sufficient tools on hand to do the job. If you are saving and planning for a second car or a television set or some item which merely adds to your comfort or pleasure, you may need to change your priorities. We urge you to do this prayerfully and do it now. I speak with a feeling of great urgency." (CR October 1980, Ensign 10 [November 1980]
"More than ever before, we need to learn and apply the principles of economic self-reliance. We do not know when the crisis involving sickness or unemployment may affect our own circumstances. We do know that the Lord has decreed global calamities for the future and has warned and forewarned us to be prepared. For this reason the Brethren have repeatedly stressed a "back to basics" program for temporal and spiritual welfare." - Ezra Taft Benson, "Prepare for the Days of Tribulation," Ensign, Nov. 1980, page 32