Be Prudent & Take Precautions For Life’s Potential Struggles

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions (or hides, or braces oneself).  The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.’ (Proverbs 22:3)

Among our friends, family members and acquaintances, there is usually those who seem to be in perpetual crisis. Some who are in the ‘perpetual crisis’ mode are in through no fault of their own. Like Job, the circumstances fall like dominos around them, one by one, and the aftermath is overwhelming.

Others with ‘perpetual crises’, though, are often in them through a failure to plan or prepare. They may be seen as living beyond their means, engaging in ‘fun’ but self-destructive activities for today, caring little about the future. But then, the car breaks down but there’s no money to fix or replace it, or at the age of retirement comes, but there’s nothing saved in order to retire.

On one hand, God doesn’t want you to be completely focused on mitigating potential crises, or failures. On the other hand, the Lord expects us to use His Wisdom, understanding that He does not want us to live in fear or in crisis mode continually. As Ecclesiastes 3 points out, there is a time and place for everything – a time to work and a time to enjoy life.

We are to place our worries upon Him, as Jesus promises to provide for us. The provisions, though, may come to us prior to our need for them. We may need to hold back some of these provisions or use them to prepare ourselves for potential problems down the road.

This is not only material provisions (money, food, clothing) but also the provisions of effort; effort in either preventive maintenance to keep items from breaking down or to use effort to prepare for future events – both what we can foresee (like hurricanes in Florida) and those we can’t predict (health issues or accidents).

Proverbs 22:3 is a good example of where it is good to see it in several translations; several translations replaces the words ‘take precautions’ with ‘hides’.  A little further research finds the original intent is to ‘hold on, brace oneself, and hunker down’. 

To ‘hunker down’, one must first plan to and then prepare a place to ‘hunker down’ at, and what is needed to stay ‘hunkered down’.  But the big takeaway is to be prepared for the foreseeable dangers and pray for the Lord’s protection over the unforeseen troubles that we all face from time to time.   

We need to have Faith and walk in Faith in our Lord, and on occasion we must step out in Faith over what we cannot see clearly.  But the Lord also makes it clear that it is prudent to take precautions over what we know or can expect to be dangers.  This goes beyond hurricane preparations, or stocking up on toilet paper or other goods for the next wave of shipping interruptions.

Think of what you may need, perhaps saving cash to cover repairs or replacement of your appliances or auto, or to make a routine to check your motor oil or home AC filters to prevent problems.  Pay a little now, or pay a lot later…

The good news is the Lord provides for us to be prepared.  A couple of dollars put aside each paycheck adds up to a good amount over time, to cover some problem in future.  A couple extra cans of food each time you shop, adds up to a case of food on hand when the stores are closed for a storm, or when the shelves are empty thanks to supply chain issues.

What happens when we prepare but our preparations run short?  Remember God is in control, He provides for us, and He allows us to help each other.  Remember Joseph provided the abundance prepared in Egypt to his father Jacob and his brothers when their preparations ran out. Our preparations may be to also help others, especially when in abundance.

Preparation is not only in materials or effort, but is also Spiritual. As is always the case, tune into what direction God wants you to take; pray continually to Him, study the Bible daily, and fellowship with other Christians often. Through these three actions, God’s direction is often made very clear and confirms what the Holy Spirit is leading you to do.

Pray to our Lord for His Wisdom in what you need to prepare for, what you may need to ‘stockpile’, and how much to ‘stockpile’, and where to ‘hunker down’ at, for even if you don’t know what to prepare for, He does!