Gospel Message Day 234

Daily Scripture Reflection: Emergency Preparedness

In the last 2 days, I've been reading in 3 Nephi the story where the righteous people gather themselves and their substance together as their defense against the wicked Gadianton robbers.

And it came to pass in the seventeenth year, in the latter end of the year, the proclamation of Lachoneus had gone forth throughout all the face of the land, and they had taken their horses, and their chariots, and their cattle, and all their flocks, and their herds, and their grain, and all their substance, and did march forth by thousands and by tens of thousands, until they had all gone forth to the placewhich had been appointed that they should gather themselves together, to defend themselves against their enemies.

 23 And the land which was appointed was the land of Zarahemla, and the land which was between the land Zarahemla and the land Bountiful, yea, to the line which was between the land Bountiful and the land Desolation.

 24 And there were a great many thousand people who were called Nephites, who did gather themselves together in this land. Now Lachoneus did cause that they should gather themselves together in the land southward, because of the great curse which was upon the land northward.

 25 And they did fortify themselves against their enemies; and they did dwell in one land, and in one body, and they did fear the words which had been spoken by Lachoneus, insomuch that they did repent of all their sins; and they did put up their prayers unto the Lord their God, that he would deliver them in the time that their enemies should come down against them to battle.

They are together in this situation for about 9 years. They probably were not able to farm as much in that gathered situation, which means most of their substance was what they had stored. And they not only lived on that storage for those 9 years, but they didn't even use it all. 

And now it came to pass that the people of the Nephites did all return to their own lands in the twenty and sixth year, every man, with his family, his flocks and his herds, his horses and his cattle, and all things whatsoever did belong unto them.

 2 And it came to pass that they had not eaten up all their provisions; therefore they did take with them all that they had not devoured, of all their grain of every kind, and their gold, and their silver, and all their precious things, and they did return to their own lands and their possessions, both on the north and on the south, both on the land northward and on the land southward.

Every time I hear/read this story, I think of how we are urged by our leaders to be prepared for emergencies. This preparedness includes finances as well as food storage and other substances that would help us to subsist in whatever situation may arise that forces us to need to rely on them. I think being prepared like this is definitely a Gospel topic. But I believe that spiritual preparedness is just as much (if not more) important as being prepared every other way.