March 19, 2024

Where Has Chris Been?

I’ve gotten some inquiries about where I have been the last few months. As you might have noticed, I haven’t made any new blog posts. The following is an account, and might be more info than you care to know. I’m sharing it; not for anyone to feel sorry for me, but to show that the stuff hits the fan in many different ways, not all of which involve the economy, EMP’s or government. I’m also sharing it to ask for prayer; for myself and, mostly, for my parents.

It started in early spring of 2015 with some of my own health issues; a few types of chronic pain, some degenerative discs, issues from old injuries, and, on top of all of that, fibromyalgia. We also moved my parents from the second level apartment building into my in-laws’ ground floor handicap accessible lower level. This was a huge blessing to my parents, one they are so grateful for.

A few months after moving in, sometime in August, my mom fell and broke her ankle. Mom, who has Huntington’s disease with mild dementia was transferred to a transitional care unit. The night she was admitted, she says a male nurse took some of her pain meds, shook her and threatened her to keep quiet. I made the decision to pull her out. Whether or not it actually happened is irrelevant. She believes it happened and would not rest or heal there.

Two days after bringing her home, she called me at 3:00am to tell me my dad was falling while trying to get to the bathroom. I told her to call 911, that I was on my way, and would get her situated, and head to the ER. Dad is a diabetic, so I was thinking “low blood sugar”. He was admitted, in septic shock caused by diverticulitis; and we were told anyone admitted with sepsis has a 40% chance of not leaving. He was in ICU for a week. Praise God! He recovered; at least from the sepsis.

Over the next few months he had bowel movements 10-20 times a day. At first it was believed it was from the diverticulitis, and a colonoscopy was done to determine the best course of action. The doctor found two tumors and said that he had seen enough tumors in his career to know they were cancerous. This was on a Thursday, so we had to wait until Tuesday for the biopsy results, only to find out that it was not cancer. (Praise God, AGAIN!) Needless to say, dad got a new doctor at a totally new hospital.

It was discovered that the cause of the multiple bowel movements is Clostridium difficile, a very resilient colon infection. He has taken antibiotics to treat it, and was recently told by the infectious disease specialist, that while he has recently still tested positive, they believe he is getting rid of it.

Fast forward a few weeks; and he had another colonoscopy, by a specialist this time. The tumor the first doctor had seen had grown so much, they could not do the scope. They took several biopsies and again, praise God, they came back non-cancerous. He had to be admitted for a colon obstruction and was given a colostomy bag. He was in the hospital for a week and was in transitional care for a week. Oh, I forgot to mention that during the stint in the hospital the first time, he had several small strokes, as a result of going into Atrial Fibrillation (which he came out of in a couple of days). These have impaired his short-term memory greatly, have left him weakened and with very shaky hands.

While in TCU he developed several abscesses at the surgical site, which landed him in the hospital for another week, and a month in transitional care.

Trudee and I have had to take over their entire household; paying bills, shopping, you name it. In their current states, I don’t feel comfortable letting either of them drive, so I have become their chauffeur as well.

For the sake of brevity and dignity, I’ve left several things out. So, the reason for the lack of posts is that when I do have free time, I just don’t feel very creative, and mostly want to check out mentally for a while. It’s also hard to think about prepping for the future while paddling up the crick, if you catch my drift.

I’m not complaining! What I’m going through is nothing compared to what my dad is going through or what my mom is currently battling and will be battling with Huntington’s; a cruel hereditary disease.

It is my pleasure as their son to help take care of them, but I would be lying if I said it was easy. At times I get so dang crabby I can’t stand myself! I’ve failed at times to honor them, but I apologize and ask forgiveness.

In this time, we’ve also had several car repairs needed, totaling in the thousands, job issues, family issues and, most recently, we found out that one of our dogs, Tanner, has cancer. Tanner is more than just a dog, he is part of our family and a huge source of joy.

I am blessed with a Godly wife, who helps as much as she can and, above all, is understanding.

I learned something from Job; he complained and asked God, “why me?”. I learned that God has His reasons for doing things. It is not my place to question His motives. I may not understand or like what He has put before me. My task is to keep putting one foot in front of the other as I march forward, toward the cross. Sometimes the path is on steady ground, others up hill on loose footing, and sometimes it is a downright slog.

The site going forward

This site is still seeing traffic from new people daily and new subscribers. This tells me that it is still a resource for some. Because of that I’ll never sell it or shut it down. However, it costs $70 a month for the service to send out emails to let people know there is a new post. I can’t justify paying this when I’m not posting. I don’t know if or when I will post regularly unless Father inspires me.

It has been my pleasure to write for this ministry over the last five years. I have been humbled by the mount of people who’ve stopped by to read, share and converse with me.

If you have room on your prayer list, please include my mom and dad, Trudee and myself.

Because I have taken down the registration for emails, which is how I distributed the eBook. here is a link to the download page for the free eBook I wrote called Why Should I Prepare and Is It Biblical

May the Lord bless and keep you all.

Chris

The Shemitah, Four Blood Moons and the Most Important Preparation

The Shemitah, Four Blood Moons and the Most Important Preparation

I know I haven’t been posting regularly for some time, but I believe I would be doing a disservice to all of you for not commenting on a few things. Some of you may be aware of them. Others may be hearing it for the first time. I also want to comment on a few current news stories that I feel may tie in.

I’m talking about the Shemitah and the Four Blood Moons.
 
 
The Shemitah

I became aware of a book called The Harbinger, a book by Messianic Jew Jonathan Cahn, thanks to some of you a couple years ago, which I then read. The follow up book to it is called The Mystery of the Shemitah. While Trudee and I are still reading it, I have listened and watched enough from Jonathon Cahn to understand the core of it.

The Shemitah is a command God gave the Jews to let the land rest and lay fallow for one year. At the end of that year, all debts were forgiven. It is a way for the land to be renewed, and for the finances of each household to be renewed as well.

Mr. Cahn stipulates that the Shemitah is also prophesy. In his book The Harbinger, he draws a comparison between America and the 9/11 attacks to the destruction of Ancient Israel. If the links he draws are in fact true, they are very concerning. The Mystery of the Shemitah comes from a small part of his original book, but expounds on it. You see the 9/11 attacks came on the opening of the Shemitah in 2001, and 7 years later came the great recession. Now, 7 years later, we find ourselves in another Shemitah year that began on September 13th.

He says that the previous two Shemitah’s were acts of God trying to get America’s attention and wake us up. Mr. Cahn is careful not to date set or say that something will happen, but that if God wanted to continue in this vein, this Shemitah could be very eventful.
 
 
The Four Blood Moons

I found out about The Four Blood Moons from some of you as well. They have been popularized by the preaching of Pastor John Hagee in a movie call “The Four Blood Moons”, which, by the way, is available to stream on Netflix.

Only four times in the last 500 years have there been four blood moons appearing back to back, coinciding with Jewish high holy days.

1493
In 1493 Cristobal Colon, AKA Christopher Columbus, rescued Spanish Jews from the inquisition and brought them to America.

1949

On May 14th, 1948 Israel declared sovereignty. Less than 24 hours later Israel was attacked by Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. All were defeated by Israel. The armistice was signed on July 20 1949.

With the armistice signed, Jews from around the world begin to return to Israel. Many have likened this return to the Jews being called out of Egypt and being led to Israel.

1967

On June 7, 1967 Jews claimed victory in taking Jerusalem, in the Six Day War and blew the Shofar at the Western Wall. This was the first time in 2,000 years Jews had been in control of Jerusalem.

2015

For the first time in history, the Tetrad occured in a Shemitah year; the final Blood Moon occurs on Monday September 28, 2015. (Keep different time zones on different continents in mind here.)
 
 
Jubilee Year

The Jubilee Year was to provide for a double portion of rest every 50th year. Each 49th year would be a Sabbath Year, followed by a Jubilee Year in the 50th, so that for two consecutive years the people would restore the land, personal and economic freedom and to be dependent on God.

The Shemitah and the Jubilee year just started and will continue until September 2016.
 
 
My Take

My opinion of the Mystery of the Shemitah is that I think Jonathon Cahn sensationalizes things in his books a bit. There has been a time or two in both the Harbinger and the Shemitah that I rolled my eyes a little. That’s not to say there is not good information in them, but I’m not certain he isn’t stretching ancient prophecy to fit America.

There is no doubt it was a command for the Jews. Could it be a prophecy and one that is being given to modern day America? That I don’t know; but if it is not, it is quite a coincidence that out of the last six Shemitah’s, all of them had either a market crash or a recession occur during the Shemitah year.
 
 
2008 ~ Housing Bubble Burst and Ensuing Recession

S&P 500 loss: 56.4 percent
Duration: 17 months
 
 
2001 ~ Dot Com Bubble Burst, Recession and 9-11 Market Aftermath

Loss: 49.1 percent
Duration: 30 months
 
 
1994 ~ The Great Bond Market Massacre
Loses: The biggest bond market collapse in US history. Not only that, $1.5 trillion was lost worldwide.
 
 
1987 ~ Black Monday, October 19th
Loss: 33.5 percent
Duration: 3 months
 
 
1980 ~ Increased interest rates of nearly 20% caused a recession.
S&P 500 loss: 27.8 percent
Duration: 21 months
 
 
1973 ~ Israel’s Yom Kippur War lead to an Arab oil embargo that sent energy prices soaring, leading to a recession.
Loss: 48.0 percent
Duration: 21 months

Yes we have had several stock market crashes and recessions throughout our history, but never in the pattern of every seven years, falling on the Shemitah year. When I discovered this, I wondered what may have happened in 1973 and did some research; Abortion was legalized. Now I am not saying it is related, and I’ll take this time to say that as believers, we need to be cautious of numerology, astrology and making links that are not necessarily connected. I think we, as watchmen, need to be aware of God’s word, His prophecies and current events.

I do believe God sends us signs. The Bible is full of them! Just use discernment.

I don’t think any Bible believing follower of Christ could say that America doesn’t deserve judgment. Like Billy Graham once said when asked if America deserve to be judged, “If not, then God owes Sodom and Gomorrah an apology”.

In the last 40 years, our country has accelerated in sin. Once we legalized abortion, many other countries followed suit. We export sin to other countries in the form of pornography.

Since our current President has taken office, we have seen:
“Don’t ask, Don’t tell” abandoned and open homosexuality allowed in the military.
The Supreme Court making the decision that any ban of gay marriage is illegal.
The White House bathed in “Rainbow” colors in celebration of that decision.
Christian bakers and florists charged and fined for refusing to cater to homosexual clients.

These are to name just a few.
 
 
The World is a Powder Keg

A little known portion of the Iran deal states that if Israel attacks Iran, we will defend Iran. It rewards Iran for training and finding terrorists with billions of dollars in oil revenue. The attempts to limit their obtaining a nuclear bomb are laughable.

We’ve been shown that China has the power to destroy the world economy, as was seen on August 7, 2015.

Russia has its fighters and nuclear capable bombers fly just shy of several countries’ borders, including off the coast of Alaska and California. Russia has also recently sent fighter and other armaments to Syria to aid Assad.

The Violence in Syria has seen tens of thousands of refugee’s flee into Europe. Rape, child abuse and other acts of violence are being reported from some refugee camps. Some are concerned that members of ISIS are hiding among the refugee’s to sneak into Europe and America.

North Korea makes a new nuclear threat against the USA. They are also restarting uranium enrichment and attempts to launch a satellite, which is viewed as testing of an ICBM missile.

Oh yeah, this is all in the last two months!
 
 
So What Should We Do?

The Most Important Preparation!

First and foremost, get right with God. If you’ve not asked God to enter your life, don’t wait any longer. Tell Him you know you’re a sinner, repent, which means to confess your sins and do them no more; and ask Him to come into your life.

If you are saved, get rid of anything that could keep you from Him. I recently decided not to watch anything I would not feel comfortable watching with my mom. I came to this after spending a few days with her and discovering how many things on Netflix I might normally watch, but felt uncomfortable watching with her. I could say I won’t watch anything I wouldn’t watch with God, but I have watched things that were not spiritually healthy, knowing He would not approve, for years.

Men, you are the spiritual head (the Priest) of the home; be that example! I didn’t know how to be this, so I started with saying I wanted to pray before meals. I also started reading the Bible every morning, even if it meant getting up 10 minutes earlier. I started praying with Trudee before bed every night. Pray over your family, and bless them. As a part of being the example, and not being a hypocrite, be aware of sin you might be taking part in. Even if your family doesn’t know you’re sinning, both sides of the spiritual war do!

Women, our culture has, for lack of a better way to phrase this, “bred this out of modern men”; If your husband takes steps to be the spiritual head of the home, allow and encourage him! If he won’t, then the job falls to you!
 
 
Other Preparations

I never recommend going into debt to get prepared, but I will admit I did take a loan out on my 401k. I used the money to increase preps that I had on the back burner, but felt very compelled to get taken care of. The 401k loan is taken out of my paycheck, and I will pay myself back with interest.

Make sure you have a way to purify water, as much food stocked as you can afford, with alternate ways to cook, and a way to defend your loved ones. Once those major needs are taken care of, prayerfully consider investing in precious metals.

If your preps have holes, prayerfully consider filling them as soon as you can. I have covered every topic that deals with preparedness essentials, just use the search function. If you don’t see what you are looking for, send me an email Chris preparedchristian net and I will either write a reply to you, or write a post about it and share it with everyone.
 
 
Closing

I am not one given to hysteria, but I do feel like we’re on the verge of something big. I have felt this way before, and nothing came of it. Then again, there wasn’t this much tension in America, or the world for that matter, not to mention the significance of the blood moons and the Shemitah.

Monday September 28th is the last blood moon but we have almost a full year of the Jubilee left.

While God doesn’t have to do anything with any of this information, He sure left plenty of signs pointing to the possibility that He could if He wanted to!

Are you ready?
 
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Build a Mutual Assistance Group at Prepper Church.com

My friend Todd from Prepper Church.com and Prepper Website.com has created a way for like-minded Christian Preppers to connect, build community and a MAG (Mutual Aid Group). Here is a video of Todd explaining his vision.
 
 

 
 
Here is a link to the Community Groups page that Todd mentions in the video.

I wrote an article listing ways find like-minded people, and some things to consider when meeting them. I would recommend taking a look at the video and then reading my article called The Ups and Downs of Finding Like-Minded People to Group With.

 
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WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT & Free Excerpt of PULSE!

A lot of you chimed in on my review of PULSE, the post-apocalyptic novel by L.R. Burkard.

Thanks very much for your comments. If you didn’t win, I hope you’ll go on to get a copy of PULSE. It’s available in both print and Kindle versions.

 

But we do have TWO WINNERS!: 

GATOR GEEK

and CINDI!

Congratulations! L.R. will be in touch to get you your free copies of the book.

If you didn’t win, you can still get a taste of what the book is like: Linore put together a PDF that you can get by visiting her site, and you don’t have to leave your email to get it. Just go to http://www.LRBurkard.com and on the right you’ll see a PDF Icon with the Reader Excerpt.

(If you want updates on other giveaways, I recommend joining her email list, even though you don’t have to, to get the excerpt.)

Review of Pulse by L.R. Burkard

Pulse

Pulse by L.R. Burkard

 
 
I was given an advanced copy of the book Pulse some time ago. The book has recently been published, so I thought I would write a review for all of you. The author has agreed to give away two copies! See the end of this article for details on how to enter.

The book follows what life is like for thee adolescent girls and their families following a pulse from an EMP. The book is written as journal entries from the girls, which I thought was interesting. One family is fully unprepared. Another family is unprepared as well, but luck seems to be on their side. The third family is a Christian family who has been preparing for something like this for some time.

Each chapter follows one of the main characters and their family as events unfold. I’ll be honest, I was a little skeptical about whether I thought I could get into the book, as I have a hard time relating to most people (I have Aspergers Syndrome), let alone a teenage girl! But it was actually a nice change from the archetypical male lead of the majority of books in this niche.

The book deals with some gritty situations that people would actually be faced with if they’re unprepared and we see an event like an EMP. Because there are three characters, each with their own chapter, there were a couple times where we reached the end of a chapter and I was really left wanting to know what was going to happen, and was a little frustrated that it was time for the other two to chime in! This is an excellent use of “leave them wanting more”.

The book has faith intertwined throughout, as the Christian family seeks the Lord on varying decisions, but I don’t think that it beats you over the head with it. I doubt that most readers of this blog would think so anyway.

There are also some action sequences, and they’re not over the top where character’s are special force ninja’s.

All in all, if you’re needing a new book, I think this one is well worth the money; I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

To enter for a chance to win one of two books, you just need to leave one comment using a valid email address when you sign up to leave comments. If you’ve already signed up and possibly left comments in the past, then you probably already have used a valid email. The author will chose the winner, and I will pass along the winners email to her. Contest ends on Friday 8/21.

 
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How to Build Shelter in the City

The following article was written by Dan Sullivan.
 

When everyone’s focused on one thing, I like to notice the things that are overlooked, the ones almost no one talks about. Urban shelters are one of them. With so much attention focused on building them out into the wild, it’s time we learned how to build one in urban areas.

Obviously, if everything goes according to plan, you’ll either bug in inside your apartment, flee to your bug out location or, at the very least, sleep in your car. But what if you’re stuck in the city and you literally have no place to lay your head. What do you do?

If the city is safe (and that’s a big “if”), you’re much better off trying to build shelter on concrete than if you were to bug out into the woods. In fact, building an urban shelter is easy as pie as you’re about to see.

By the way, if you’re looking for general urban survival tips, you can check out this article that I wrote a while back, I think you’ll like it.

Ok, so I said building an urban shelter is easy but why? For one, you don’t have to worry about strong and cold winds. You’ll have plenty of buildings whose walls will provide excellent protection from them. You just need to find one that will also protect you from thugs, angry mobs, protesters and so on.

The second reason urban shelters are easy to make is because you’ll have no problem finding insulation material. If you don’t have a problem digging through trash, you’ll find plenty of things to keep you warm. Cardboard is your best friend but be on the lookout for old clothes, rags, bubble wrap, carpets and even plastic.

Ideally, you need to find a cardboard box that’s big enough for you to crawl inside and then fill the openings with other insulating material. In fact, if you have enough of, add a second layer to be even better protected and be able to trap more of the heat generated by your body.

If you can’t find cardboard, you’re gonna have to be a little creative. Just look at some of the homeless people in your city and notice the kinds of shelters they have. For example, if you can find one, you can use one of those plastic carts on wheels that’s used to move gear around. You’ll have your very own mobile bug out location… 

Why do you need a sturdy shelter? Let’s not forget rain and snow can destroy it, particularly if it’s made of cardboard. Plus, even if it’s relatively warm outside, if you have low immunity, you might wake up the next morning with a cold or at least a sore throat and a running nose. You should add plastic or garbage bags over your cardboard shelter to make sure it resists to snow and rain.
Now, you can have the warmest shelter in the world but if you intend to sleep directly on the ground, you might as well get rid of it. You need to make sure you sleep on something that will protect you from the cold ground. Add at least 2-3 layers of insulating material, whether it’s cardboard, cloth, wood, or plastic.

What if you have to build the shelter inside your own home?

If you just survived a hurricane or a house fire and your roof is gone, you’ll have no choice but to build shelter right in your bedroom. The good news is, you have enough items to help with insulation. Just make sure you add enough layers underneath you because sleeping directly on the floor will cause you to lose heat and you could end up with a cold.

Last but not least, you’re gonna need a heat source. Obviously, building a fire too close to your shelter is dangerous so leave a distance of at least a couple of feet between the two.

Of course, the number one way to make sure the inside of your shelter stays warm is to insulate it properly and keep the entire thing as small as possible. As long as you can keep your body heat inside and limit the amount of cold air that comes in, you should be fine.

Ok, you survived the first night in your emergency shelter but now you need something a little more permanent. Now what? Since you’ll have plenty of time on your hands to look, the following are worthy options to consider as “more permanent shelters”:

• abandoned cars
• abandoned buildings (it’s possible that a lot of people left their homes already)
• train and subway stations

Since you’ll be spending an unknown number of nights in your new, semi-permanent shelter, you’ll have to consider other aspects such as security. You need to keep unwanted guests away by sealing all possible entry points and by having means of defending yourself. You should also have alternate escape routes just in case you’re cornered and the main way out is blocked.

5 Things to Keep in Your Car in Case of Emergencies

This guest post was written by Lee Flynn.

5 Things to Keep in Your Car in Case of Emergencies

There are a few key items that every person should keep in their vehicle for emergencies. If a person becomes stranded, these items can help keep them alive until help arrives. The most important thing is to prepare ahead of time because no one knows when their vehicle might break down, or a natural disaster will strand them without help.
5 Things to Keep in Your Car in Case of Emergencies

There are a few key items that every person should keep in their vehicle for emergencies. If a person becomes stranded, these items can help keep them alive until help arrives. The most important thing is to prepare ahead of time because no one knows when their vehicle might break down, or a natural disaster will strand them without help.

Canned Goods and Water

FEMA suggests the people who are preparing for emergency situations keep at least a half a gallon of water available per person. The minimum amount of time to prepare for is three days. Keeping canned goods on hand is very helpful because they stay sealed, can be heated over a fire, and can be eaten cold if necessary. FEMA also says that each person should have enough food for at least one full meal a day to maintain strength and energy levels in an emergency situation. Emergency food is a vital part of being prepared for the unexpected. A can opener and a knife are other handy items to keep with food stores.

First Aid Kit

People should always keep a first aid kit in their vehicle and home at all times. There should be bandages, gauze, antiseptic, tape, scissors, antibiotic cream, tweezers, Q-tips or cotton balls, Benadryl and plastic bags in an emergency first aid kit. Any scrapes or cuts can be cleaned and bandaged right away if the necessary supplies are on hand. If an allergic reaction occurs from being stranded in an area where allergens are present, then the person can counteract the reaction with Benadryl. This medicine is an extremely important step for people who are severely allergic to anything in nature like bees or poison ivy. The plastic bags can be used as a clean surface while bandaging a wound.

Bible

A Christian will always want to keep an extra Bible handy to help give them strength through the tough time of being stranded. Verses on perseverance are helpful to read in times of despair. The Bible also gives the person something to do to keep their mind off from the danger they are in when emergencies hit.

Alternative Power Source

Besides keeping a flashlight and extra batteries handy, it is also important to have an extra power source like a jump pack or 12-volt battery. The battery pack can be used to give the car a jump in cold weather to help keep people warm. The alternative power source can also serve to power cell phones to call for help. Another advantage of having an alternative power source is the ability to use it to create a spark to make a fire for warmth. The fire that can be created from the jump pack can also be used to signal for help in case there are no cell signals.

Warm Clothing and Blankets

Another set of items to keep in a vehicle in case of being stranded are extra blankets, coats, gloves, hats, and scarves. People who are traveling in the winter or in places where the temperatures drop in the night should always have warm items to protect them from hypothermia. Clothing can be layered for comfort and warmth while waiting for help. Every person should have at least one warm blanket ready in case of emergencies.

Keeping an emergency kit in the trunk lets people travel with ease. People never know when they may get stranded in an area where there is very little or no help nearby. Items in the emergency kit should be stored in a cool, dry container like a large storage tote. Using large Ziplock bags for clothing storage is a good way to protect items in case of a flood or a leak in the trunk.

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Helping One of Our Own

Helping One of Our Own

I normally wouldn’t post something like this, but Mary had been such a blessing to me and this ministry by providing all of the graphics for the site, facebook and twitter for free; it is the least I can do.

On May 6th, during the heavy rainfall in Oklahoma, the bridge leading to their new, under construction home, collapsed. The problem has since gotten worse, as the rains have continued and eroded the area where the bridge was.

They have set up a Go Fund Me Page where I have made a donation. If you feel led, I hope you will donate as well. Please keep the Adkins family in your prayers.

If you need any graphics work done, I can’t recommend Mary highly enough! Her site is the Graphix Station.

Can you help out not only a Christian family, but a Prepared Christian family?

Please keep the Adkins family in your prayers.

Chris

8 Easy Ways to Start a Fire

This article was written by Dan Sullivan from Survival Sullivan. Check out Dan’s blog, I think you’ll enjoy it.
 
 
8 Easy Ways to Start a Fire

How many ways of starting a fire do you know? No matter how many you answered, I’m sure you can learn a few more after reading this article. You never know when you’re out in the wild, desperately needing a fire and you realize your primary and secondary means of starting a one aren’t working.

Accidents will happen… your bug out bag could fall into a body of water, possibly compromising some of your stuff and, as you’re desperately trying to start a fire using your soaking wet matches, you begin to realize the severity of the situation.

Before we discuss all the different ways to start a fire, it’s worth mentioning you need have tinder readily available to quickly catch those sparks. Bark, dry glass, small sticks, cotton balls and even paper will do the trick. So, without further ado, let’s see all the various ways to start a fire.
 
 
Using an Obvious Fire-Starting Device

I’m not going to spend too much time talking about Bic lighters and waterproof matches. You probably have them in your bug-out bag (BOB) or your get home bag (GHB) already. Bic lighters are great but at some point, they will fail you, so be sure to check that they’re working from time to time. You can do this, for instance, right when you’re rotating your food stockpile, for instance.
 
 
Using the Bow Drill Method

When I think about starting a fire without matches, the thing that always comes to mind is the bow drill method. The reason it’s so popular is that it’s very effective. Not as good as striking a match, obviously, but works really well when all else fails. Under normal circumstances, it shouldn’t take you more than 5 minutes to get it going.

The most important thing is to have the right wood. You need dry wood and, ideally, you’ll want to make the spindle and the floorboard from the same tree, even from the same log for best results. Here’s a quick list of types of wood that work well with this method: white cedar, willow, alder, and maple. Willow will work best, particularly if you’re new at this.
 
 
Using the Hand Drill Method

If you don’t have the time or the right items to use the bow drill method, how about just using your bare hands to rotate the stick? It’s hard work but, with the right wood, tinder and your tireless hands, you will eventually get that spark.
 
 
Using a Pocket Knife, a Piece of Flint and Char Cloth

Char cloth ignites with the smallest spark and you can help starting it with your pocket knife and flint.
 
 
Using a Lens

There are a wide variety of lens available to help you start a fire. For example, a Fresnel lens is small, cheap, lightweight and fits just about anywhere in your bug-out bag or get home bag. Of course, if you don’t have one, you can use a magnifying glass, binoculars and even your eyeglasses to achieve the same result.

And if you’re really feeling lucky, you can use unconventional items such as a condom filled with water or even an ice cube. These can both focus the sun rays into a single point, raising the temperature and causing whatever tinder you have there to ignite.
 
 
Using Batteries

Batteries alone can’t do the job but, with the help of some fine grade steel wool or gum paper, it’s totally possible. You’re gonna need a 9V battery and the really good news is, this will work on all weather conditions… and it is fast. The moment the battery makes contact with the wool, sparks start showing up so make sure you have that tinder ready.
 
 
Starting a Fire with Water

First of all, I should say that the water needs to be contained in either a plastic bottle or a lightbulb. You will use them as makeshift magnifying glasses to focus the sun rays on one (or multiple) pieces of paper. If you have paper written in black ink, that’s even better, it’s going to ignite faster.
 
 
Mixing Chlorine and Break Fluid

When it comes to using chemical reactions to start a fire, one of the most popular ways is to use chlorine and break fluid. The reaction doesn’t happen instantly, it takes about 20 to 30 seconds and the flame doesn’t last for more than a few seconds. Use small quantities of each and, whatever you do, do NOT get too close during those first 30 seconds when nothing seems to be happening. Also, wearing a face shield mask is even better to decrease your chances of getting injured.
What’s next?

Practicing all the ways to start a fire is very important as you don’t want your first attempt to be during an SHTF situation, when your life is on the line. Make sure you have everything you need and keep trying if it doesn’t work the first time.

Now that you’ve got that fire going… how about learning how to cook? I’ve put together a comprehensive list of outdoor cooking methods, you can check it out right here and… I have a feeling you might like it!

Stay safe,
Dan F. Sullivan
 
 
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Sheep Dog Seminar for Churches

Sheep Dog Seminar for Churches

As I mentioned in the article Should a Christian Carry a Firearm I recently attended the Sheep Dog Seminar for Churches and thought it important enough that I wanted to share my thoughts on it with all of you. I am not affiliated with them in any way, so when I say, “if you have the opportunity to go to one of their seminars, I believe you should go”, it comes from me knowing that it will open your eyes, and bless you; and not because I get a kickback! Oh, they are offering a 2 for 1 for the rest of the year, though!

I’m not someone who gushes over celebrities or public figures, but I am very glad I got the opportunity to shake the hands of three modern day Nehemiah’s; Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, Carl Chin and Jimmy Meeks. These men spend much of their time attempting to wake the Body of Christ to the violence that is exploding at our places of worship; over 1000% since 2006! I join them in their belief that it will continue and will get worse! They are teaching us to keep our eyes open, to work with one hand and keep our sword (firearm) at the ready.
 
 

Lt. Col. Dave Grossman

I have read his books On Combat, The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and in Peace and On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society and I believe that if you are someone who carries a firearm for self-defense and believes there is a chance you may have to use it, these books are required reading. They will help you prepare your mind for combat. That’s what the brief extremely violent encounter with Joe Dirtbag will be if you need to draw your firearm and use it for self-defense; COMBAT!

You can send thousands of rounds down range, but if you do not prepare your mind, and know what to expect from your body under extreme duress, you very well could be training against how your body will actually act under duress.

Lt. Col. Grossman also has a seminar called The Bullet Proof Mind. He covers some of the content from that seminar in the “Sheep Dog for Churches Seminars”. I purchased the DVD at the seminar and can’t wait to watch it! In the seminar he covered some of the physiological changes (which I wrote about in this article) that take place under extreme stress.

There was so much information covered, I can’t possibly mention everything, so I will just mention two things now.

Col. Grossman said that if our enemies obtain the ability to use an EMP, they absolutely will. More likely, an attack will be Beslan style, which I covered in Terrorism: Beslan Style Attack At Our Schools Please read the article for more information, here is the first paragraph:

“On September 1, 2004, Chechen Islamic terrorists stormed a school taking over 1,100 people hostage for three days. The terrorists were brutal, killing men and boys old enough to resist their attempts. Hostages were forced to stay in a sweltering hot auditorium with little to no food or water. Russian forces eventually stormed the school. In the end there were over 385 dead, including 31 dead terrorists. Wikipedia has a very detailed write up called Beslan school hostage crisis.

In the article I point out that muslim clerics have said “We have the right to kill four million Americans — 2 million of them children — and to exile twice as many and wound and cripple hundreds of thousands.” Information has been recovered that indicated Beslan was training for American schools.

The second thing I want to mention that the Col. covered is when he thinks the next attack will come. I can’t remember the conflicts he listed, but he mentioned times when we have fought them, and withdrawn from conflict. It is when we withdraw that they strike us at home. He believes that we are keeping them busy in Afghanistan and once we pull out from there, they will be emboldened and attack us here.

My thought on this is that all it would take is a handful of monsters willing to slaughter innocent children to walk into a daycare center or elementary schools over a few days and massacre as many children as they can, to bring our way of life to a screeching halt.

If parents don’t feel safe sending their kids to school, they have to stay home from work to stay with them. How many people do you work with who have kids that might stay home?

This doesn’t even take into account the emotional damage that would be caused by such an event. The impact would be far greater than that of 9-11, as we mourned for all the children killed.
 
 
Carl Chinn

I first discovered Carl’s site when I was researching my first article on the Rise of Crime at Churches. Carl records every fatality that happens at a church, or faith based center. He was involved in a hostage situation some years ago at Focus on the Family, and was one of the church security members that responded to the shooter at New Life Church in Colorado. While he was not the one who shot the murderer, he was within seconds of engaging him before another security team member did from another direction.

Carl has a book called Evil Invades the Sanctuary, which I read shortly after its release. You can purchase the book from his site. In it, he goes into the details of both incidents and gives some good information for church security teams. He delves into this in the seminar as well and gives some very good tips on church security.

If you are a part of a church security team or someone concerned with it, I recommend this book.
 
 
Jimmy Meeks

Jimmy might not be the most popular guy with some people and churches because while he does say church violence is a big problem, he also says that the biggest issue we face isn’t violence in the church, but sexual sin. There are 23 sexual crimes reported at Protestant Churches every day. We have just as many people calling themselves Christians addicted to porn as we do non-believers.

Jimmy does talk a fair bit about church violence as well. Some of the stories he gives are heart-breaking. He points out that:
There have been over 549 violent deaths at churches since 1999! In the 36 months of 2012 (75), 2013 (45), 2014 (74), there were more deaths at churches than at schools! Remember that this was the time period for one of the bloodiest, most horrific school massacres at Sandy Hook Elementary.
(Chris Says: “Since 2006 the rate of deaths at churches or at church functions or buildings has skyrocketed over 1000%! That is NOT a typo!”)
Jimmy saw that I mentioned him in Should a Christian Carry a Firearm and asked me to call him. We spoke for a few minutes, and on the chance that you see this Jimmy, thanks again! I really enjoyed the seminar! Keep up the much needed, and great work!

 
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