By Debra L. Butterfield © 2011
On Friday, someone broke into my
apartment and walked out with my laptop. I’m thankful it was only my laptop and
not everything else that could have been quickly sold at the pawn shop. All the
same, my laptop had personal information on it that I now must take extra
action to protect. Oh, I’ve read the articles about documenting your household
items and credit cards, but I’ve just never taken the time to do it, and now I
must pay the price. It’s a natural part of human nature to believe “It will
never happen to me.” “It” might be cancer or a car accident or theft. Any crisis
fits into the category of “it.”
There are both practical and spiritual
aspects to preparedness. Today’s cyber world makes finding helpful resources
easy. Here are three sites I found to have advice on a plethora of topics from nuclear
threat to hurricanes to fires to identity theft.
Another practical aspect of
preparedness is having a support network in place. Simply put, a support
network consists of family and friends who are willing and able to help when
you need it—lending a listening ear, offering advice, even babysitting the kids
so you can have a break. (Developing a support system was covered in our July
issue. For more information, please email me.) For a helpful support system worksheet
by Will Baum, LCSW, visit http://www.willbaum.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/My-Support-System-_Today-and-In-the-Future_.pdf
The spiritual aspect is a bit
more difficult to address. Our world is filled with many faiths and even the
word “spiritual” has a variety of connotations in today’s society. Whether you
are Christian, Muslim, Jew or otherwise, having a strong foundation in your
chosen faith is important. It is not my intent to offer advice to all faiths. I
cannot because I do not have a thorough understanding of them. Surely one piece
of advice can apply to all and that is know the doctrinal tenets of your faith.
Can you expect your Higher Power to help you, or is He/She/It just watching? Beyond
that I will direct advice to those who profess the Christian faith.
The God of the Bible is a God who
is active in the lives of His creation. He desires and seeks a personal
relationship with His children (that’s us). He cares about what is happening in
our lives. A relationship with God develops as we, as individuals, spend time
with Him in conversation and in reading the Bible. As you read the Bible you
are going to find verses that speak directly to you and your circumstances that
will encourage you, guide you, and comfort you. Memorize them or write them
down so when a crisis strikes you can immediately refer back to them. I also
recommend having a Bible promise book. This book of Scripture is usually organized
by topic and contains God’s promises that we can apply to our situation.
As a part of your support system,
ensure that you include people who are mature Christians who can offer biblical
advice and prayer when you need it. These friendships develop through an active
involvement with a church.
Yes, all of these things take
time to do, but in the long run will save you time when you face life’s
difficulties. Even if all you do is make a master list of all your electronic
devices with brand, model and serial number and keep it in a fireproof box you
are ahead of the game. I couldn’t provide the police with the serial number of
my laptop and that will seriously hinder the possibility of ever getting it
back. But this morning at church I asked my pastor for prayer. I was upset at
the prospect of the thief accessing my important accounts or coming back for my
TV, DVD player and Nintendo. As I write these words, I’m at peace knowing that
my God is watching over me and will provide me the emotional strength I need
for any other difficulties that come my way.
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