Notes from JWR:

I just heard from Micah Wood of C.R.O.S.S. Ministries that he is flying to South Sudan on January 29th. During his first week there, he will have a host in Aweil who is with the South Sudanese national government who will be introducing him to key decision makers. Please pray that his vital ministry succeeds. Micah is a former Front Sight firearms instructor. His ministry in South Sudan will be both sharing the gospel and training the citizenry in marksmanship, to defend their villages. It is one thing to just protest Sudan’s ongoing genocide against the South Sudanese, but it takes real guts to do something to stop it. His ministry deserves your support!

—

Saturday January 19th will be National Gun Appreciation Day–a great day to attend a gun show, go to the range, or buy the very last box ammo still on the shelf at your local gun store–but not Wal-Mart, where they are rumored to be discontinuing some or all of their ammo sales.

—

To those have written to ask: There won’t be any SurvivalBlog editors attending SHOT Show, 2013, this week. But several folks have offered to pick up literature for us there. Thanks.

Update: SurvivalBlog Archive 2005-2012

The expanded SurvivalBlog 2005-2012 archive has been selling at a fast pace, via digital download. The DVD version of the archive should be available in another 6 or 7 days, after we’ve had time to test some prototypes. The DVD will be priced $2 higher than the digital download. Thanks for your patience.

This new archive collection has expanded bonus material (a digital copy of my book Rawles on Retreats and Relocation–normally $28 in hard copy–12 Firearms Manuals, and 14 U.S. Military Manuals), an improved user interface (with the same look and feel of the SurvivalBlog web site), and of course one more year of the blog content. The digital download and DVD both include the archives in HTML (10,131 pages) and PDF (7,923 pages). The blog archive is fully keyword searchable. It runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux. The archive provides you with all of the SurvivalBlog context since 2005, even when you are out in the hinterboonies without an Internet connection, or if all of the Internet–or parts of the Internet– become, ahem, inaccessible.

Americans are Voting with Their Feet

It should come as no surprise that at the same time that Statists agitators are vociferously calling for more People Control that freedom lovers are heading for the exit doors in greater numbers, to wit: The American Redoubt movement, Glenn Beck’s announced Independence Park community (in Texas), calls for state secession (which has been going on longer than most people realize), the ongoing but sadly polarized Free State Movement (in which Free State Wyoming has the best chance of success, demographically), the quiet expatriation of thousands, primarily to various Central and South American countries, and the more splashy celebrity exits. There are also lots of other “out there” projects that may have difficulty getting past the concept phase, like Paulville, Texas, and Seasteading. But regardless, these are all indicative that people are willing to vote with their feet.

I predict that these trends will continue and that the polarization of world views will become more pronounced and sharply delineated in coming years. You can look for many other exit strategies being publicize. There will also be a lot more “Nien Danke!” legislation like the bill recently introduced in the Wyoming legislature (and about to be introduced in Texas) announced and inevitably enacted. The harder that the Statists push, the harder libertarians will push back. Some say this will lead to Civil War II. I dread that. God willing, we’ll see our Constitutional Republic restored peacefully. – J.W.R.

The III Citadel Controversy

The name “III Citadel” came into the limelight last weekend, when The Drudge Report posted a prominent link to a CNS article by Gregory Gwyn-Williams, Jr.. In a nutshell, a man identifying himself as “Sam III” who is somehow loosely associated with III Arms (a legitimate company, in West Virginia) started a patriot community building project, somewhere east of St. Maries, Idaho. When I first heard about it in November, I made just one short and noncommittal “this sounds interesting” mention in my blog. (A post which I just removed.)

Two days ago I was quite troubled to learn that the main promoter of Citadel III is a convicted felon. (That, according to the SipseyStreetIrregulars blog.)

In the III Citadel web page and blog, Mr. Hyman /Sam Kerodin / Christian Kerodin / Sam Kerillion / Sam Hellesponte / Sam III / Nom Du Jour seems to imply that I’ve somehow endorsed his venture or that what they are doing fits in with my American Redoubt concept.  I haven’t endorsed it, and he is not my buddy.  To the best of my knowledge I’ve never met, spoken or corresponded with the man. 

For some background, see:

“Citadel.” Convicted extortionist’s latest con gets huge play on Drudge.

and,

Three-letter frog in Kerodin’s pocket? Anecdotes of the Kerodin career. A convicted extortionist. Turns out his real name is Christian Hyman.

Again, I have nothing to do with Mr. Hyman.  My only nexus to him is that he chose a piece of land that is in one of the states that I recommend for relocation. He has apparently tried to capitalize on my name. According to the SipseyStreetIrregulars blog, Mr. Hyman “persuades folks to invest” in the project. My advice: Beware of III Citadel!

In closing, I should point out that III Arms is a separate entity and to the best of my knowledge they are a legitimate and reputable company. – J.W.R.

Pat’s Product Review: SIG Sauer Adaptive Carbine Platform (ACP)

SIG Sauer is always coming up with new and innovative firearms, they are on the cutting edge, and their products are always in great demand, too. To wit: many times I have to wait weeks and months, to get products to test from SIG – they are back-ordered quite often, and that attests to the popularity of their firearms. However, for this article, I didn’t test a firearm, instead, I tested the ACP – Adaptive Carbine Platform, this is not a firearm, it is an “accessory” if you will, that you can adapt to many full-sized handguns.
 
Some explanation is in order. What the ACP is, is a device (for lack of a better term) that can be attached to many firearms that have an accessory rail under the dust cover (they won’t work with a 1911, though). When you add your handgun to the ACP set-up, you basically convert your handgun into something of a Personal Defense Weapon (PDW), or something a bit like a “carbine.” This ACP comes in several different versions, and one can be used as a short-barreled rifle, if you can to jump through all the red tape that the FedGov requires – I won’t and don’t! Check with SIG, to make sure your intended handgun will work with the ACP before ordering one.
 
The ACP is manufactured out of aircraft grade aluminum, and is anodized black, a very attractive look to it, as well as a “mean” look when you get it all set-up on your handgun. The ACP also has accessory rails at 3, 6 and 9 o-clock (as well as the top rail), for attaching lasers, red dot scopes or whatever else you may desire on a PDW. I elected to test the Enhanced version of the ACP, this came with a SIG Sauer red dot sight, mounted on the 12 o’clock rail position (but SIG forgot the battery for this red dot sight). The enhanced version also comes with a bungee corded sling, that you can wear in several positions, and when you adjust it to your liking, you can extend the ACP out from your body, until there is tension, and you have a very stable platform for those longer shots.
 
I’m a firm believer in that, simpler is better, so I don’t add a lot of things to any of my firearms. However, I did think that the ACP would be a good candidate for a laser mounted on one of the accessory rails. I contacted my friend, Iain Harrison, at Crimson Trace and requested one of their CMR-201 Rail Master, universal lasers. If Iain Harrison’s name sounds familiar to you, then you’ll know he won the very first “Top Shot” firearm competition, on the popular television show. The guy can shoot, and he knows guns – period. The CMR-210 was a perfect match for the SIG Sauer ACP – I mounted the CMR-201 at the 9 o’clock position on the accessory rail, and it was right on for the zero. In my humble opinion, a laser should be mounted on the ACP – gives it that much more versatility.
 
Okay, now while the ACP was designed by SIG, you can use many different types and brands of handguns in this set-up. I elected to mount my Glock 19 in the ACP, and with a 33-rd magazine, it was the perfect set-up, we’re talking a serious PDW weapon here, that can not just reach out there and “touch someone” but it just looks super-mean. (Diane Feinstein is going to hate it.) It took some adjusting to get the Glock 19 to properly fit perfectly inside the ACP…but it really is easier than you think. SIG provides a video on their web site, and also provides a DVD with the ACP, demonstrating how easy it is to insert a handgun into the ACP. Like I said, the first time took a little longer – I wanted everything adjusted perfectly and securely. Once I had the adjustments made, I could easily insert and remove the Glock 19 inside of a couple minutes into the ACP without any problems. A bit of practice is all it takes, and SIG also provides inserts so you can adjust your handgun to fit perfectly inside the ACP. I tried a couple other handguns, but for my money, the Glock 17 or 19 is my preference for this set-up.
 
The lower portion of the ACP, right at the front, has a “catcher” for your forward hand, so your hand can not slip in front of the muzzle of the gun. This is legal to have in the United States, since it is not a forward grip – which would be illegal unless you registered this as a short-barreled rifle. You really need to check-out the ACP demo video on-line at the SIG web site to totally appreciate what I’m saying. The whole set-up really works as advertised, and I was a little skeptical when I first saw the ACP on-line at the SIG web site – I didn’t think it would work as well as it did – as well as advertised. It worked better than I thought it would!
 
Now, when you have your handgun all installed in the ACP, and properly adjusted, the first thing that will cross you mind is, “how do I chamber a round, the slide is covered by the frame of the ACP?” Not a problem, the way your handgun sits inside of the ACP, there is a lever on the left side of the ACP, simply pull back on this lever, and it retracts the slide, chambering a round – couldn’t be easier, and it is very instinctive to do. The muzzle of the ACP – it is huge when you look at it from the dangerous end – it looks like you have a grenade launcher you’re aiming at someone. Out of necessity, SIG designed the ACP front end, so that the entire slide of the handgun is enclosed in it – making the front end opening menacing, to say the least. Personally, I wouldn’t want to be looking down the front end of the ACP if I were a bad guy! The front end opening is so large, that you can use most sound suppressors on your handgun, if you are paid the $200 transfer tax to have one – the opening looks huge at the front end of the ACP.
 
The length of the ACP is 14-inches, and that’s not really too bad, when you look at the whole set-up. It weights in a 17+ ounces, and that isn’t adding a lot of weight to a Glock 19. The ACP is 2-3/4 inches wide, at the widest point. And the height is 7 inches tall, without a long magazine, such as the 33-round Glock 9mm magazine. You can also have the ACP without the sling and red dot, but I strongly suggest going the Enhanced Version route – I shot the ACP without the sling attached to my body, and it wasn’t very stable in my humble opinion. And, the red dot – that just adds to the whole set-up, you can get on-target very fast with the red do. You can also add after-market pop-up front and rear sights to the ACP if you want – just attach them to the 12 o’clock position accessory rail, and it’s not a bad idea to have these pop-up front and rear sights as a back-up to the red dot sight – never know when a battery might die or the red dot break. You can NOT use the sights on your handgun once it is inserted into the ACP – they are completely covered.
 
You can also manipulate all the controls on your handgun, once it is inside of the ACP – slide release, mag release, etc.  It did take me a little while to decide how I wanted to wear the bungee corded sling. I elected to have the whole set-up run across my chest – then I simply had to just pull the gun up away from my body, and extend it forward and fire, couldn’t be easier. And, I found I could easily engage targets of opportunity out to 75-yards without too much effort, and I’m betting, you can hit a man-sized target out to 150-yards. Now, the 9mm isn’t the most powerful handgun round, but I wouldn’t want to be hit with it – even at that distance – it can still kill!
 
I kept waiting for something to quit or break on the ACP, or for my Glock 19 to malfunction, so I could do a malfunction drill, but the gun just kept perking along without any problems. Now, the questions arises, is there a need for the ACP? Well, I believe there is, if you are into Executive Protection, and you want a little more versatility out of your handgun, and you might encounter targets at more than regular handgun distances, the ACP can be a great aid in this respect. As to a use in a survival situation – you bet! Look, we all can’t afford the latest whiz-bang ARs or AKs – and the ACP can really boost the versatility of your handgun – you basically have a short-barreled pistol caliber carbine with your handgun inserted into the ACP – without all the red tape involved in owning a SBR. Yes, it’s not quite as stable with the bungee corded sling, as it would be with a side-folding stock, but you’ll be amazed at just how tight you can get the ACP extended with the bungee corded sling, and how steady the whole set-up is. By adding the ACP to your handgun, you have increased your chances of engaging long-distance targets and hitting them, than if you only had a handgun in your hand.
 
Now, while the ACP isn’t currently on Diane Feinstein’s hit list of so-called “assault weapons” – you can be sure that at some point, she will probably add it to her list, if for no other reason than it is one bad-looking set-up, therefore it must be some kind of assault weapon, right? Well, that’s her weird thinking anyway. And, right now, you can’t find any 33-round Glock 9mm magazines, but when they become available again, grab as many as you can. And if you get an ACP, then you’d better get all you can afford to buy. If for no other reason, get the ACP set-up, just for the menacing look it has – it’ll sure grab the attention of everyone at the gun range when you shoot it, and they’ll all wonder what it is.
 
So, my answer is “yes” the ACP does have a place in the scheme of things, for use as a PDW or an addition to your handgun, turning it into a better survival weapon, for taking those longer shots. Full-retail is $499 for the enhanced version I tested. Get one while you still can, ’cause I predict they will ban it – even though it’s not a firearm. – SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Pat Cascio

Legal Proviso: To reiterate: In the United States it is illegal to install either a vertical foregrip or a buttstock on a pistol without first paying a $200 Federal Transfer Tax to turn it into a “Short Barreled Rifle” (SBR.) Do not risk a Felony conviction, a lengthy prison sentence, and forfeiture of your gun ownership and voting rights over just a one time $200 tax!
 
Disclaimer (per FTC File No. P034520): I accept cash-paid advertising. To the best of my knowledge, as of the date of this posting, none of my advertisers that sell the products mentioned in this article have solicited me or paid me to write any reviews or endorsements, nor have they provided me any free or reduced-price gear in exchange for any reviews or endorsements. I am not a stock holder in any company. SurvivalBlog does, however, benefit from sales through the SurvivalBlog Amazon Store. If you click on one of our Amazon links and then “click through” to order ANY product from Amazon.com (not just the ones listed in our catalog), then we will earn a modest sales commission.

Letter Re: One Approach at a EDC Get Home Bag

Hi James,
I have gone through many variants of a BoB or EDC Bag over the years, and feel that I’ve found a really good setup for a “covert” EDC bag that can function as a get home bag (GHB) more so than a BoB.  It doesn’t draw unwanted attention to carrier, but provides what I think is essential to EDC.  

As a summary, I am using a 5.11 Covrt Backpack as my bag.  It provides all the needs I want in a “tactical” bag but doesn’t scream “HEY LOOK!! I have a MOLLE bag with a bunch of stuff on it!  Shoot me first bad guy (or LEO, take notice of me).”

It is set up with:

  • Concealed full size pistol + 1 extra magazine
  • Individual first aid kit (IFAK)
  • Toiletry kit
  • Hand-crack radio
  • Leatherman MUT
  • Lock pick set,
  • Streamlight Pro-Tac 1l flashlight
  • Fire starter tools
  • Water purification items
  • Paracord wrap
  • Oakley gloves
  • ORAL IV rehydration ampoules
  • Pen/notepad
  • Poncho
  • Plus a slew of other small EDC items

That still leave plenty of room within the pack itself.  This is a bag I carry into work and in my car on a daily basis, and no-one gives me a second look.  Previously, I had a MOLLE bag with most of the same items in it, but it would draw unwanted attention to myself (even though I thought it looked cool). 

Regards, – Nick K.

Recipe of the Week:

Mama June’s Amish Brown Sugar Pie

I have been making this pie for holidays since I was 14 years old. It’s inexpensive. easy and tasty. It’s from an old Amish recipe, brown sugar pie, and sets up rather like a caramel custard.

The bonus here is the pie crust recipe, which is flaky and delicious and eliminates rolling! the Amish cookbook called it a “pat-in-pan” crust. Add a little garlic salt and flax or wheat germ and it’s the perfect crust for quiche! (My preferred way to use up our eggs.)

2 cups flour, white or wheat, more as needed
Pinch salt
1 tsp or so of sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I have used olive oil, too)
1/2 cup milk (reconstituted powdered milk works great here)

Put all dry ingredients in an 8 inch pie plate. Whisk oil and milk together in separate bowl. Slowly pour into pie plate, gently stirring into flour mixture with a fork. Use your fingers to form the crust, pressing the mixture up the sides and fluting the top (to make it pretty!) by pinching all the way around the top of the crust.

Now for the filling.

1 can evaporated milk
1 1/3 cups of brown sugar
2 tbsp flour
Dash cinnamon
Dash nutmeg
2 to 3 tsp butter

Chef’s Notes:

Add flour and brown sugar right into your pie plate with the unbaked crust. Pour in can of evaporated milk. Sprinkle on cinnamon and nutmeg, add pats of butter here and there. Now bake at 350 for an hour or so until crust begins to brown.

Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:

Traditional Pie Crust

Top 20 Pie Recipes

Currently Available as Free Kindle e-Books:

35 Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes

Slow Cooker Chicken, Pork, Beef & Beans Soup Recipes

First, the Soup: Healthy Soup, Stew, and Chili Recipes (a Scrumptious Low-Calorie Recipes Cookbook)

Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. Thanks!

Economics and Investing:

Washington state bank closes; first failure of 2013

H.G. flagged this: New data show 1 in 4 children on food stamps in FY 2011

Greeks Raid Forests in Search of Wood to Heat Homes. (Thanks to H.L. for the link.)

Items from The Economatrix:

Powerful “Indicators” Suggest A Stock Market Sell-Off And Inflation Could Be Just Around The Corner

Beware The Bond Bubble In 2013

US May Default On Its Debt A Half-Month Earlier Than Expected, New Analysis Shows

Odds ‘n Sods:

An interesting new food grade container: Jolly Tank. Needless to say, it is not DOT-approved for carrying fuel in a vehicle, and of course such containers should be discarded after use to carry anything toxic or biohazardous. But I can see umpteen potential uses.

   o o o

California legislator plans to further tighten the screws on gun owners: New ammunition purchase regulations. See also: California testing limits of gun-control rules in wake of Newtown shooting.

   o o o

Biden Hints at Outlawing Unregulated Gun Sales. Of course there is NO FEDERAL JURISDICTION for private party intrastate sales of any used merchandise. The Interstate Commerce Clause does not apply. No Federal nexus means no Federal jurisdiction!

   o o o

Guns off the street? Fleet of cop cars robbed of weapons in Kansas City

   o o o

SurvivalBlog’s Michael Z. Williamson and Reader K.T. both mentioned this article: Brass vs. Steel Cased Ammo – An Epic Torture Test

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"The supposed quietude of a good man allures the ruffian; while on the other hand, arms like laws, discourage and keep the invader and the plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world as well as property." – Thomas Paine

Notes from JWR:

Colorado alert: 14 to 20 New Anti-Gun Bills at the State Capitol. (“A ban on an undetermined number of semi-automatic firearms (No grandfather clause) A ban on magazines of over ten rounds (No grandfather clause) A ban on private sales by requiring universal background checks. A waiting period on background checks that will kill gun shows…”)

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Today we present another entry for Round 44 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. B.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, E.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and E.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 44 ends on January 31st, 2013, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

The Calling of the Christian Prepper: Faith and Survival, by Axgrinder

3

This article will have little effect on the scoffer, whether a survivalist or not, but is directed toward the Christian who is also conscious of the value of preparation and the duty to provide for family in survival circumstances. It may also be effective for the mind a person who knows little of God but is open to investigate His existence. It is what God has laid on my heart as I read through the great articles and letters here in this forum. Keep up the good work. What I sense though, myself included, is that we, as humans, sometimes get too excited about details at the expense of the greater ideals. We tend to worry and live in fear which is sin.

First of all, what is a Christian?  

There are a lot people who profess to be a Christian, but there are a lot of different beliefs that people have.
A Christian trust in Jesus: that His blood sacrifice forgives our sins, covers our iniquity, justifies our coming into the presence of God, and secures for us eternal life.
“This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” John 17:3
Eternal life is to know God. To truly know someone means that you must live in an interactive relationship with them. How true this is. You truly don’t know someone until you live with them. To truly know God is to live interacting with Him.
We are adopted as children of God, we are co-heirs with Christ. We are to interact with God as our Father and as full members of His family. Being a co-heir carries with it responsibility and thankfulness.

Now, to be a Christian you must believe that the Bible is inerrant, infallible, and inspired by God (Holy Spirit) in its original form. This is a key factor; yet, many who claim to be Christian do not hold this view which leaves them to arrange their idea of reality and truth as they see fit, not as God has revealed. Without a proper belief in Scripture, people, essentially, create a new belief system, a new religion. The Bible is not merely a set of Laws and fantastic stories; but, as I said above, it is a revelation from God. The Bible reveals Laws that reveal what God cares about and what His character is like. The Bible is a whole work, and bits and pieces cannot be disregarded while others are accepted without changing the whole revelation; this is removing from authority God-breathed Scripture to usurp authority for your own. There are interpretive difficulties in Scripture and disagreements regarding meaning (which we must make every attempt to get right through reason, study, debate, and prayer), but for the most part what God is revealing to us in Scripture is plain and effective. The basic truth of God’s character and what He cares about is clear. What God, the only true and Living God – Creator of all things – expects from us is clear. The Father blesses us as He reveals to us what we can and need to know. Our Lord Jesus Christ tells us to love Him by being obedient. The Holy Spirit lives in us and guides us in our relationship.
The Christian is called to rectitude, repentance, and revival. Conformity with your heart in it.

As Christians we are called to:
-Disillusionment
People will let us down, we should not expect otherwise. God is the only truly reliable promise keeper. This being true does not mean that we as Christians shouldn’t make every effort to be like God. Even though people let us down we must not become cynical and hopeless. In Christ people can be transformed. What we should do is allow God to transform us into disciples.
-Peace and contentment
Christians should be at peace and joyful in all circumstances. It is a sin to worry. It is a sin to be greedy. It is a sin to be selfish.

-At one with Creation
Christians are reinstated as stewards of God’s garden, all creation. We were made for that duty which is to our pleasure.

-Mark of a Christian – LOVE
If you can get a copy of “The Mark of a Christian” by Francis Schaeffer please do read it through carefully. Love is the mark that proclaims the truth of the Gospel to the world, the fruit of righteousness. When Christians love one another as Christ tells us to, with agape love, then the world knows that He truly is Christ. What a huge responsibility; what a great privilege.

-Trust God
As Christians we trust God through all circumstances. We do all things for the glory of God because we know through faith and experience that God is faithful. There is a Hebrew word that I love; hesed, which is translated in different ways with difficulty because there is no English word to do it justice. The NRSV translates it lovingkindness. This word has as part of its rich meaning the idea that the strong party in a relationship does whatever is needed to help the weaker party make the relationship successful. We can trust that God works in our life with unlimited power and perfect love regardless of how it may seem.

“Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.”  – Hebrews 12:28-29 

-3 Ideals the Christian survivalist should live by:

Matthew 6:19-21
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

This does not mean that we are not to prepare and store things up that we need. Jesus is saying that we should be more concerned about spiritual treasure than earthly treasure. In the Eastern culture who was the audience fine linens (moth) and coins (rust) were the treasures, the wealth of the day. People put their trust in these perishable things instead of God. The things were not the problem but what their hearts treasured. I really like my SCAR 17, but I treasure my relationship with God.

As we prepare for survival scenarios we must not forget that God is in control; God is sovereign! We must not forget that we have eternal life; we will live with God’s family forever. We must not forget to love God above all and love our neighbors as we do ourselves (God values every life). 

 [Jesus] said, ” ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’
“This is the great and foremost commandment.
“The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’
“On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”         Matthew 22:37-40

To clarify, (we must always seek clarity of terms, people use words that we think we understand, but of which they have totally different meaning, i.e.: “Christian”), what does Jesus mean by love? We turn to Scripture. A good rule of Biblical interpretation is that “Scripture interprets Scripture”.

“…earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way.
If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”       (1Corinthians 12:31-13:7)

Love is about humbly serving others, self-sacrifice; without love as a motive, what we do is nothing. Yet, if I do love God in the Biblical sense I have great rewards and benefits. I am transformed into a joyful, complete, mature, secure, and strong person. This happens when I experience eternal life (interactive relationship with God), know God. Then I am able to truly love others as myself (because I do love myself in the Biblical sense). There is a proper order here for success in the Christian life; love God, love others.

Matthew 20:25-28
“But Jesus called them to him and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’”

As we prepare we do it with the intention of being community leaders. Christian leaders are servants who love. Our whole life is to worship God. “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2). We prepare to represent and worship God through any disaster or “crunch” situation. Circumstances never change our responsibilities as co-heirs with Christ. We should include in our prepping: insight, investment, and labor in order to help meet community needs. We should be prepared to help victims and those less capable to prepare.

Matthew 28:19-20
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

As Christians all are days are filled with the intention to share with others the Gospel. We are to always be prepared to teach those who seek answers (make disciples). As we prepare our cache of supplies, let us include resources for evangelism and discipleship. Let us include resources for our own personal study and growth. Along with my cases of ammo I should have cases of Bibles and Christian books. We should maintain resources that will help us to maintain solid doctrine and good theology. Keep sets of sermons by your favorite preachers; get all the G. Campbell Morgan you can get!

Survival is important. As Christians we are guaranteed survival. Still, God expects His faithful followers to be His remnant when society crumbles. We are to remain in Him through all circumstances. God makes His appeal to the lost through His people by showing them their great need of Him, there needs to be freed from the slavery of sin, by the lure of love; it is God alone who can save them, redeem them, but He uses us to bring them to see their need and turn to Him. It is the Christian who preaches and serves as we abide in Christ love.

There is so much more that could be said, but I think this is enough to ponder for now. I would love to hear how you personally apply these ideals as Christian “preppers” and survivalist.

For the Christian living in faith is survival at its best, the best we can do toward survival is to live in faith. Let us plan accordingly. Let us plan according to God’s Word, the Bible. Let us plan in accordance with Biblical love as a Church and as evangelist. 

I’ll close with a new acronym for SurvivalBloggers to ponder: Forsaking All I Trust Him (FAITH)

Letter Re: A Few AR-15 Full Capacity Magazines Found Available

Sir:
I noticed yesterday that one of your readers (and I’m assuming many others) are looking for AR-15 magazines.

While I haven’t yet tested the Israeli E-Lander magazines personally (I have six of them on order), the reviews seemed positive albeit the magazines are slightly heavy compared to a PMAG. Beggars can’t be choosers in this [current political and market] environment. A few people noted they were not fitting in MEGA lower receiver magazine wells, and were very tight in some other receivers, however the majority of users had no issues. I believe the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) use these magazine. I wanted to let your readers know of their availability, as they claim they are ‘In Stock’ and receiving shipments weekly, however they are estimated to ship within 21 days. I placed my order today (1/10/2013) and it went through just fine.

With the potential forthcoming ban on normal-capacity magazines this may be the most expedient way to stock up on some, at a reasonable price.

As an added tip, the coupon code “ARFCOM” will get a small discount and the code “FREE-GRND” will get you free shipping if the order is more than $100. Both codes can be used at the same time.

Regards, – Nick in Ohio

JWR Replies: At around $18 each, those are a relative bargain, it today’s frantic market. Watching some recent Gunbroker.com auctions and the ongoing sales at Buddy’s Board, I’ve logged a few data points: Glock pistol magazines have gone up in price 3X or even 4X (jumping from around $19 each to $60 to $80 each), PMAGs are up 4X, USGI alloy M16 magazines are up 3X, steel FN-SCAR (M16/AR-15 compatible) magazines are up 4X or even 5X, FN-FAL magazines are up 2X, and Beta Company 100 round CMAGs are also up 2X. The real bargains are HK alloy G3 (HK91 compatible) magazines and Steyr AUG magazines. Those are both up only 10% to 20%. My advice: Stock up before an import ban is declared via Executive Order, folks! I’ve been warning you since 2007: Almost as important as food storage, magazines are critical items for every well-prepared family’s program of Hamsterungen.

Economics and Investing:

An excellent piece by Dr. Gary North that gets to the heart of the preparedness mindset, even when disasters are personal rather than national: Budgeting for a Lifestyle Contraction

Anthony Wile of The Daily Bell: The Trillion Dollar Coin Is a Great Idea!

Items from The Economatrix:

The Economic Implosion Of Europe Is Accelerating

Economic Forecaster:  US Has Gone Over The “Demographic Cliff.”  Market Crash Will Start In Summer

“Dr. Doom” Faber Sees A Possible 10% Gold Correction