Monday, June 21, 2010

A Land of Plenty

Friday, June 4, 2010

A Land of Plenty...

The kids and I went into town the other day with my folks.  They are from a much smaller town well to the south of us, that isn't particularly well known for it's grocery outlets or restaurant supply houses.  So when they want to do any major shopping, they come to our house, spend the night and we all go to the "big city" and hit our favorite stocking up haunts.

First, we went to a restaurant supply store that sells to the general public (providing you have cash - they don't accept checks), and started walking down the aisles, list in hand.  Flour, beans, rice, spices, rolled oats - the list went on and on, but the aisles were full and food was plentiful.  My parents came away with everything they needed, and then some.

Next, we stopped at a home storage center (bulk food store) and picked up wheat berries, powdered milk, dehydrated apples and carrots and even pancake mix.  Everyone was relaxed, happy, chatting about the weather.



And then it struck me.  We live in a land of plenty.  We have, at our very fingertips, everything we could possibly want or need.  We don't have to spend our every waking moment consumed with finding our next meal.  We simply go to the pantry.  Or the grocery store.  Or the restaurant.  What could be easier?

Contrast this wonderful, relaxing shopping trip with a similar trip after the "balloon" goes up.  What would  our shopping trip look like then?

Well, for starters, there would be people, angry people, everywhere.  The 25 fifty pound bags of flour would be gone almost immediately, perhaps going to 25 families.  The 50 bags of various beans, likewise, would disappear.  There would be no casual, relaxed chatting - people would be frantic to get the last can of chili.  Nobody would be playing nice.



The restaurant store that we frequent could supply a maximum of about 30 families for a month.  That's it!  The city that we shop in boasts a population of over 250,000.  30 families for a month.  Just think of that.  Granted, there are other stores, but nothing that could support the population of the city and the surrounding areas for any length of time.

And yet, most people don't think of storing food or other necessities, until it is too late.  As my parents and I were driving home, vehicles laden with food, it struck me.  We live in a land of plenty.  And nobody is doing anything about it.  People still stop to pick up dinner on their way home from work, rather than have a surplus in the pantry.  People think that the supply lines will never really be broken.  People think  that the government will always be there to pull their fat out of the fire.  People are wrong.



I enjoyed my day out with my parents.  I relished the casual, relaxed chatter and convivial attitude of the folks at the stores were we shopped.  I loved having a choice of what I wanted to buy and how much I wanted to buy.  I love living in a land of plenty.  I will take advantage of it for as long as it lasts, but I am also aware that "all good things must come to an end".  Living in a land of plenty is a blessing.  I accept this blessing with great joy.  But it is also a blessing that comes with responsibility.  I have the responsibility to be a good steward.  I have the responsibility to build a hedge against the inevitable storm.

I have an opportunity to be a lighthouse, a beacon of hope in a storm ravaged world.

We live in a land of plenty.  What are you going to do about it?

1 comment:

  1. I am new here though not so new myself.

    Wondering, if worse comes to worse, those who are prepared, will probably have lights. Best cover the window at night i.e. blackout conditions. When those who are unprepared are angry and their familys are hungry, not yet starving, a light in the window might appear as a beacon of plenty to those who are prepared to take what they need.

    Watching the news from the courts lately and it doesn't look so good for Christians which indicates that there are large pockets of people who might not adhere to the 10 commandments.

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