Living the Pantry Lifestyle - Just doing the next thing!

I spent one morning last week listening to videos by people who prepare at various levels, one after another.  I don't do that often but it is a good way to notice a thread in what people who follow world news events are talking about. I especially wanted to spend time "tuning in" to what is being said with all the possible war talk on the Ukraine border as well as inflation.  

The Bible says there is wisdom in many counselors.  I find the most useful information as far as the pantry and cooking are concerned from homemakers and homesteaders but there are a few men I listen to that have good commentary (like Prepper Dawg on YouTube, who is also a Christian).

The one thing I find frustrating is that I cannot do what I once was able to do.  I fully agree with the people who recommend growing your own food and preserving it.  I have a very good friend who is the quintessential Proverbs 31 woman at doing this!  

I get tired when I shop the produce section at Meijer.

However, I am learning to take the information I can use and work with it.  Like going to the Farmer's Market this summer and fall to support local farmers so they can continue growing food.  It is time to pay more attention to the mom and pop stands that sell fruit and veggies, too. 

We look forward to every July when our favorite sweet corn farmer has the sign up that he will be selling corn at the same parking lot where he has been for years. Many times it was picked just that morning.  We are blessed to have hard working people growing crops all around where we live.

I keep reminding myself that all God is asking me to do is what I can do.  I love to learn from favorite homesteaders online but I take the information that is within my ability to use and go from there.  Homesteaders and farmers tend to have very good information for cooking from scratch and there is always something new to learn.

I ask each day for His wisdom as I do what I can considering the world in which we live.  Elisabeth Elliot's advice to "do the next thing" is proving to be wise and bring peace.  What is in my immediate ability to do?  If it is to purchase a few cans of beef, a four-pack of green beans, a bag of beans... that's what I will do and God will bless it.

The thing is, He wants us to do something.  If we sit around and grumble and become afraid of the future because we cannot do everything we see others doing (like having a big garden), then we are not acting in faith.  We do what is before us, the next thing that is within our ability. 

Far from it being naive to be praying about the next thing to do, I am finding it to be absolutely essential.  Especially when one does not have unlimited energy, budget, space, etc.  He has an amazing way of leading me to the right information that will help me prioritize or to items on clearance.

There is also plenty to do that cost no money.  I cleared and sent to charity some items from my side of the closet a couple months ago but hadn't put anything on the empty shelf.  I was looking at it last week when I realized it was the perfect place to store my "just in case" large package of paper plates and package of disposable cups.   Both are bulky items that are no longer taking up prime real estate on the garage shelves.

I plan to continue learning from people who do much more than I can these days.  There is usually something I can take away to do on a smaller scale.  God, in His amazing way, is always showing me a "next thing".  He knows what the future holds for each of us so there is no better counselor to lead the way. We just have to ask... and listen... and do.

We need to take seriously the world events of the past couple of years and those that are possible in the near future.  We do not have to do everything to prepare but we need to do something.  Whether we put back a little more in the pantry or learn a new recipe, each small act of obedience to what He is telling us to do will be very helpful in the future.

I've finally been able to stock up on Florentine's "wet food" by purchasing a case of Sheba trout when it was (finally) available on Amazon and buying a few cans of two other kinds of cat food she likes when I could find them.  

I've come to realize that Florentine's favorite cat food is one of those things we have to continue purchasing a little at a time when it is available. From what I have read, wet cat food continues to be hard to find throughout the country and if you have a cat, you know how snooty they are about their favorite food.

I have revised the number of "backup" bottles I need for both honey and maple syrup since both are going up in price (and neither is cheap to begin with).  When I finish one bottle, I have one already to take its' place, and I purchase another backup on our next stock up day at the health food store.  It may be time to have even more backup bottles of honey, since I use it for making bread.

I have a container of dried eggs already but I am thinking of purchasing another with the threat of eggs becoming scare here in the Midwest as the Avian Flu has been found in numerous chicken and turkey farms.  That is also the reason I decided on purchasing some canned chicken.

I'm hoping to purchase a few whole chickens for the deep freeze but recently there have only been organic whole chickens, which I can afford (at $18.00 each) if I purchase no other meat.  I've also begun to purchase one package of beef bones at a time to put in the freezer. 

I did go through the boxes of pasta I had on the top shelf in my kitchen cabinet and was quite surprised at how few were there.  Come to think of it, they were mostly purchased at the end of 2020!  So, now I am checking the pasta aisles at both Meijer and Kroger although both have been almost empty recently.  

It is a good thing the "little at a time" principle has been a way of life for a long time.  It looks like many purchases will now be accomplished a little at a time.  However, anything done even a little at a time has a long term benefit.  Much better than if we did nothing because we cannot do everything!