In looking at compiling a storage of food it will seem like a gigantic undertaking but do not allow it to be overwhelming. Continually seek the Lord in prayer and He will give you direction. Let it be a fun time for you and your family. You will be surprised how a little here and a little there will grow into a storage of food.
Gather all the information you can find and decide what is top priority for you and your family and work toward that goal. For example, I now live in a Senior's Lodge so not able to gather a supply of food but having a daughter living nearby we are doing a food storage, plus warm clothing, sturdy boots and barter items. Since I am diabetic we have stored dehydrated and canned fruit and vegetables. Some suggestions for barter items are....food of all kinds, clothing, shoes, blankets, bedding and other items you will think of.
At the time when I received these messages my husband and I were hosting a Bible Study in our home in Ontario. The Lord showed me that by using each persons talent we could minister as a group. This might give you an idea for gathering a group in preparation for helping others....feeding the hungry, supplying warm clothing, administering first aid etc. Norma and Mae were teachers in the natural and they were to minister the Word and bring people to Christ. Verna was a nurse's aid and would procure first aid supplies and would care for physical problems. Mary and I had operated a Deli at a nearby resort for two summers so we would be in charge of preparing food and gathered up many recipes using natural products. The men folk, Barry, Gordon and Bob would be available to help in all areas of our project and my husband, Fred, would make wooden dehydrators to sell. This is how a group could work together to help those in need. Many times the Lord has shown me that He will multiply what we have but we must have something for Him to multiply as with the loaves and fishes.
The books I have read suggest a 3 month supply of ordinary food from the grocery store. My husband and I felt led to do a food storage back in Ontario when I first began to hear from the Lord in '82 and '83. My husband died in '83 but had lined a small room in our basement with sturdy shelving and had also built a wooden dehydrator. We stored a lot of ordinary foods, canned, dehydrated and frozen and began to gather natural foods such as hard, red winter wheat, all kinds of grain flakes, white and brown rice, several kinds of beans and lentils and alfalfa seed for sprouting. We secured bulk peanut butter and honey, milk powder and cooking oil. Most restaurants have large plastic pails which are good for storing wheat and grains. We also found a grain wholsaler who delivered our orders to our door. We sometimes secured items at a health food store but now we can purchase natural foods in bulk at the big grocery stores.
We dehydrated a lot of fruit and vegetables (directions may be obtained at a health food store). Now there are small plastic dehydrators available that work very well. We learned to sprout seeds and learned that sprrouted alfalfa seeds are a nearly perfect food and could be a means of survival.
Later the Lord showed me that our storage was not for then (1982) but rather that we gain knowledge of how to put together a food storage program. When I was ready to move to Alberta in 1987 to join my children there I believe it was the leading of the Lord to leave most of my storage with a friend in Guelph, Ontario who knew that the Lord was leading her to assemble a storage of food. In her basement she built a wall camouflaging her storage and later the Lord gave her a dream of the enemy coming to search her home and because she and her family were hidden behind the wall they were safe.
The following is information derived from books on the subject of preparation....
Water, water, water...a supply of water is most important
*** you will need water purifier
*** to treat use 8 drops of bleach to 1 gal. water
*** 3 month supply of ordinary food
*** 1 year supply of dehydrated and freeze dried food
Protein supplements
Vitamins and Minerals
Wheat, hard, red winter wheat the best
Grain flakes...wheat, oats, barley, triticle, rice: white and brown, cornmeal
Grain mill for grinding wheat
Powdered milk...noninstant best
Beans...all kinds...white, soya, mung,lentils etc.
Sprouting seeds alfalfa, beans
Dehydrated fruits and vegetables
Honey
Salt
Oil
TVP...meat substitute
Frozen foods
Canned goods
Home canning
Yeast
Pasta ...all kinds
Soup bases
Soup mixes
Powdered eggs
Canned meat
Ladies: go through your home, room by room, drawer by drawer and determine those articles you would need
Men: go through garages and workshops and list things you might need
At some point you might not have electricity so you should procure some means of heating....
Wood stove, if possible
supply of wood
fireplace
gas stove
kerosene heater
kerosene lamps
gas lantern
fuel
lots of flashlights
batteries
matches
battery radio
port-a-potty
pail with lid
toilet paper
deodorant
shampoo
soap
tooth brushes
tooth paste
warm clothing
sturdy boots
needles and thread
LAUNDRY
bleach
disinfectant
lye
detergent
wash board
wash tub
bedding
blankets
garbage cans
garbage bags
Emergency information books
car parts - motor oil
fire extinguishers
bicycles
medical supplies
prescriptions
Bibles for new converts
barter items
