As you’ve probably seen, the Mormon News Report broke a very interesting/exclusive story about the church mentioning a woman named Julie Rowe who wrote a book about a vision she claims to have had. You can read the summary of her book here.

In this memo the church said that they did not want seminary and institute teachers to mention the book or it’s message in their various classes.

Since this story has broke, there has been a lot of talk in the media about Rowe and other Mormon preppers preparing for the end of the world. The Huffington Post, Inquisitr, Gizmodo and The Salt Lake Tribune have all touched on certain LDS prepper groups hunkering down for the end of the world to come as soon as September 28th…of this year.

I’ve already touched on this topic and why I personally don’t believe we need to worry about the end of the world coming anytime soon.

But I’m just a guy blogging on The Cultural Hall’s platform. Listen to a church leader who probably speaks with more authority than I could ever dream to speak with.

“Sometimes you might be tempted to think as I did from time to time in my youth,” said Elder Packer in his 2011 Fall Conference talk. “’The way things are going, the world’s going to be over with. The end of the world is going to come before I get to where I should be.’ Not so! You can look forward to doing it right—getting married, having a family, seeing your children and grandchildren, maybe even great-grandchildren.”

Enough has been said as of late to show that the second coming will not be coming anytime soon.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t any good lessons to take from the LDS preppers.

And that’s what I’m going to try and touch on here.

Lessons We Can Learn From LDS Preppers

1. Look To Do More By Yourself

The LDS prepper community isn’t content half-heartedly magniyfying their callings. They aren’t content with going to church on Sundays.

They’re looking to do more.

Why is it the church needs to tells us to stay out of debt? Why is it that we only store food in case of an emergency because our church tells us to?

I mean, really.

As members we should be looking for opportunities to improve our lives, our families’ lives and the lives of others ever day without being told to do so. We should find opportunities to serve both in and out of the church

How many of us even semi-regularly donate our time to something that will enrich our lives or the lives of others above and beyond what we’re told to do?

I don’t. Or at least I don’t do it nearly enough.

We shouldn’t just do what we’re told to by the Gospel of Christ, we should use the Gospel as a springboard to find other great things to do.

Five points for Gryffindor… of the LDS preppers for trying to find additional good

2. Live Your Religion

The preppers beleive that the end of the world is coming, and they’re preparing for it.

Good for them.

There is a lot of talk about what is required of us in order to be “Mormon.”

Can you be Mormon and drink tea? Can you be Mormon and pay tithing on net? Are you a good Mormon is your shoulders are showing?

It’s pretty easy to define worthiness in the church. Can you correctly answer the temple worthiness interviews? If so, you’re probably heading in the right direction for the most part.

Are we always keeping those standards.

No one is perfect and therefore we all fail at times, but that isn’t an excuse for not acting on your beliefs.

3. Dissenting Views Aren’t Going To Get You Excommunicated

With the excommunications of Kate Kelly, John Dehlin and Denver Snuffer it has become really easy for some to point an accusatory finger at the Church for squashing those who had doubts or beliefs that conflicted with the church’s stances.

Unless Rowe get’s excommunicated for encouraging people to buy 72 hour kits, it seems like Rowe and her prepper friends are living proof that you can have personal beliefs that run pretty contrary to the church’s teachings as long as you handle those beliefs appropriately.

Rowe admitted after the memo was released that these ideas of hers are just that, ideas of hers.

It’s one thing to hold a belief that runs contrary to the church on certain issues. It’s another thing to rebel against the church and create waves fighting against its core doctrine.

Featured image Ylliab Photo