Go to the ant you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in the summer and gathers its food at harvest.

King Solomon

This next bit of advice at the start of the new year may seem a bit odd for a daily devotional entitled Common Sense Christian, but humor me for just a moment and it may not seem so odd after all.

One of the trickiest balances that we will ever perform is the one between our trust in God and the stewardship that He requires of all of His servants. As you read through the Scriptures, you will find that one of the most mentioned topics in the Bible is that of our possessions.

The good steward is expected to make wise provisions for his family, while at the same time realizing that our daily bread always comes from God. So again, today's topic is one of balance, so please carefully consider the difference between trust and presumption, prudence and hoarding.

We live in uncertain times. This should not come as any surprise since all people in every era have lived in times of uncertainty. We don't know when we will have a disaster - whether on the larger scale of a national recession, or on the smaller scale of your personal health, your personal wealth or your personal job.

I am convinced that a prudent servant of God will take certain steps to provide for his family's needs. Specifically, I believe that we should all be storing up some food and non-perishable items against future uncertainties. It would seem wise for those who can afford to do so to have on hand a store of food that will last for at least a month and non-perishable items that will last for a minimum of several months. Your grandparents did this as a matter of course, and I believe that we should do the same.

We never know when emergencies will occur, but we do know that they happen to good and bad people every day. Our own leaders have been printing up money at an alarming pace, so it's more than a bit possible that things will cost significantly more in the days ahead. By storing up a prudent amount you will allow yourself the ability to, during extreme times, be able to survive and, in normal times, allow yourself the luxury of buying things on sale when you want them. You can use your savings to give to others who have not been so prudent, if you wish.

So, pray about this topic and, if you have peace about it, go ahead and put something aside for the rainy days that are sure to come. I'm not talking about tearing down barns to store up things so that you can take it easy, but a well stocked pantry may become a very desirable thing to have in uncertain times. Don't forget that your trust is to be in God, and that your actions are to be those of a good steward.

A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.

Proverbs 22:3, NIV