" 'If ye are prepared ye shall not fear' (D&C 38:30).

"This brief statement is a promise wonderful and sure. It carries a message for all of us—for the youth who wonders about education, for the head of a household who has responsibility for a family, for the business or professional man, for the teacher or the speaker, for the church officer. All of us occasionally face responsibilities that bring with them a sense of fear. Where there is adequate preparation, there need be no fear. Such is the promise of the Lord" (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Order and Will of God," Ensign, Jan. 1989, 5).

"Occasionally people speculate about possible disasters, which speculation engenders fear and can cause members to become caught up in emergency preparedness efforts that are not only costly but go beyond the basics consistently taught by the First Presidency. . . . Member preparations require wise planning, diligence, and provident living. If circumstances warrant, the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve will provide additional guidance on such matters through established priesthood channels.

"We continue to encourage members to store sufficient food, clothing, and where possible fuel for at least one year. We have not laid down an exact formula for what should be stored. However, we suggest that members concentrate on essential foods that sustain life, such as grains, legumes, cooking oil, powdered milk, salt, sugar or honey, and water. Most families can achieve and maintain this basic level of preparedness. The decision to do more than this rests with the individual.

"We encourage you to follow this counsel with the assurance that a people prepared through obedience to the commandments of God need not fear" (First Presidency letter, June 24, 1988; see Ensign, Oct. 1988, 80).

"Family preparedness has been a long-established welfare principle. It is even more urgent today.

"I ask you earnestly, have you provided for your family a year's supply of food, clothing, and, where possible, fuel? The revelation to produce and store food may be as essential to our temporal welfare today as boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah" (Ezra Taft Benson, "To the Fathers in Israel," Ensign, Nov. 1987, 49).

"The Lord has urged that his people save for the rainy days, prepare for the difficult times, and put away for emergencies, a year's supply or more of bare necessities so that when comes the flood, the earthquake, the famine, the hurricane, the storms of life, our families can be sustained through the dark days. How many of us have complied with this? We strive with the Lord, finding many excuses: We do not have room for storage. The food spoils. We do not have the funds to do it. We do not like these common foods. It is not needed—there will always be someone to help in trouble. The government will come to the rescue. And some intend to obey but procrastinate" (Spencer W. Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, ed. Edward L. Kimball [1982], 374-75).

"Personal and family preparedness planning must begin with the family executive committee. Planning must be tailored to fit the circumstances of each family. Consideration must be given to their unique requirements in career development, financial and resource management, education, physical health, home production and storage, and social, emotional, and spiritual strength" (L. Tom Perry, "The Need to Teach Personal and Family Preparedness," Ensign, May 1981, 88).

"We encourage families to have on hand this year's supply; and we say it over and over and over and repeat over and over the scripture of the Lord where He says, 'Why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?' [Luke 6:46]. How empty it is as they put their spirituality, so-called, into action and call him by his important names, but fail to do the things which he says" (Spencer W. Kimball, "Family Preparedness," Ensign, May 1976, 125).

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