Why I’m Freeze Drying My Own Meals (And Not Chasing Trends Anymore)

Last week, I wasn’t behind the mic—not because I was tired or lazy, but because I was out in the hills of North Georgia with a group of young men who needed more than content… they needed direction. I was serving with Truth in Nature, a ministry that mentors fatherless boys through outdoor experiences. We built birdhouses, swam in creeks, shot skeet and rifles, and I watched several of those boys give their life to Jesus and get baptized.

That kind of camp—that kind of real—is why I started all of this.

But while I was sleeping in a bunkhouse up there, something stirred in me. I realized I’d been chasing the wrong things: algorithms, TikTok trends, follower counts. Somewhere along the line, I forgot what this was about. So now I’m shifting gears.

In this episode, I talk about why I’m freeze drying my own camping meals. Not because it’s trendy, but because I got tired of overpriced, over-salted, chemical-loaded pouches that aren’t worth handing to a kid, let alone trusting in the woods.

I walk you through:

Why I bought a Harvest Right freeze dryer with my own cash

What led me to launch a new YouTube channel: The Watchful Prepper

Why I’m documenting every batch I make (and not posting until I have 20 videos filmed)

How I’ll be legally selling my meals through my restaurant, under the name Primitive Camping Rations

What it takes to prep, vacuum seal, and store real food that actually lasts

And how I’m tying it all into a bigger mission that includes my book, my coffee, fire kits, and now, rations.

This isn’t about emergency stockpiles or fear-based prepping.
It’s about faith.
It’s about being ready—for a camping trip, a discipleship moment, or a hard week at home.

So if you’re tired of freeze-dried food that just "makes a turd"...
This one’s for you.

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