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CONCERNS BOTH BIG & SMALL
Investment
advisors and investors themselves are concerned that
the markets have risen so fast that there are new risks
of bullish exuberance built into the current rebound. Add
that to the concern of a jobless recovery and a government
that may be emboldened to keep spending more money it
doesn’t
have since the current rebound in part has been attributed
to TARP, Emergency Spending, and even healthcare
reform. Last week I saw recommendations to
buy everything from Gold to Goldman Sachs and everything
in between. It’s like when you are lining
up a putt and you think it will break left and your
partner or caddy thinks it will break right. When
in doubt, hit it straight!
Same for investing! Even though the market has
bounced a significant amount, it had also dropped more
than a significant amount and this return to more normalized
levels brings us back to hitting it straight. Decide
on how much risk you can afford and adjust to normal
times knowing that margin accounts and all of your
funds just in stocks is NOT normal. Keep building
savings and manage your borrowings and any debt so
that they represent a conservative portion of your
overall income and assets. If you were contrarian
enough in March of 2009, to buy more stocks instead
of selling them, it is time to re-balance to more normal
amounts and take some of the profits.
But all of
this concern about the markets is small compared
to the issues facing our country. Last
week’s court decision declaring the National
Day of Prayer a violation of our Constitution was a
vivid reminder of past sins of God’s children. Jeremiah
reminded the people of Israel in a clear voice that
God was disappointed in how they recognized Him. His
concern is not dissimilar to how we are ignoring God’s
laws in our own world. Jeremiah’s words ring
louder than any court could decree:
“…Have I been to them a land
of darkness? Why then do my people say, At last we
are free from God! We won’t have anything to
do with him any more! Does a young woman forget
her jewelry? Does a bride hide her wedding
dress? No! Yet for years on end my people have forgotten
me.” Jeremiah 2:31-32 (NLT)
Monday Morning
Message Sent 4/19/10
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