By now, we have all accepted that we are in a global financial crisis that is causing great distress to Americans as well as to people around the world. For so many of us, our hopes and dreams for retirement, getting out of debt, paying for college and even making mortgage payments are in jeopardy.
In many ways, the loss we sense goes beyond money and property equity – it is a loss of the security that our wealth and assets provide. We trust what we can see. And when we see our assets lose 25%, 30%, 40%, it’s so easy to feel robbed. And a great deal poorer.
I would like to encourage you not to just see the plummeting indexes, but also to see the riches you have beyond stock indexes – your family and your loved ones. Watch an old home movie, linger on the crafts created by your little children that may now be grown, take time out and pour over the journal entries or scrapbook of your family – and be reminded once again how rich you really are. How blessed you are of the true riches that no stock market or poor regulatory policies can take away.
May your faith give you comfort and wisdom as you handle the financial struggles so many of us are experiencing these days. But don’t forget your true riches – your loved ones.
