Let Not Your Hearts Be Troubled MONEY MATTERS
WITH DR. ANDREW LEE Dr. Andrew Lee is professor of English at Lee University. He also serves as a coordinator for Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. He and his wife Esmerelda have three children.
T
oday as I write this, the Dow Jones Industrial Average of thirty large U.S. company stocks has plunged more than 33% since it’s all-time high only one month ago (Feb. 12th) due to fears about the COVID-19 virus. The daily ups and downs of the stock market (known as “volatility”) seem to set a new record every day—down over 1,0000 points, up nearly 2,000 points, down nearly 3,000 points. It’s enough to make any investor queasy. It’s hard to remain calm when the twenty-four-hour news channels are bombarding us with pessimism and dire warnings, and I understand their intent: an “abundance of caution” now can prevent future spread of the virus. People are panicking, as they have always panicked in times of distress. Personally, I’m concerned that the panicking and anxiety will ultimately cause more harm than the virus. But since this is a financial column, let’s focus on the economic impact. By the time you’re reading this article, we will have seen and heard countless government proposals for addressing economic problems related to the virus, including how to help restaurant, airline, and tourism workers, provisions for child care and elder care, to name only a few. National and global quarantines (or lockdowns or “sheltering in place”, if you prefer) have numerous consequences that are likewise economically crippling. By the time you’re reading this, we may already have new government policies in place for temporarily suspending evictions for tenants who lost their jobs and can’t pay their rent, and similarly for homeowners and landlords who need their mortgage payments temporarily suspended, as the Italian government has already done.
10 // April 2020
Investors (anyone with any money in the stock markets or bond markets or real estate) should remember that typically the only ones who get hurt on a roller coaster are the ones who jump off. Unless you are very close to retirement, you should remain calm and remember that you’re investing for the long-term. This too shall pass, and the markets will once again hit an all-time high. By selling now in a panic, you’re guaranteed to lose lots of money. Now, if you really believe this is the “zombie Apocalypse virus” that countless films have spoofed, then you’re probably digging a bunker and stocking up on guns and ammo. But most of us don’t really believe that, so instead just keep calm, pray earnestly, and trust God. As for “me and my house,” this new “bear market disaster” will cause us to lose the same amount of money we lost in the market panics of 9/11/01 and the mortgage meltdown and Great Recession—which was zero. We lost nothing because we didn’t panic, and we certainly didn’t sell any of our investments. Currently, I don’t even check my investment statements or account balances when the market is plunging like it is now. Why would I? The Bible says, “Be anxious for nothing” (Philippians 4:6). If you are very close to retirement, hopefully you heeded conventional wisdom a few years ago and reallocated your investments into a more conservative and less risky portfolio, like putting a substantial amount into bonds or CD’s. If, on the other hand, you kept most of your investments in the stock markets and you’re very near retirement and need that money to pay monthly expenses, you may be in a bit of a dilemma. But even so, try to remain calm. Be encouraged by Isaiah 26:3, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”
