By Thomas Sheffield
September is Insurance Awareness month. How many times have you wished you had a rich uncle or aunt passed and left you a large sum of money? How often have you been disappointed to find a relative had died and did not leave any assets behind to cover funeral expenses? How often do we hear of an untimely death and families depend on the benevolence of others just to overcome the shock of the death? Financial struggles may follow the death of a breadwinner which includes lost earnings and debt due to medical bills. This is why insurance is so important. It is not for the dead but for the living.
We need to think more about the future. Proverbs 13:22 says: “A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous”. The present is not easy for most of us as we try to make a better tomorrow. We wake up, go to a job we don’t enjoy and deal with people we would rather not deal with. Then we come home and deal with our family members and their issues. We try to find solace in our homes and our surroundings but we deal with the constant barrage of bills, reality tv and helping our kids with their homework. Finally, we get to bed only to wake up and do it all over again. Before you know it, you are nearing retirement age and have little if anything to show for your efforts. This is our reality. We often times like to play the martyr and say our efforts are for our kids. We do all this so they won’t have to suffer and be a part of the rat race.
This is no way to live. We have to do a better job thinking about tomorrow. We have to protect our kids and their future. The net worth of white households in the US is ten times larger than that of African American households. The differences in life expectancy is also at a disproportionate number. A black man that reaches the age 50 has a remaining life expectancy of 27.2 years. This is 6 whole years less than a white female. This is one factor in the difference of wealth accumulation. Life insurance can mitigate wealth disparities across race. Can you possibly imagine the effect leaving $100,000 to your kids will have on their lives?
Now that we have established the need and higher purpose, what next? Something is better than nothing. Contact your local insurance agent and get coverage that is right for you. Purchase a policy that can replace missing income. Get it now. Do not wait because the longer you wait, the more expensive it gets. I recommend term policies as they are relatively cheap and will provide the protection needed for the time it is needed.
If you feel the need to learn more, feel free to contact me directly at thomsustainableconsulting@gmail.com or follow me on Twitter @tcsheff.
