One of the keys to successful investing - particularly just prior to or during retirement - is making sure your investments in your portfolio match your investment objectives. Many have assembled their portfolios piece meal without any overall strategy. The resulting collage of individual stocks and bonds probably doesn't meet their needs as well as it should. Their portfolios could easily be loaded with growth instruments when they really need income. Others have simply placed all their investment capital into the most convenient and secure financial instrument they could find.

Make Sure Your Investments Match Your Goals

• Define clearly your investment objectives.
• While there are many different specific investment objectives, they fit into three bread categories: Safety, Growth, and Income
• Safety refers to how secure your principal is. If there is little or no risk that you will lose part of your principal, then that investment is considered to have a high degree of safety
• Over time, the value of some investments increases. Their "price" goes up, and you can sell them for more than you paid. This appreciation is referred to as growth.
• Finally, some investments offer current income. You receive regular payments over an extended period of time.

Chances are your investment goals fall into one or two of several categories:

• If, for example, you're retired and depending on the income from your investment portfolio to supplement your Social Security benefit, your primary investment goal is income. With safety likely following a close second.
• On the other hand, if you're still building an estate, you're probably most interested in growth. You may even be willing to speculate a bit to achieve that goal.
• Finally you may be mid-way in your accumulation phase and need both growth and a stronger degree of safety.

Diversification is a basic principle of investment. Spreading your holdings among several different investments lessens your potential loss in any one investment.

Do the same for all the assets in your retirement plan. You are likely to have the chance to shift assets from one fund to another twice per year. Use these opportunities to review your plan's performance. The markets change. You need to adjust your retirement plan to take advantage of these changes.

"Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." - Luke 6:38

• Tithing is still the best investment.
• You will be under His protection.
• You will reap eternal rewards.