Lottery: Good or Bad?

Lottery: Good or Bad?

Lottery. When most people hear that word, they instantly think gambling. The Merriam Webster dictionary defines lottery as “an event or affair whose outcome is or seems to be determined by chance”. After listening to differing opinions on the definition of lottery, I came to the conclusion that most people believe there has to be some type of investment by the individual. In other words, you have to pay for it. I believe there are other types of lotteries such as the American Lottery, Gambling, Room assignments in College, Jury duty, Raffle tickets, Flipping a coin, Military service, Admission into special Magnet schools and College, and Betting on sport teams. These are not the only examples of lotteries, but it is all I can think of right now. Now, if you have never been involved in any of this? That is commendable.  

I was at a church gathering where a question was raised on whether playing the “lottery” was a sin or moral preference. I got up to defend that it is not a sin, just a moral preference. And I am pretty sure some people were probably thinking, “Oh the pastor’s daughter wants to go and play the lottery, maybe that’s what she has been learning at that college”. I hope that at the end of this blog, you will have peace of mind LOL.  For the sake of this blog post, we are going to assume that the definition of lottery is gambling. Well, I wanted to know why playing the lottery, but not being addicted was a sin because I mean FREE MONEY, who doesn't want that?! And I know that biblically, man is only expected to eat from where he worked (Genesis 3:19). I reasoned that technically, the man is making an investment with money he worked for so that doesn't apply. The answer that was given at this gathering was not satisfying so I did what any other teenager would do, I got on twitter and asked friends that I believed would have great insight on the matter.

My logic was that, it is not explicitly stated in the bible that lottery is a sin so what is the issue?! The main response I got from my friends was that, well it can lead to idolatry and of course, idolatry is a sin because you cannot serve God and serve gambling. It is general knowledge that gambling is addictive and addictions always come before God to the person addicted. And I have had time to ponder on the matter, it does not make sense to pay about $30 per day seven days a week to play the lottery because that is $210 wasted per week. Think of the ridiculous amount of goods that can buy! Now, if you play the lottery and you do not believe you are addicted to this “hobby”. Then that is great! However, do the math and figure out how much you have wasted on the lottery compared to how much you have made, does it make sense mathematically? All you are doing is giving the government more money.

The bible might not explicitly state that playing the lottery is a sin; however, does the spirit of the lord wrestle with you every time you go to 7-11 or the gas station to purchase the numbers? If it does, then there has to be a change. If it doesn't, continue to seek the face of God on the path you have taken. I can tell you now, that if you are spending potential tithe and offering money on the lottery, you need to make some changes. Playing the lottery is one of those activities that are not necessary for survival and it is better to not be involved because they can be harmful such as smoking, drinking, fornication, adultery etc.

PRAYER: Heavenly father, I thank you for today. I just pray for people out there that are struggling with different addictions. Allow them to recognize that you are the Lord of their lives and free them from the sin of idolatry. Amen

Special thanks to Ayobami A., Paul, Lade and Dami for their help!