Win The Lottery, Ruin Your Life

$656,000,000US Lottery Jackpot Prize

North America stood transfixed last week. Millions held their breath and checked their numbers against the Mega Millions winning lottery ticket worth a record-breaking $656 million US. No doubt the lottery agency “won”—government lottery proceeds typically exceeded the prize money. Beyond that winning lottery tickets are rare. Yet millions play the odds, convinced that the “lottery gods” will smile upon them. 99.99% are disappointed. The Bible condemns lotteries and other games of chance. It can involve overt idolatry—people pray to “lady luck” (or some other false deity) for the favor of winning. Moreover gambling violates God’s ordination for mankind--people should engage in productive labor—“eat bread by the sweat of your face” (Gen. 3:19). The biblical principle is that man’s labor ought to add value—the farmer’s labor on land produces crops; manufacturing combines materials and assembles components into a useful form; transportation and trading move commodities to people and places where they have higher value. Yet gambling does none of these things; nothing is produced, no extra value is added. A lottery is a zero-sum game—the revenue from millions of lottery tickets is simply combined and redistributed to a few “winners” as large prizes (plus government coffers). The net value added is zero. The following article highlights additional deleterious effects upon lottery “winners.”—Nigel Tomes

By Gina Roberts-Grey

Five Reasons You Don’t Want to Win that Big Lottery

The lure of "Mega Millions," "Powerball" and lottery jackpots have millions searching for a fast fortune. But winning the lottery isn’t all it's cracked up to be.

A windfall of widely publicized winnings lets you take that trip around the world, buy a fancy car or flat-screen TVs for every room in the house. But it just might ruin your life.

Look at the ugliness all that loot can bring. Being mega rich isn't all it's cracked up to be.

1. Friends take Advantage

Once word gets out that you had the winning ticket, expect everyone to try to cozy up to you-- the college roommate you haven't heard from in 20 years, the kid who tortured you on the playground, fellow carpoolers and "friends" you barely recognize. Lottery winners get a flood of online “friend” requests wanting to share a meal or a weekend getaway to relax and catch up. These "buddies" all hope you'll ultimately pick up the tab.

After Sandra Hayes split a $224 million jackpot, she had to rethink her social network. "I had to be careful about who I made friends with because some people have ulterior motives... Some feel because you have money, you owe them money," she says…

Lottery winners get pleas from pals and hopeful BFFs needing a personal bailout, too. One of Hayes’ friends expected her to rescue them from their serious financial woes. "If I bailed them out they’d continue to sponge off me. If I didn’t draw the line, I’d go broke," she says.

2. Relationships Fail

Money woes can strain relationships; big windfalls can overtax relationships.

Alex Bulankov knew a family who won a lottery jackpot; he saw this devastation firsthand. "Following a string of unfortunate financial decisions, the family fell apart," he says. The husband was emotionally unprepared for the responsibility of winning the lottery. He took to gambling and womanizing to deal with the troubles of adjusting to his new lifestyle. When his wife found out, she retaliated with vindictive shopping…fighting and blame-placing for their squandered fortune became routine in this once tightly knit family," says Bulankov. The family imploded.

3. Increased Bankruptcy Risk

Bankruptcy seems a long shot after winning the lottery. But experts say winners are at greater risk of bankruptcy.

"Winners suddenly have significantly more credit available. They make more purchases on credit, rather than cash," says Scott Dillon, a bankruptcy attorney in Albany, N.Y. "They’re more likely to buy impulsively. So purchases will be much higher, accrued interest much higher. They don't think the money could ever run out, so, winners don't live within a budget." Bankruptcy may result.

4. Fight off Long-lost Relatives

Lottery winners become targets for long-lost relatives who knock on the door with one hand and hold the other palm up. They think when one family member wins the lotto the whole family wins the lotto. So, winners field pleas for help with credit card or medical debt, foreclosure or car repairs.

"Some family members suffered the entitlement syndrome," says Hayes. "A few family members with whom I had no previous relationship with before, came out of the woodwork and started calling me to butter me up just for money."

Hayes had bad experiences, including family members borrowing money they didn't pay back. Plus "When I gave a monetary gift …some thought I should have given more," says Hayes.

5. Be a Target for Lawsuits and Scams

Lottery winners are targets for bogus lawsuits. "If the winnings are public knowledge, winners’ phones never stop ringing. They hear from investors, scammers, and every planner/schemer under the sun." People may purposely "slip and fall" on their property, drivers deliberately rear-end them and so on. That includes contractors, babysitters, friends and family who visit you, borrow your car, etc.

Do you still dream of winning the lottery?