Because of this — and because most lotto ticket buyers are low income or suffer from gambling addictions — some scholars suggest this makes the lottery a tax on the poor, albeit a voluntary one. With 69 balls in play (ignoring the red powerball for now), each ball has an even chance of being drawn. But as you can see from the distribution, winners tend to be numbers below 30.

• Why You Should Never Play The Lottery Today
• Why You Should Never Play The Lottery 2020
• Why You Should Never Play The Lottery Book

Today will be a big lottery drawing. The Powerball is estimated to be at least $1.5 billion. It is not only the largest payout in United States history, but in the world. The odds of winning are one in 292.2 million. The current Powerball game began November 4, 2015 and has continued to roll over since nobody has won.

The jackpot is so alluring that many people who have never bought a ticket are taking the chance. Some are buying multiple tickets.

I am sorry but I haven’t bought a ticket and don’t plan to. I don’t play the lottery. I have my reasons and thought I’d share a few with you.

Why You Should Never Play The Lottery Today

1. The odds of me winning are pretty slim. Today’s drawing has a 1 in 292.2 million chance of winning. To put this in perspective, there is better chance of being killed by lightning (1 in 2.5 million), being struck by falling airplane parts (1 in 10 million), and dying from an asteroid (1 in 74 million), than winning today’s lottery.
2. To win many more people have to lose. Even if I win, somebody loses. I’d rather be involved in a win-win situation.
3. Gambling (including the Lottery) can be addictive. Gambling can stimulate the brain’s reward system much like drugs and can lead to addiction. Even a near loss can encourage players to come back for more. Compulsive gambling is a serious condition that destroys lives. Beware if you hide your behavior, deplete savings, accumulate debt or resort to theft or fraud to support your addiction.
4. The lottery denies the realty of God’s sovereignty by promoting and affirming the existence of luck or chance.
5. The lottery is built on irresponsible management of wealth by tempting people to throw away their money. On average, lottery ticket buyers lose 47 cents on the dollar for every ticket bought.
6. It violates the Golden Rule. (Do unto others as you would have others do unto you – Matthew 7:12)
7. It is a poor investment of my money. The money spent on the lottery is hard earned money that can go towards something useful, instead of the government’s pockets.
8. It appeals to my lowest motivations – greed, materialism, and selfishness.
9. It violates a good work ethic. The lottery promotes getting money for doing no work.
10. The money won’t last. The ‘lottery curse’ shows that 70% of Americans lose all their money within a few years of experiencing a sudden windfall.
11. Many who win end up worse than they were before. 70% of lottery winners actually end up going broke in the first seven years. It seems the more money you win, the more likely you are to lose it. Many go bankrupt, lose friends, attract scam artists, create friction in their families, and become addicted to other vices.
12. The lottery tends to appeal to the poor, making them even poorer. Households earning less than $12,400 a year spend 5% of their income on lotteries.
13. The advertised jackpot is wildly inflated. After taxes, the take-home from today’s $1.5 billion lottery will be about $500 million to the winner. It’s still alot, but not as much claimed. Government wins even when you win.
14. If I win, my relationship with my family and friends may change for the worse.
15. Winning really won’t make me happier. It really doesn’t. If you’re not happy without riches, riches will only drive you faster to depression and discouragement. No amount of prize money will ever give you the sense of accomplishment and success earning it yourself will. Even if you’ve never played the lottery you know that money does not buy happiness, peace of mind, or personal fulfillment.
16. Almost any other investment is better than the lottery. If you invest in gold, at least you have gold after 10 years.
17. The lottery is the state’s way of getting rich at the expense of its citizens. People spend more money on the lottery than almost anything else. Compare these annual revenues: Music ($6.8 billion), Movie box office ($10.7 billion), Video games ($13.1 billion), Sports tickets ($17.8 billion), Lottery tickets ($70.15 billion). Stats from CNN Money.
18. Nowhere in the Bible is gambling (including the lottery) a legitimate means of gaining money. The Bible promotes gaining money by inheritance, by hard work, and by wise investment. The lottery is not a legitimate or safe way to make a living or invest in the future.

Why You Should Never Play The Lottery 2020

Don’t be fooled by the lottery fever. The best way to escape poverty and gain money is to earn your own money, trust God with what you have, and ignore scams like playing a game that’s almost impossible to win.

Why You Should Never Play The Lottery Book

You can also read other related articles on money and stewardship: If God owns it, what am I doing with it?, 7 good reasons to tithe, Good Debt?