Yet another story emerged this week detailing the unfortunate after-shocks of winning the lottery. Excerpted from the article:

Jaun Rodriguez wanted nothing more than to be one of the guys in rural South Texas where he was raised. And he was — until six years ago, when he had the misfortune to acquire almost $9 million in the Texas Lottery. Today, he’s lost his anonymity, his buddies, whatever girlfriends he once had and most of his family, whose members he no longer trusts. He rarely ventures outside the trailer here where he lives alone. Booze and the four dogs he keeps chained outside are his main companions. “To tell you the truth, I wish I didn’t win,” he said from his living room one recent evening, nursing the first of nine Michelob Ultras he would drink by 10 p.m.

Such is the tragic reality of lottery winners that politicians and the gambling industry who peddle state-sponsored gambling never admit.

Perhaps the most famous case of going from riches to rags was John Whittaker, who won the biggest lottery jackpot in United States history on Christmas Day, 2002. Whittaker opted to have an undivided sum of $113 million after taxes.

All his problems were solved after getting that hefty chunk-of-change, right? Anything but. A string of tragic misfortunes has followed Whittaker ever since he took home the dough. He’s been the victim of several thefts and numerous run-ins with the law. According to a July 18 report, Whittaker is being sued by Bally’s Atlantic City and Caesars Atlantic City for writing bad checks during various gambling trips. This highlights one of the biggest problems with gambling — even after you win, it’s exceedingly difficult to quit. Hence the many groups in existence today devoted to assisting individuals out of gambling addiction. This is not about individual freedom or harmless entertainment — it’s about ruined lives and a morally bankrupt society. This is not about arrogance or high-minded preaching, but about compassion for those who are caught in a gambling addiction.

1 Timothy 6:10: “For the love of is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. (emphasis mine).

1 Timothy 6:6-7: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.”