What Would You Do If You Won The Powerball?
The Powerball lottery is now sitting at 1.4 billion dollars.
People who never buy lottery tickets are all queuing up to buy one now.
The question today is…what would you do if you won the lottery?
I would fight the temptation to move to Geneva and buy a small property here and fill it with cats.
Seriously…
The rest would go to putting good resources in people’s hands…and helping others just survive.
What about you?
I don’t buy lottery tickets but here’s what I’d do: 1) ask God for His wisdom as it is His money; 2) give to Caesar that which is Caesar’s and to God that which is God’s; 3) after paying the tax bill and the tithe/offering, God loves a cheerful giver who gives from his/her heart, so I’ll let the Holy Spirit direct were it goes. Too simple, right? All three in practice has never, ever failed (close to 40 years now) Love, Grace and Blessings Michael. (BTW – soon and very soon we are going to see The King – Hallelujah, Hallelujah! )
Tona,
Blessings to you as well…I think you have a wise system…
Go into witsec as much as a civilian were able to do (change identity, move). I don’t need much… a new car? Trust funds for the kids, set up to be accessed at certain points in their lives and not exorbitant amounts. Then I’d find people and trusted orgs to help, as anonymously as possible. There’s a non profit industrial complex I’d rather not enable.
I’d probably make gifts to friends under the IRS reporting limits. I’ve seen in real life how $ ruins people. The nieces and nephews of my friends are spoiled as their mother was childhood friends with a local native American who later became head of the tribe after his mom built an Indian casino. The kids are BFFs with the Indian kids who pretty much subsidize the lives of the white kids: housing, vehicles, vacations. Such that the white kids work a little, but never pursued careers. It’s sad.
1/3 to missions , preferably to Colombia where I served; 1/3 to my church’s Spanish congregation; and 1/3 to Compassion International. I’ve sponsored a number of children over the past 30 years, with great outcomes for the kids.
1. Get out of debt.
2. Redo the plumbing and wiring in the house we rent (something renters, not landlords, do in our country of sojourning).
3. Provide for our children’s educations.
4. Obtain a selection of two or three thousand books (curated by myself) to donate to each theological library that is affiliated with the Association for Christian Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA), paying all shipping costs and import duties.
5. Obtain permanent residence (equivalent to a permanent green card) in the country of our sojourning.
6. Purchase a modest house in the USA so we have a place to live when not in the field.
7. Try to encumber ourselves from such obscene wealth as quickly as possible.
Start a megachurch and buy a 747.
I am joking of course.
I would consider it to be a great calamity and a test from God.
I’d give a measured amount to my children, grand children, in laws and god children. I’d pay off all their debts and maybe buy them all a house, if they need one. I’d give a measured amount to my parish. See, I don’t want to visit the calamity of too many riches upon my family so I’d have to be careful and not over-do it.
Then I’d have to pick out some charities and since I am cynical about most organized charities, this would be tough. The gift would be anonymous. If I could wander around West Virginia and hand out cash anonymously, I think I would do that.
Then I would buy a modest little farm house in the middle of no-where, with a creek running through the property, probably not here in California, and live with my husband and animals, more or less off-grid. And for the rest of the money, I almost feel the best thing to do with it would be to burn it up in the wood stove but I think that would be failing God’s test so I’d hang on to it until I get orders from Him.
May it never happen to me.
@JD… Ha! You must not value your sanity to immerse yourself in a megachurch environment.
I once read that money doesn’t change you—it simply amplifies what was already there. I’m definitely ready for that test!
If I had wealth, using it to help others flourish would be essential. I’d support organizations that feed and house the homeless, provide mental health care, assist the elderly and homebound, invest in developing countries, and focus on environmental stewardship. Many of my friends struggle with overwhelming medical bills, so after paying those off for them, contributing to medical reform would also be a worthy cause.
DavidM lives in my area, and we made a pact long ago that if either of us won the lottery, we’d give the other at least $3 million—an agreement I’d certainly honor 🙂
I enjoy discussing these possibilities with my wife and kids. Since the odds of winning are so astronomical, it remains a fun, harmless game of imagination.
“I enjoy discussing these possibilities with my wife and kids. Since the odds of winning are so astronomical, it remains a fun, harmless game of imagination.”
Exactly…
“I would consider it to be a great calamity and a test from God.”
I think this is wisdom…I worked with two clients at the bank that won in lotteries…it didn’t go well for them.
Reminds me of when I was younger and working for the government. I was told that I needed to spend three million dollars in thirty days or risk losing money for the next fiscal year. The email said “Spend spend spend!”.
Hmmm. First, I’d take the 20 or thirty year payout even though I understand there would be less $ in the long run. The reason is it would lengthen the time for me and my circle to learn from successes and errors in handling that kind of wealth. Second, housing for my family is so expensive and difficult to secure in our area, so assisting them in getting adequate housing would be a priority. Third, education fund for grand kids. Fourth, provide funding for our outrageous homelessness situation locally. I’d want to review what works and what doesn’t in transitioning people into stable housing and lifestyle habits. It may be a fool’s errand, but why not? Finally, I would create a foundation to finance youth ministry and outreach programs that are effective, progressive, and bridge the divide between churches and parachurch efforts.
spitting&seeingsticksfil
…oh, and I do have my ticket for Saturday’s drawing already. 🙂
fil,
I like your plan…cause we have to try to do something about the housing situation here…
I can’t answer the question, but I’m certain I, like most other pride-soak fools in history who lept from the board of hubris who certainly up repenting from the mess I made, like Job.
Just to clarify, I dont blame Job for any mess, but each time I read history recognize I wouldn’t done/said much worse.
Also, the more “churches” I experience where I guess Jesus isnt enough (His life and words dont bring them what they desire), and people support it, the less hope I have anyone doing anything Godly with $.
I dunno.
I’d have to think about it.
…didn’t match a single digit. My disappointment is as deep as a piece of paper is thin.
Honestly, I would squrrel some away for needed expenses, and try my hardest to GET RID OF THE REST! I believe it’s almost a curse to win that much money.