On Tuesday, in the local newspaper, a story touted the record revenue the Arizona Lottery had realized in its just completed fiscal year. Lots of reason were given for why so many people were buying lottery tickets. But one shop owner said something that really got my attention:
People have a lot of pressure on their jobs, they are stressed. They come in (to the store), they buy a lottery ticket, they think maybe they will be able to quit work. That's probably why the Lottery has been high. It gives people hope.
I have no doubt the shop owner is correct. Folks see a million dollar powerball jackpot and begin to imagine living a new life, with all their problems solved and all their hopes and dreams fulfilled.
The hope that a $2 lottery ticket can give...it's kind of unbelievable to me.
I read on a website one day that a person has a better chance of being hit by lighting...of being struck by a car...of catching a foul ball at a baseball game than winning the lottery.
There's another place to shop for hope. This hope is sure and certain. And it's free.
Titus 2:13 - while we wait for the blessed hope - the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ...
1 Peter 1:3 - Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead...
Hebrews 6:19 - We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
Hope for this life and the life to come is rooted in the resurrected Jesus. The promise of eternity, made possible for you and me through faith in our great God and Savior, serves as an anchor for our soul. This hope is not built on a longshot, but rests on the merits of Jesus Christ - His suffering for our sins, His victory over sin, death and the devil, and His promise that all who believe in Him will live, even though they die.
There is no problem free life. Everyone I know is stressed about something - a child's health, a teenager's attitude, a retirement nest egg that has dried up, the loss of a spouse. And there are endless stories of those who won a lottery jackpot and found that all that money does not solve all of life's problems.
The apostle Paul got it right when he wrote to the Colossians: the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the Gospel that has come to you.
Jesus - no hype, just hope.
