The greatest price, evah

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.
When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it." (Mt. 13:45-46)

Grand Lotto jackpot reaches P311.9M with no winner yet

I wonder what I can do with the P 311.9 Million Grand Lotto prize, assuming I win the grand lottery. Maybe I will give one million each to my close friends and relatives, donate a few million to charity, buy some grand vacation mansions, flashy cars, then go jet-setting around the world and buy anything I fancy. Imagine...P 311.9 million! The thing is, I don't buy lotto tickets, so how on earth can I win without buying a ticket.

Maybe I will buy one ticket for Saturday's draw just for the fun of imagining things. Maybe 'imagining' is a proper word, for the probability of winning the Grand Lotto is quite daunting. The odds of winning is one in 28,989,675. That is equivalent to being hit by a lightning eight times in a lifetime, assuming the first lightning hit does not end your life. The odds are even greater than the possibility of being canonized into sainthood, which stands at 1 in 20 million!

Still, many bettors are hopeful, prayerful even. It is reported that many lotto bettors wipe their tickets to images of saints inside churches as they pray for good fortune. This prompted Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez to say that invoking God to win lotto is a ‘defective’ practice of religiosity, and that gambling is incompatible with Christianity. Certainly in any form of gambling, when one wins, another person loses. So those who are praying of winning are also praying that other people lose.

I wish those who wish on winning the lotto has an even greater wish to win the "pearl of great price" that St Matthew speaks of in Mt. 13:45-46. After all, everyone sincerely seeking it gets to win a priceless and eternal jackpot. The best thing is that everyone who sincerely seeks, wins. God desires no losers.
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