The applied math site Durangobill.com explains what the recent changes in Powerball lottery rulings meant for the “players” who buy tickets.

Game Rules for the new Powerball game that went into effect for the Oct. 7, 2015 game.

As “game players” (“suckers”) woke up to the fact that they were throwing money away trying to win the old 59/35 game, Powerball ticket sales slumped. Thus Powerball officials changed the game rules again to try to recruit more people to throw away their money.

The new game is designed to “engineer” bigger jackpots. The mechanism involved was to make it even more difficult to win. Thus funds that previously had been paid out to “millionaire” winners will now be retained until a possible “billionaire” figure is reached.

The article goes on to say that in return for monster jackpots the odds of winning have been changed to a mind boggling 1 chance out of 292,201,338!! I know, I know, some hapless ticket owner will say in defense of his ticket purchase, “But, somebody has to win. Why not me?” Always the mantra of the dupe who believes that lightning won't strike him if he doesn't shell out his hard earned cash for a golden ticket. Funny thing is that he has a better chance of actually being struck by lightening but would never bet on it cause he thinks it would be too much of a long shot, however he'd be wrong (1 in 700,000 according to National Geographic News).

So why do people throw away money on this stuff? There may be many reasons but I think playing the lottery is the unbelieving man’s way of getting to heaven without faith. Let's face it, a Billion dollars pretty much spells heaven to the earth bound. No faith required because the odds preclude believing, just some wild cosmic guess that transports you from where you're at to Paradi$e.

For me, the saddest of things is that some who believe in Christ and His very real promise of heaven not only waste their money on this foolishness but also open the Lord to shame by participating gladly and publicly in this feverish nonsense for all to see. Not the most honorable way to reveal the Holy Lord and one’s allegiance to Him.

You know, I think that very few atheists play the lottery. They don't believe in God but they're smart enough to believe in math, and the impossible numbers for Powerball don't lie.

Mike Mazzalongo