Powerball was the big news this week and I have to confess I didn’t even know until the Pocono Record asked for my comments for the winner. Laurie Monteforte from WBRE news came to see me as well; check out the links just in case you happen to win someday- or know the two winners from Missouri and Arizona.
The basics of my comments for the winner, or for anyone who comes into “sudden money,” is to pause before spending. A windfall like that will undoubtedly change your life, and any decisions you make today to do with the money may not fit where you want your life to eventually be. Go ahead and splurge a bit and celebrate, but think about the awesome responsibility- yes it is a responsibility- you have before you. The responsibility to spend and invest it wisely, the ability perhaps to help your loved ones, the opportunity to do good in the world beyond your circle. While you’re dreaming about what you would do if you hit the big one, think about your stake in the ground when it comes to your lifestyle. What lifestyle do you aspire to? Where would you draw the line? If you are someday blessed beyond that, remember that stake and think purposefully about what you might do with the excess. I think that’s where people get into trouble- the football player or celebrity who suddenly has more money than he ever dreamed of- by expanding his lifestyle so much that if the money just as suddenly stops flowing in, he ends up in financial ruin.
It’s not likely that any one of us will actually win the Powerball (but you never know!), but we all can think on a smaller scale about what kind of lifestyle would make us content, and stay within that regardless of any financial blessings that come our way beyond what we need. What would you do with the excess?
The Christmas season is full of little jackpots that don’t require winning the Powerball to enjoy. Some are listed in the post “Taming the Holiday Spending Monster.” The dates for some of those events are listed below. Please feel free to add in the comments section any other special things going on during this holiday season. Also check out the post about small businesses and consider patronizing some of them this season, and also if you own one yourself, please let us know about it.
Quiet Valley Old Time Christmas, December 1st and 2nd, 8 and 9th
Bushkill Community Church Night of Giving Dinner Theater, December 8th, 5pm (call 570-588-6998)
Live Nativity at Reformed Church of Bushkill, December 15 at 7 pm
Christmas Concert at Mountain Stream Baptist Church, December 15 at 6:30 pm
Messiah Sing In at the Shawnee Playhouse, December 21 at 8 pm
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