Dr. Linda Helps - Are you one of many who have said, “What’s the harm in buying lottery tickets?” Have you made a few wagers on Monday night football? Did you help plan Casino night at your kids’ school? Are you constantly hoping you’ll win the lottery in order to end all your financial problems? Gambling is a problem for many people. It is an addiction that has become acceptable and mainstream in American culture.

You might feel these are ridiculous concerns. What’s the big deal? The big deal is that most addictions start out as harmless flirtations. And the church has been strangely silent on this issue.

In his book, Seducing America: Is Gambling a Good Bet?, Rex Rogers gives eight reasons why gambling is wrong. Read his book. It will open your eyes to a problem we choose not to see.

Rogers states that gambling is:

• Not justified in the Bible
  
• A dependence on luck and chance rather than God’s sovereignty
  
• A violation of our stewardship
  
• An undermining of our work ethic
  
• The result of covetousness
  
• A form of theft
  
• Potentially addictive
  
• Often associated with social and personal vices

Obviously, a gambling addiction is a not a physical dependency as it is in the cases of alcohol and drug addictions. But, the psychological and spiritual components are similar and can take hold of a person’s life.

We know that pathological gambling often begins in late adolescence for men and later in life for women. At first, it may be viewed as entertainment. Over time, a preoccupation with the action, excitement, and winning develops. The addiction takes hold and all resources are used to get money to support the habit.

Some people ravage their savings, destroy relationships, and become preoccupied with gambling activities. Others engage in illegal activities to keep a steady supply of cash and wind up with significant legal, relationship, and moral problems.

A gambling addiction is a serious thing and often difficult to stop. Left untreated, a person’s life can spin seriously out of control. Compulsive gamblers lie, deny the seriousness of their problems, and become irritable when trying to quit. Like other addictions, gambling fills an empty place, covers depression, anxiety, guilt or helplessness, and allows someone to escape immediate problems.

Talk to those who live with compulsive gamblers and they will tell you about the destructive forces at work with this type of addiction. It’s not a coincidence that the state of Ohio prints warnings on their lottery tickets that states, “Compulsive gambling can be treated.”

If you have a gambling addiction, get help.  

Dr. Mintle – author, professor, Approved Supervisor and Clinical member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy – is a speaker and media personality, as well as a licensed clinical social worker with over twenty years in psychotherapy practice.

For more articles and information, visit Dr. Linda Mintle's Web site.