Misses Largesse: `Visions of Sugarplums --'

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"It's a gift for the first 50 customers today," said the person at the drug store checkout to me after I had made a purchase on my way to work last week.

I looked at the piece of paper in my hand and what first struck me was the phrase "5 million dollars." It was a lottery ticket!

I was so thunderstruck that I just said, "Thank you" and walked on. A lottery ticket as a gift!

For years, in private and at synods, I've trashed lotteries, and here I was with a ticket in my hand. I remember 20 years ago, after strong words from me in a charge to synod on the subject, some friends who thought I was seriously overreacting about it all bought some lottery tickets …