Man Vs. Machine: Drugged Up

When a weekend road trip to see family members puts you only a couple of miles from a casino, it's only natural for us to pay it a visit.  So this morning, while many people slept in or went to church, we went to Hollywood Casino.

One stop was the heads-up Texas Hold 'em computer machine. We've played it before - sometimes for nice gains, other times for big losses.

BLINDS: 1/2

IN THE POCKET: K-2 of hearts

We put a $20 bill in the machine to get started.  After a couple of bad deals, we're starting with $15. The machine likes to raise pre-flop, perhaps to scare opponents off.  In this case, we dare to call a raise to 4.  We don't use "K-2," but we sometimes play it.

ON THE FLOP: 2-A-K

If this is "slot machine" poker, two pair might as well be a jackpot.  We check - and sure enough, the machine bets $2. We raise in this minimum-raise format, and in seconds we're all in for $11. (We tried to insert another $20 to heighten the stakes, but could not.)

ON THE TURN: 10

The computer shows A-7!  Our two pair beats its one.

ON THR RIVER: 6

The gamble pays off, and we're up $26.

But K-2 came again on the next hand, and we should have realized what was coming. We hurt ourselves by pressing the "bet/raise" button when we meant to call - and we wound up with nothing, while the computer made a 6-high straight.  We should have left well enough alone, as we wound up losing $17.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Before the computer challenge, we sat down for blackjack with a real dealer.  Only three players were at the table at 8:30 a.m. on a Sunday - but the player across from us was in a gambling mood.

"Can I play your poker?" he asked us.  It took three times for us to understand what he meant.  The table had a small circle for placing bets in "three-card poker."  If your first two cards and the dealer's "up card" complete a poker hand such as a straight or flush, you get paid 9:1.

That man turned our spot into a jackpot a couple of times, while we chose to keep it vacant.  The man was kind enough to let us keep $5 of his $45 gain.

What an unusual way to practice giving -- doing it without our fully realizing what was happening.  But consider this verse:

All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing. - Proverbs 21:26

Admittedly taking this verse a bit out of context, the man across the table "craved for more" - seeking gain so much that he entered our "turf" and made money from it!  We gave him the opportunity to do it.  Then he gave us an 11-percent share of his winnings.

Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice. Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever. - Psalm 112:5-6

We'll claim this as a promise from God, and try to be just in our conduct at the table - no matter where that table might be.