BLINDS: 2,000/4,000
IN THE POCKET: Ac-5s (suits may not be precise)
We've had an up-and-down day at this one-table 10-player tournament. We scored a big gain when 9-10 in the Big Blind turned into a King-high straight, and we topped a man with three Jacks. But then we lost about half our stack when we made three Jacks on the river, and lost to a straight.
Now we're in the Big Blind with 37,000 chips, looking for a big moment. No one raises in front of us, so we call and hope.
ON THE FLOP: 8-8-5
Two pair and top kicker looks very good! The Small Blind checks. We could push right now, but instead we bet 10,000 and try to finesse as much out of the table as possible. A man to our left calls, as do two others.
ON THE TURN: 8
Now we have a full house -- and we really have little choice. "All of it," we say after the Small Blind checks. We commit our last 23,000.
"I'll call," the man to our left says. Uh-oh - that's not exactly what we wanted to hear. What if he has an 8, for a higher full house?
A man across the table folds. The Small Blind thinks it over, then calls. Huh?! Could they both be trying to outbluff each other?
ON THE RIVER: J
The only way this seems to change anything is if someone has pocket Jacks. The two remaining players who can bet check each other.
"I've got an Ace," the Small Blind says. (Actually A-9.) Good.
"I've got a full house," we say hopefully as we show.
Then the man to our left turns over.... 8-5!!! It was what we feared, and in abundance! He hit his full house on the flop, and we never had any real hope. We shake his head, shake our head and leave the table in seventh place.
MINISTRY MOMENT: On one hand, the flop was 6-6-6.
"A beast flop," we declared. "And on All Saints Day!"
A man across the table recognized what we were talking about - and as we left the table after finishing seventh, we repeated it. "May you all be saints, on this All Saints Day."
Let's make one thing clear right away: we are not Roman Catholic. All Saints Day is a traditionally Catholic event. It's not a day we personally celebrate (short of buying Halloween candy at half-price). But we realize several of our fellow players are Catholic - and we tried to offer a thought-provoking comment about it as we left.
We didn't grasp until we reviewed the link that All Saints Day is supposed to be a "solemn holy day." The Bible lists several "holy days" of God (see Leviticus 23), and this is NOT one of them. But our question to the table would be what we're asking you: Are you a saint? Now - even before you die?
Sing to the Lord, you saints of his; praise his holy name. - Psalm 30:4
Could this command really be given to dead people? We think living saints are supposed to sing praise. But how do we define a saint - or better put, how does the Bible define one?
Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? - I Corinthians 6:2
Note the distinction: "the saints" and "you" are the same things to the apostle Paul. This letter was written to....
To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ - their Lord and ours. - I Corinthians 1:2
So saints appear to be church members, sanctified believers and people who call on Jesus's name. The fact that saints were mentioned in Psalms indicates they existed in Old Testament times, as well as New.
How else would you identify a saint? Offer comments if you wish; we'll share more about this in a future post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 170 final tables in 456 games (37.3%) - 29 cashes.
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