Poker Night 557: Couple's Therapy

It was a dark and rainy night. Then suddenly.... a poker game broke out.

That's as far as we'll go, in comparing Wednesday night's tournament at Hollywood Casino Indiana to Halloween. We made a good decision to avoid the "holiday" by playing poker there. Scarcely anyone there put on costumes. And the only "scares" at the table were the usual ones. You know....

BLINDS: 100/200

IN THE POCKET: K-Q offsuit

The one-hour break is approaching, and we need a rally. Despite winning an early pot or two, things have not gone well. Hands like 8-8 have fallen short. Now we have good cards in the leadoff position, with 9,350 chips from a starting 12,000. We limp in, as is our custom. The players on either side of us call, with no raises.

ON THE FLOP: Jh-10c-9c

WOW! The royal couple leads the way to a straight! But what will other players do? A woman in the Big Blind does us a favor, by betting 2,000. But then comes the "scare" - because two clubs are showing, so someone might be chasing a flush. We decide a patient play would be too risky.

"All-in," we announce - for 9,150. The man to our left wants nothing to do with that. But that woman thinks things over for about a minute. We simply smile at her, to "help" with her decision.

"I'll call," she finally says.

"Do you have the straight?" we ask.

"I'm on the way." She shows K-10, with no clubs.

"Because I do have the straight." We show our cards.

"Nice," she admits. But could she escape with a split, by getting the complete straight?

ON THE TURN: 9s

The board pairs. No worries there.

ON THE RIVER: 2s

We go to the first break thanking God! We double-up to 20,200 chips, while the woman is left with only about 800.

After the break, we quickly reached the final table after a round of blinds with 19,600. But attempts to be creative failed from there. We survived to the second break with 8,200. Then with blinds climbing, we tried to force the issue by pushing with K-J. But a different woman made a full house to knock us out. Our money run ends, with an eighth-place finish on a 14-player night.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Only one dealer dressed up in a "costume" of any kind for the tournament, and that man simply put on an orange reflective vest. "Keep it as simple as possible," he explained.

We thanked our opening dealer for the fact that the poker room seemed to be a "Halloween-free zone." And we said a couple of times about the event, "Give the devil his don't" - as opposed to "his due."

If you think Halloween is simply a big money-making project for costume companies and other businesses.... well, that's true. But its roots are in something very ungodly:

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. - II Corinthians 4:4

That "god of this age" isn't the God of creation. It's Satan the devil - promoting darkness instead of light. Or have you noticed how dark, scary things dominate Halloween-related events and traditions? Here are some examples....

Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. - Deuteronomy 18:10-11

It may seem like harmless fun in late October. But the Bible shows God views it differently:

Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord.... You must be blameless before the Lord your God. - Deuteronomy 18:12-13

As one study Bible explains in its notes: consult with God about the questions of life - maybe even about whether you should play poker. Any other method goes outside God, and will not have his blessing.

Visit this link to learn more on the history of Halloween (and related events such as the "Day of the Dead" and "Guy Fawkes Day").

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 209 final tables in 557 games (37.5%) - 44 cashes.