Poker Night 343: The Pace of the Race

This was a day of small triumphs for us.  We recouped some of the losses on our recent trip to north Florida, when a gas station where we stopped called to announce we won a drawing for a gift card.  We also reached a final table in an online tournament with 118 players.  A successful night at The Red Barn would only make things better....

BLINDS: 50/100

IN THE POCKET: Q-9 offsuit

The night hasn't been very successful so far.  A 500-chip investment with 5-5 missed the flop, and then big bets ran us off.  But for the most part, the table has calmed down since then.  We're in the Small Blind and no one raises ahead of us, so we call to give this a try.

ON THE FLOP: Q-6-9

A very good try!  We have the top two pair and leadoff position.  But betting on the flop has been common so far, so we check.  We're a bit disappointed when the entire table checks.

ON THE TURN: 4

We're not waiting this time.  A low card allows us to make a lead bet of 500.  A couple of players with much larger stacks call, as if they're "fishing" for something huge.  The rest of the table folds.

ON THE RIVER: Q

It's a river "boat" (slang for full house)!  So sit in our lead position for a moment - how much would you bet, to maximize our gains?

We decide to set out 1,500.  Nope, that's too much.  Our opponents fold.  We gain about 1,800 chips, but in a way hoped for more.

We needed some more, because that's the only hand we won all night.  We missed a gold mine late in the first hour, when we folded K-10 and the flop was A-J-Q for a top straight.

Then we limped into a hand in the second hour with pocket Queens, then went all-in when all the cards on the flop were below them.  But our friend Harry (who says he left the hospital last Friday) stayed in with a 7.  Another 7 on the river combined with one on the flop to give him a winning three of a kind.  He eliminated two players, and sent us home tied for 19th place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Our area is seeing a bit of outer impact from Tropical Storm Isaac.  So we took a small flashlight to use as tonight's card protector.

"This shows I'm ready for Isaac," we told the man to our right.  "And it's also a reminder I'm supposed to reflect the light of Christ."

We're not sure that man heard the last part -- which is too bad, because that's the most important part.  Believers are expected to shine....

For this is what the Lord has commanded us: "I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth." - Acts 13:47

You might think the idea of "letting your light shine" originated with Jesus.  But the verse we cited actually appears first in the Old Testament (Isaiah 49:6), hundreds of years before the Lord walked on Earth.  So how do believers do that?

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth).... - Ephesians 5:8-9

A "goody-goody" walk might seem self-righteous to other people.  But if your walk is humble and you regularly give glory to God for it, your words and actions should reflect the opposite - Christ's light.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 121 final tables in 343 nights (35.3%) - 19 cashes.