But another "poker pro" has made a lot of headlines - for the wrong reasons. Dan Bilzerian was arrested this past week on charges of having materials to make a bomb. That follows a case where he reportedly threw a naked actress into a swimming pool.
We don't follow the social media of poker players very much, but a news article on Bilzerian's arrest said this:
Bilzerian's popular Instagram account is consistently filled with photos of a playboy lifestyle: private jets, scantily clad women, piles of cash, guns, and Bilzerian shooting those guns in the desert.
And oh yes -- he does movie roles, too.
He sounds like every poker player stereotype come to life. Yet check his poker record, and Bilzerian shows only one time when he placed in the money at a World Series of Poker event.
We don't know if Bilzerian is guilty of the bomb-making charge or not. But we think he's guilty of one thing -- a lifestyle that emphasizes material possessions. And yes, we think that's something worth the title "guilty."
Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. - Ecclesiastes 1:2 (KJV)
This "Preacher" was King Solomon of Israel. He had more possessions and money than even modern-day millionaires (see I Kings 10 for a partial list). Yet at the end of his life, he realized how vain it all was.
I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner.... - Ecclesiastes 5:13
Solomon admits being able to enjoy wealth and possessions is a "gift of God" (verse 19). But how many people realize that, and give God thanks for it? Even Solomon eventually caved in to sinful actions (I Kings 11). That's why he concluded:
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. - Ecclesiastes 12:13May we all learn to do that "whole duty" better. Better to fear God than be a playboy fearing arrest by the long arm of the law.
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