The Biggest All-In Ever

A poker tournament can be filled with dramatic moments. The only way to win, after all, is to accumulate everyone else's chips. So players have to go "all in" and risk everything they have, to get everything they want.

But nearly 2,000 years ago, the biggest all-in moment in recorded history occurred. The drama involved far more than poker chips. It involved your life - and the lives of all people, whether they realize it or not.

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. - Romans 5:8 (NLT)

God the Father sent Jesus Christ the Son. They had been together in heaven for as long as anyone can envision. But Jesus came down to Earth and lived a perfect, sinless life to save us from eternal death.

This is real love - not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. - I John 4:10 (NLT)

Jesus went all the way to a hill called Calvary or Golgotha, sacrificing Himself. He had faith God would restore Him to life - and three days later, that resurrection happened. The "all in" bet worked.

The blood of Jesus can cover your sins, and bring you close to God where you might now be far away (Ephesians 2:13). Many believers in Jesus will recall that blood Thursday night, at a special worship service.

And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, "Each of you drink from it, for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many." - Matthew 26:27-28

Jesus also shared bread with His disciples, in a ceremony that's come to have many names. Some call it communion. Some say "Lord's supper." Others recall the Old Testament, and describe it as a "Christian Passover."

Whatever the name, it should be a meaningful event. To read much more about it, click here. If you'd rather play poker than keep a Passover, please read it with care and an open mind. You might find there's more to this life than a series of all-in bets.

The Selfie-Driven Life

Ask a table full of players why they play poker, and you might get a wide range of answers. Some do it to make money, or make a living. Some do it to be around their friends. Regular blog readers should know why we do it.

But let's rephrase the question. For whom do you play poker?

Unless you enter some kind of a charity tournament, the answer well could be, "Me." That's much more likely to be the case if players are in a cash game. But we found a word of warning the other day about that....

But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and instead live lives of wickedness. - Romans 2:8 (NLT)

We're in an age where "selfies" are popular - taking pictures of yourself to post on social media. But these Bible words are tough, soul-searching ones for people who turn their entire lives into "selfies". God gets upset with several groups of people here - firstly people who only lives for their own pleasure.

If this describes you at the poker table, what should you do? Fold your game completely? Well, maybe not. Maybe what you need is a change of focus:

He will give eternal life to those who go on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. - Romans 2:7 (NLT)

Yes, that means even seeking God as you play poker. Give Him praise if things go well. And give a tithe to Him if you win money. Offerings to church groups can be used for "doing good" in many ways.

Verse 8 also instructs us to "obey the truth." That means following Biblical instructions.As Jesus put it....

Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. - John 17:17 (NLT)

"Truth" in the Bible also is defined as Jesus Himself (John 14:6) and God's Holy Spirit (I John 5:6). There's one aspect of that truth that many believers will be doing this coming week. Can you guess what it is? Watch for our next post, to find out.

The Hands of God: How Full Is Your House?

"A flush beats a full house!" said a truck near us the other day.

But then again, it was a truck for a plumber.

Poker players know better, of course. Full houses always top flushes and straights. But have you ever stopped to consider why?

A website we've grown to like gives the answer. In classic Five-Card Stud, you're mathematically more likely to develop a full house than a flush or straight. That's how the odds work.

But do you have a "full house" in the game of life, away from poker tables? You can look at that in a couple of ways....

How joyful are those who fear the Lord - all who follow his ways!.... Your wife will be like a fruitful grapevine, flourishing within your home. Your children will be vigorous young olive trees as they sit around your table. - Psalm 128:1, 3 (NLT)

Some people have taken this psalm (perhaps along with Psalm 127) as a promise from God's Word. But sadly, we wonder if some women have been heartbroken by it - women who have unable to conceive, despite their best efforts.

We write this from the perspective of lifelong singleness. We've thought "Ms. Right" crossed our path several times, but things simply did not work out. Yet we think believers in God can be "fruitful" in other ways....

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! - Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)

When the Holy Spirit enters a believer, life can become more "full" overall. The spiritual fruit can be shared with other people in many ways.

Then the King will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.... - Matthew 25:34-35 (NLT)

Care obviously must be used in letting strangers (such as people you meet on poker nights) into your home. But we've dared to do it a few times over the years with people asking for help on street corners. They may not grasp what we're doing or why, but hopefully they see a spirit-guided example in the process.

Let's open this up for your comments. What have you done to create a "full house" - in the place where you live, and the life that you live?

Remember As You Play....

Those who love pleasure become poor; those who love wine and luxury will never be rich. - Proverbs 21:17  (NLT)

A minister on radio recently told the story of a man who lost a lot of money from gambling. Not merely millions - but TENS of millions of dollars.

The speaker concluded from this that gambling is a vice and a sin. But hold on - what about the professional poker players who make money?

Our verse warns against three things. But are those things necessarily wrong - or is the LOVE of them wrong? For instance....

You should know, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times.... They will be betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. - II Timothy 3:1, 4  (NLT)

The Bible says God is love (I John 4:8) - and He wants us to love Him in return. But He wants us to make God our first love. Not poker games, or other forms of gambling where you might find "pleasure" for a short time. True love for God can lead Him to give you His Holy Spirit....

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience.... - Galatians 5:22  (NLT)

Joy should result from having the Holy Spirit in you. So how do you obtain it?

Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. - Acts  3:19 (NLT)

That can include the sin of putting other "loves" ahead of love for God. You could save millions of dollars in losses - and gain eternal life in the process.

Fair Dealing

If you think temptation is a problem during poker hands, consider the people who deal the cards.

A dealer at Las Vegas casinos recently was fired after being accused of stealing chips from a cash game and sneaking them into his tip box. The man left one casino under a cloud, but went to a different casino and continued dealing cards for several months.

The Nevada Gaming Commission reportedly doesn't hold hearings like this very often. Dealers are normally under a strict code of conduct; some of them can't play table games where they work on their off hours. But let's face it: dealers handle a lot of money - even if it's in the form of chips, and other people are trying to win it.

If you play poker, can you be as disciplined as the dealers have to be? Can you abide by a simple command....

You shall not steal.- Exodus 20:15

Sounds easy enough, you might say. But can you go even beyond that?

Abstain from all appearance of evil. - I Thessalonians 5:22 (KJV)

Is playing poker evil? Some ministers say so - but regular readers of this blog know we consider that matter more complex. We're talking here about playing ethically - not taking shortcuts or peeking at other players' cards.

Dealers should know better than to cheat. Where we played near Wichita, overhead cameras could track every table. Think about what God can do when you play:

The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good. - Proverbs 15:3

May your eyes and words and thinking be above reproach - as God might be looking in.

Speedy Delivery?

In a recent post, we mentioned how poker players (and all people, for that matter) someday will see Jesus Christ face-to-face. We included some provocative words from the New Testament:

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.... You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. - II Peter 3:10, 12

Really? How can our lives speed the coming of the "day of God"? After all, these words were written to believers more than 1,900 years ago. Yet that day hasn't come yet.

Some versions of the NIV Bible translate "speed its coming" as "wait eagerly." The American Standard Version has "earnestly desiring" God's Kingdom to come. One lexicon compares the Greek word here to an Old Testament verse:

...Then God will establish one of David's descendants as king. He will rule with mercy and truth. He will always do what is just and be eager to do what is right. - Isaiah 16:5 (NLT)

In other words, believers live with anticipation for the second coming of Jesus. In fact, they're supposed to pray for it:

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. - Matthew 6:9-10 (NLT)

This famous prayer is not really supposed to be a Christian mantra (verse 7). It's supposed to be a longing - something that has believers preparing themselves every day for it. Are you one of them?

Time for a Change

We hinted in our last post that something was about to happen with us. Now we can reveal what it is.

After almost five years in our home state of Kansas, we've accepted a new full-time (at least for now) job in another state. The move is happening in a hurry, so Sunday marked our last poker tournament in the Wichita area.

Here are the final results from our poker days in Kansas:

Kansas Star Casino - Eight final tables in 47 games (17%); six cashes
Other Wichita poker rooms - 33 final tables in 51 games (64.7%); 10 cashes
Tournaments elsewhere (Kansas/Missouri/Oklahoma) - Six final tables in 13 games (46.2%); 3 cashes
WPT League - Five final tables in 17 games (29.4%); no cash awarded

Grand total: 52 final tables in 128 tournaments - a healthy-looking 40.6 percent!

But we should point some of those "other Wichita poker rooms" had only enough players for one table - and they were all shut down by police two years ago. And we're ending the tournament "experiment" we started last November with a loss of $260, despite three cash wins in four months.

We should be able to keep playing tournament poker in the place where we're going. But we've decided it's not easy for us to make a living at it. It's a "side hustle", but nothing more.

Regular readers know this will be our second move to another state since we started this blog. As a wise person once said: "The only thing constant in life is change." Yet some things in our lives are exceptions to that....

I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob are not destroyed. - Malachi 3:6

Some people make this a blanket statement about God. He never changes anything. Period. Yet careful Bible readers can spot times when God changed the rules for doing things.

The Lord said to Moses, "Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water...." - Numbers 20:7-8

God told Moses earlier to strike a rock to get water (Exodus 17:6). In his anger, Moses struck the rock in the second case. He defaulted to God's original instructions - and paid for it:

But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them." - Numbers 20:12

So sometimes, God can change His ways. And even more importantly, He wants you to change yours.

Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. - Isaiah 55:7

To borrow from a classic rock song: you've got to change your evil ways. Read the Bible carefully, then examine yourself.... asking: Is that what I'm doing?

(P.S. Blog updates may diminish over the next few weeks, due to our move.)