Poker Night 562: Better by the Dozen?

"We're at table 12 on 12/12," our dealer properly observed at Hollywood Casino Indiana Wednesday night. "And we start with 12-K" - as in 12,000 chips.

In fact, one donut chain called it the "Day of the Dozens" and offered a special discount. But instead of driving there after work, we drove to Indiana. The five-dollar buffet special was (pun intended) a more well-rounded meal. But would the number of Jesus's original disciples (Matthew 10:1) and the tribes of ancient Israel (Revelation 21:12) have deep meaning for us? A test of that came early....

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: 6-6

We joked with the dealer before the tournament started about playing A-2 (sort of like 1-2). But 6 + 6 = 12, right? So in the first few minutes, this pocket pair is a must-play! With no one raising, it's even better. As we remember, three players at a slowly-growing table of eight are in.

ON THE FLOP: 10-8-2

Not much to brag about there - and no one is betting. So we toss out 125, hoping for a quick win. Except one player calls; the others fold.

ON THE TURN: 8

The board pairs. We have two pair. Our opponent now checks. But what if he has a third 8? We decide to be cautious, and check as well.

ON THE RIVER: Q

Finally a face card - and our opponent acts on it. He bets 300. We suppose he could have been waiting for that. But we conclude this is a "test your mettle" bluff, maybe with Ace high. We call. Are we right?

The other man shows.... 10-5! There was no bluff. He hit top pair, and simply waited us out to win the pot.

But on this night, more good cards came. Our stack went up and down, but was a healthy 17,575 at the first break. Hour Two was worse, with bad decisions leaving us at the edge of the cliff with 6,700. But then came Hour Three - and back-to-back pushes with A-Q and A-J led to double-ups, and a total of 24,800!

After we lost to A-K to a man's pocket Aces, we reached the final table with 17,400. But setbacks struck as blinds went up, and finally we pushed again with King-Queen of spades. A man with A-J pushed first and won the race. On a night with 21 players (come to think of it, that's the reverse of 21), we finished a respectable seventh. (Only the top three earned money.)

MINISTRY MOMENT: "Is that a pager or a pencil sharpener?" a dealer asked at one point about our card protector.

"It's a reflector," we explained to our table, holding up the small red item we'd taken before. "It's a reminder to me that I should reflect the light of Jesus Christ."

Perhaps you've been a bit confused about that light. Two Bible verses can seem contradictory at first reading....

But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world. - John 9:5 (NLT)

Jesus called Himself "the light." Yet He also declared....

You are the light of the world - like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. - Matthew 5:14 (NLT)

So which is it?

Actually, it can be both. And that's where our reflector comes in. We can reflect the perfect light of Jesus to other people. As one great song puts it, believers can "shine like the moon" which reflects the sun shining on it. Jesus seemed to understand that:

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life." - John 8:12 (NLT)

If you hold a flashlight close to a mirror, the intensity of the light should be stronger. So how closely do you follow Jesus's life and example?

For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. - I Peter 2:21 (NLT)

That's the part of "following" which might scare some people. Not everyone appreciates God and Jesus Christ. They might put you down, and occasionally even beat you up. But reflecting God's goodness now will be rewarded someday with eternal life. Upon reflection, isn't that worth it?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 211 final tables in 562 games (37.5%) - 44 cashes.

Poker Night 536: The Grand Opening

If you show up late for an event, you might miss something big. In sports, that could mean a first-inning first-pitch home run or a kickoff returned for a touchdown. In poker.... well, check what happened Wednesday night at Hollywood Casino Indiana:

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: Ace of clubs-King of spades

Talk about a slow night for poker. Only three people have shown up for the tournament! The single cash game table seems to have open seats as well. But we were on time, and received good cards for the first hand of the night.

We limp in with them as first to act. A man across the table raises to 425. Then a visitor from central Ohio re-raises to 950! This seems promising, so we simply tag along by calling. So does the other man.

ON THE FLOP: Kc-Qc-10c

Big cards. Good cards! We have top pair, top kicker and a flush draw. The Small Blind checks. The Big Blind offers 500. Slow and steady still could win our race, so we call again. As we recall it, the Small Blind folds. But what does the visitor have? Hopefully not two pair....

ON THE TURN: 6s

Nope, not what we wanted. The Big Blind bets 500 again. Now we're more concerned about a possible two pair - but we suddenly realize something. The Jack of clubs would give us a royal flush! We'll call 500, hoping for the best.

ON THE RIVER: Jc

The dream card comes true! But what we can do with it? The Big Blind checks, giving us an open floor. We ponder for a moment, then decide to test our betting opponent by tossing out 1,000. He says no, and folds.

"I don't think I've ever had this before," we then say....

"Royal flush," the Small Blind guesses. He's correct, and we prove it. The Big Blind never shows his cards.

"I only wish more people had been here to see it!" we admit. (Not to mention giving us more chips.) We advance from a starting 12,000 chips to nearly 15,000.

The tournament attendance eventually grew to eight total players. But our chip stack went down, more than up - as several quality cards missed flops, and we missed draws. We won a couple of pots, but dropped to 6,450 at the first break.

We certainly didn't want to be the first player out after opening with a royal flush, so we tightened up from there. A timely pair of pocket Aces allowed us to triple from 3,300 to 9,900. Then other players pushed without success. We were still in the running at the second break, even with a short stack of 12,900.

Four players remained at that point, and it was a winner-take-all contest for money. But as the third hour started, our visitor went all-in. We had A-8, dared to call.... and ran into K-K. A third King on the flop did us in. A memorable night ended with us in fourth place - a result that sounds good, as long as people don't bring up phrases like "small group."

MINISTRY MOMENT: "Is that gold bouillon?" the man from central Ohio asked when he saw our card protector. We let him look closely as we revealed what it really depicts - an artist's depiction of the "Lord's Supper."

"He's on your side," the man said.

"I hope He is," we replied. God indeed has come to the aid of His people many times through history....

If the Lord had not been on our side - let Israel say - if the Lord had not been on our side when men attacked us, when their anger flared against us, they would have swallowed us alive.... the raging waters would have swept us away. - Psalm 124:1-3, 5

The Biblical King David wrote these words from personal experience. He spent a long time on the run, as King Saul tried to kill him so someone else would be heir to Israel's throne (I Samuel 18-31). David praised and thanked God for personal protection.

But to be truthful, life ultimately is not about whether God is on our side. The question is whether you are on His side - and there's a big difference.

...Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." - John 18:37

Why listen to Jesus Christ? Because He is the truth (John 14:6) - and He pointed interested people to the Scriptures, as God's "word is truth" (17:17). The Lord added:

He who is not with me is against me.... Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." - Luke 11:23, 28

To borrow a Christian cliché, obeying the Bible will help "get you on God's good side." We think that's far better than the alternative. What do you think?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 195 final tables in 536 games (36.4%) - 40 cashes. Since we have no control over who shows up (or doesn't) for a tournament, a one-table night still counts as a final table to us.

Poker Night 517: This Is the Big One, Elizabeth

If you follow NASCAR, you know fans at some race tracks wait for "the big one" to happen - a crash that takes out about a dozen drivers at once. That happens once in a while in a poker tournament, too. Check what occurred tonight at Five-Star Billiards....

BLINDS: 300/600

IN THE POCKET: Ad-Qc

After a slow start, we split a pot with A-4 and won one with pocket Kings. But then our pocket Queens lost to a man with A-K who hit a King on the flop. That was costly to our stack, and now we have 5,300 chips from a starting 10,000.

"Thousand more," we say after no one else at the table of eight raises. We make it 1,600 to go.

"Thirty-six," says the man sitting next to us. Uh-oh. This could be big.... or big trouble.

A woman sitting across the table from us in the Small Blind calls the 3,600. Another woman to our right, who's been hitting big hands all night, also calls! Now it's our turn again - and while we've never read "The Book" poker players talk about a lot, we know it says we should press on.

"I have to go all-in," we say to ooo's from other players. "I've come this far by faith. I might as well."
The man to our left calls, of course.

"I have 54," the Small Blind says. She goes all-in as well, for 100 more!

The woman to the right decides to make it a huge party, by calling. "I have 1,100 left," she reports. The Small Blind adds his missing 100, and we have a monster pot of more than 21,000.

ON THE FLOP: 6d-4d-2h (best memory)

Not to our liking - and we doubt it is for anyone else. Two players can still bet. The woman to the right checks.

"I'm not checking," the man to our left says. He bets 1,600. The other woman calls with her last 1,100. Now it's time to show and tell:

Man to the left: K-K
Small Blind: K-J
Woman to the right: 7-7

Instant analysis: We need an Ace.

ON THE TURN: 10d

But hold on. Now three diamonds are showing. If one more shows up....

ON THE RIVER: Qs

We get a pair - but it's the wrong one. The man with Kings wins it all, in an unusual triple takeout.

At a casino, we probably would have simply called the 3,600 pre-flop. But we probably would have been put all-in on the flop, with little choice but to push. It's another explosive "free poker" bust.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Did you spot the Christian song we mentioned during that hand? "We've Come This Far By Faith" has been sung by many people. When we hear it, we think of an Old Testament drama....

Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again." - Exodus 14:13

Moses had led Israel out of Egypt. Now the nation stood at the Red Sea, with Pharaoh's army closing in (verses 9-10). Was Moses corrected by God, when he said to "stand firm"?

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground." - Exodus 14:15-16

Moses did as he was told, and the water split in two so Israel could pass through (verses 21-22).

By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned. - Hebrews 11:29

Sometimes that sort of thing happens to us at a poker room. Several people have been eliminated at once while we were in peril, leading us to a final table or a cash payoff. It doesn't always happen, as we saw tonight - but then, poker isn't a life-or-death matter. Yet it's still inspiring to us when it does.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 188 final tables in 517 games (36.4%) - 38 cashes.

Solving the Puzzle

If you're a newcomer to poker, the rules can seem puzzling. No, you don't have to bet every time a card comes out. Yes, ugly cards can win pots in "Omaha Hi-Lo."

Even if you're a poker pro, certain hands can be puzzling. Why would your opponent raise pre-flop, then check the flop and turn?

We sometimes wonder if this blog is also puzzling to people who discover it. In fact, as we mentioned in a recent post, you may be confused by some things we write. We start with poker, then turn to a book which many consider diametrically opposite to it?!?

To be honest, the Bible baffles a lot of readers. It has so many books and chapters about seemingly long-lost people and people groups. One promotion has declared it "the world's best-selling mystery book." And believe it or not, that was the original intent:

He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn - and I would heal them. - John 12:40

Jesus came to fulfill these words of the Old Testament Isaiah - and some of those who heard Him "could not believe" (verses 38-39). They were under the biggest of "big blinds," as they've been blinded from grasping the Word of God. Why?

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved....  - Romans 11:25-26

God hardened the heart of an Egyptian Pharaoh long ago, to do miracles leading to the removal of Israel (Exodus 4:21). He still can do that now. To borrow from a speaker we heard recently, God does this to produce the maximum possible yield - in terms of people ultimately being saved.

So if our posts don't make sense to some of you - that's OK. Really. We understand, and we leave that in God's hands. But if some of this seems to make sense, that's even better. We encourage you to act on the parts that do.

He [Jesus] replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." - Luke 11:28

Obey what you know to do, and you'll grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ (II Peter 3:18). You may find the puzzles of life make sense more than you ever realized.

Poker Night 508: The Old Man and the Shove

On our last night before leaving a church convention, we decided there was time to try one more tournament at Casino Choctaw-Durant. The finish was better - and also more memorable:

BLINDS: 1,000/2,000

IN THE POCKET: A-Q offsuit

We won the first three hands of the tournament, then claimed several more after that. That's led us to the final table, after more than three hours of play. But with seven players remaining, we're now desperate. With only 2,000 chips left, good cards may have come for us in the nick of time.

"I'm all-in, and I call," we tell the table. But an older man across from us (we'd guess at least 75) is distracted by what happened a few hands ago. A woman won a big pot from him, by staying in a hand he thought she should have avoided. After accusing her of "not knowing how to play," he seems to be on tilt. Yet he doesn't raise, and five players get in for the minimum.

ON THE FLOP: K-9-4 (third card may not be precise)

This doesn't look promising for us - and even less so when players start betting. The woman to our left offers (as best we recall) 3,000. The older man responds by going all-in.

"What are you going to do?" he asks us. Answer: sit and watch.

"I'm all-in," we remind Mr. Accuser. Other players have folded, except for the woman who has him bothered. She takes a moment to think about this.

"Hurry up. I've got to go home and feed the dog," the older man says. We can't resist laughing out loud at that line. The woman finally calls, and it's time to show our cards.

The woman at our left has J-9. The older man shoved with 9-2. She's in the lead thanks to her kicker, but we have two very live cards.

ON THE TURN: 8

This card helps no one - and leaves us at the brink.

ON THE RIVER: 2

Aw, c'mon! We get knocked out, but the older man gets an amazing escape by hitting a second pair. So he starts singing the chorus of "Old Man River" - and we almost join him on the final notes, as we shake his hand!

We leave in seventh place, on a night with only 16 players. But at least we can say we made a final table at a casino where big tournaments happen - and we leave with the funniest poker story we've had in a long time.

MINISTRY MOMENT: We carried our "Lord's Supper" card protector again, and showed it to a woman sitting next to us. "What do you think of Jesus?" we asked her. She seemed surprised by the question.

"I'm not sure what you mean," she said. "He did everything He came to do.... He came to save the world."

It turned out that woman and two others at our table admitted to having Jesus as their Savior. That's good. But is that saving work finished yet?

...God our Savior.... wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. - I Timothy 2:3-4

That's what God wants. But we fear that's one place where skeptics point fingers of doubt. If God is all-powerful, can't He achieve what He wants? Why have some notorious people died, seemingly without coming close to being saved?

The answer may sound strange, but it's this: God is not trying to save everyone now. It would be great if that happened, but it's not the plan....

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved.... - Romans 11:25-26

By "Israel," we think the apostle Paul refers to members of the "12 tribes" descended from Old Testament Israel (Romans 9:4/11:1). God has opened a way at this time for people outside those tribes to enter His family, while....

...The others were hardened, as it is written: "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes so that they could not see and ears so that they could not hear, to this very day." - Romans 11:7-8

If some of our posts about the Bible leave you puzzled or confused.... well, believe it or not, we understand your confusion. In fact, it may be part of God's grand plan. We'll explain more about that in an upcoming post.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 185 final tables in 508 nights (36.4%) - 37 cashes. This was our first final table since June; we'd missed five in a row.

A Redeeming Moment

A man at the poker table took a big loss. His stack of chips was quite low. But a few hands later, he went all-in and won. He more than doubled up.

"Redemption," he said with a sigh and a smile.

"Jesus Christ is my redemption," we said quietly in response.

We're not sure if anyone caught what we said. But do you catch it? What sort of redemption are we talking about?

"Redemption" is a big religious-sounding word. But it's an important word, that's all over the Bible in various forms....

Therefore, say to the Israelites: "I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment." - Exodus 6:6

The classic movie The Ten Commandments isn't 100-percent Biblical, but it told an ancient story of Israel coming out of Egypt. The nation was "redeemed" from slavery, with the goal of becoming servants of God. And yet the Bible also says....

O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins. - Psalm 130:7-8

Huh - redemption again? Yes, because this isn't from physical bondage. This is spiritual - about being redeemed from sin. And it's not only Israel that needs it:

...For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. - Romans 3:23-24

We all need to be redeemed from sin. If we aren't, we're doomed to eternal death (Hosea 13:14). But Jesus came to Earth to change all that....

When Jesus came.... he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. - Hebrews 9:11-12

If we might go deeper for a moment: we heard a preacher say recently that God the Father is "the redeemer", with Jesus the Son being "the redemption." And yet....

...Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. - Isaiah 60:16

Both "God" and Jesus Christ are described as "Savior" in the New Testament. So why can't they both be considered "Redeemer" as well? (Remember, Jesus was God who became flesh.)

Parsing of words aside, you can be redeemed from the death penalty through Jesus Christ. Will you accept Him, and take Him up on that great offer?

High hand, or high-handed?

Today we reach a milestone - 1,500 posts on this blog! That's something to celebrate, much like winning a big poker tournament.

If you want to win the tournament, you'll probably need to have the highest hand most of the time. If you win a pot with a royal flush, that's the highest hand of all.

But there's another kind of "high hand" that we're thinking about right now - and so are observing Christians and Jews. It's this one....

And they departed from Rameses in the first month, on the 15th day of the first month; on the morrow after the Passover the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians. - Numbers 33:3 (KJV)

It's easy to crack poker jokes about what this "high hand" might have been. A full house? Nope; the Israelites left their homes empty. A straight? Well, maybe - but they wandered around to get to the Red Sea.

But to be serious, we're in a season picturing the time when Israel was allowed to leave Egypt and head for the promised land. Other Bible translations say they went out "with boldness" or "defiantly." The English Standard Version says "triumphantly" - but the victory was only partially their doing.

The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. - Exodus  12:13

These were instructions from God. The Israelites did their part, marking homes with blood from sacrificed animals. Then God did His - striking dead the firstborn of all Egypt, and causing such anguish that the Egyptians were happy to get rid of a people which had been slaves.

Yet in our time, a third definition of "high hand" has developed. "Arrogant or arbitrary in manner" is how our hardbound dictionary defined someone who is "high-handed." That is something God does not want to see - even if you have a high hand at the table:

The fear of the Lord is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the forward mouth, do I hate. - Proverbs 8:13 (KJV)

Arrogance is linked here to pride. God wants your attitude to be exactly the opposite, when you play poker and live your life....

But he gives us more grace. This is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." - James 4:6

Some believers go so far as to eat unleavened bread (such as matzo or crackers) for seven days - what some call the "bread of humility."

So we're really celebrating a seven-day Biblical feast, more than we are 1,500 blog posts. But we're trying to do so with the right kind of "high hand" - thankful for God providing triumphs in our lives, from poker pots to victory over stubborn sins. We humbly thank all of you who take time to read these posts, and invite you to comment on where you're reading and what we can do better.

Poker Day 494: Show and Tell

It always helps a poker player to know what his opponent has. But let's face it - how often does that happen? Well, check what we encountered Friday at Kansas Star Casino....

BLINDS: 300/600

IN THE POCKET: Q-5 offsuit

If the blinds are this high, we've done pretty well. It's level seven, and we've won some nice pots to reach a high for the day of 11,500 chips. We honestly don't remember how many we had at this point. And we don't recall anyone raising pre-flop. We recall three players entering the hand, out of seven or eight at the table.

ON THE FLOP: Q-10-3

At this point in the tournament, top pair on the flop is nice. Out notes indicate we checked, then a woman to our left bets 1,300. A man to the right folds, but we call.

"I want to go play cards," the woman says (she means at some other casino table) - and turns over K-10! The rest of the table wonders what she's doing, since she has plenty of chips left.

"I'm sorry, I thought you were all in," she says to us. No, far from it. We have several thousand chips left - and we suddenly have a huge advantage which goes beyond top vs. second pair.

"I'm going to have to call the Tournament Director," the dealer says. While that woman comes over, the play continues....

ON THE TURN: A

We have first position, and we're neither showing nor telling what we have. Instead we bet 1,200. The woman seems resigned to her fate, and calls. As we recall, a flush threat was on the board at this point....

ON THE RIVER: A

....But that card settled that. Now we know we've won the pot. So we pretend to do some math, and bet 1,200 more. She calls. We show our Queen. We won a big pot. And the Tournament Director now makes her ruling.

"You'll have to take a ten-minute penalty," she tells the woman we beat. That woman still has a good-sized stack of chips - and now has time to go play "craps," as she put it.

When we win a big pot that way, we get the feeling it's going to be a good day for us. It wasn't easy, though, with a couple of all-in escapes from three tables down. But a big win with a pair of 6's allowed us to reach the final table with 13,500 chips!

Once we got there, a pursuit with A-8 lost. That forced us to push with A-5 - and while a 5 appeared on the board, another man made a pair of Kings to eliminate us. Out of 71 players, we finished in ninth place. That missed the money by two spots, but allowed us to match a final-table start to 2016 in live play.

MINISTRY MOMENT: We took our "Lord's Supper" card protector, which gained the attention of several people. One dealer figured out right away what it displayed.

"The church I attend will take that in about 11 weeks," we told him. "We only take it once a year."

That may come as a surprise to some people. In fact, we were in a congregation about a week earlier which takes communion at every worship service. Which approach is right?

We don't think the Bible gives a flat-out answer, but it offers some clues....

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, "This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.... Take care of them until the 14th day of the month...." - Exodus 12:1-2, 6

This was the mention of a Passover in the Bible (verse 11). A lamb was set aside and prepared for days, before the Israelites left Egypt. Many observant Jews still do something like this once a year, in the spring.

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover." - Luke 22:7-8

Jesus's physical heritage was Jewish, so He followed the ancient example.

And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer." - Luke 22:15

Instead of departing Egypt, Jesus was able to enter about 18 hours of personal darkness - with an arrest, persecution and crucifixion. Yet He took the Passover (or communion or "Lord's Supper") first - following tradition, but adding new symbols (verses 19-21).

For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. - I Corinthians 11:26

Jesus Christ died for us. The Bible leaves no doubt about that (I Thessalonians 4:14). "It's that big a deal," we told the dealer - something we don't think should be diminished by taking the Passover/Lord's Supper repeatedly. So we would ask: how big a deal is Jesus's sacrifice to you? And how big should it be?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 182 final tables in 494 games (36.8%), 36 cashes. We've finished 12th and ninth in our last two trips to Kansas Star, both in tournaments with 70-plus players.

From Am- to Pro?

Longtime readers know we learned to play poker in Columbus, Georgia. The city had a "free poker" circuit in bars (we always bought a soft drink as a courtesy), which was vibrant for a city its size.

But now, our old stomping ground may be ready for the "big time." In a surprise to us, the Columbus Council is asking the Georgia Legislature to approve a casino gambling bill. It would have to be approved by voters at the polls.

A few community leaders want to put a casino in a part of town which historically hasn't done well economically. Yet since we left, "Columbus South" (at least they used to try calling it that) has been improving. A Walmart SuperCenter opened at a busy intersection, and new motels have sprung up to support an Army post next door with an impressive museum.

The biggest surprise in the story we read about this proposal is that a Baptist pastor, who leads a local ministerial alliance, endorsed a casino vote. He explained people should have a right to vote on such things  "That's the only horse I have in this race," he said. (Your jokes about a horse racing analogy go here.)

We're sure other pastors would take issue with that view. They could reach for their Bibles to do it....

Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it." But the man who had gone up with him said, "We can't attack those people; they are stronger than we are." - Numbers 13:30-31

Here was a "referendum" on Israel entering the promised land. Two views were offered by people who had scouted the land. What did the people decide?

That night all the people of the community raised their voices and wept aloud.... And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt." - Numbers  14:1, 4

Their "vote" not only was no - it was for rejecting God's leadership of their wandering in the wilderness, and going back to a land where they were slaves to Pharaoh! The supporters of entering saw this reaction for what it really was:

If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord.... - Numbers 14:8-9

The Lord had set the agenda to this point - leading Israel to the brink of Canaan. God wanted to give it to the people (Numbers 13:1). But the people in effect voted no, rebelling against God. What was His reaction?

The Lord replied, "I have forgiven them, as you asked. Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth.... , not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to these forefathers. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it." - Numbers 14:20-22

Our point is this: put God's will up for a public vote, and the people will vote against it more often than not. That was true with ancient Israel (we could cite other examples), and many ministers would say that's true today with opening casinos.

We'll say more about this casino debate in a future post. But for now, to borrow from our outgoing President: Don't vote - obey. That sounds awfully simplistic, but history probably will be on your side.

All Give, No Take?

The inevitable question had come up about the strange card protector we were using.  We used it to refer to Jesus Christ -- and one player was a bit puzzled when we asked if he believed in Christ.

"I do," he said.  "But I have a hard time believing Jesus would be at a poker table, trying to take all my d**n chips."

This admittedly prompted some soul-searching on our part.  After all, God is a giving God.  And....

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. - John 3:16

God gave Jesus Christ for us.  But does that mean God never takes things from us -- even from loyal believers?  There's one big Biblical case which disproves that:

...."Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart.  The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."  In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. - Job 1:21-22

If Job had been a poker player, he would have been called deep-stacked.  He had massive holdings of livestock (verse 3) -- yet God allowed Satan to take all those blessings away from Job (verses 9-12), including the blessing of good health (2:4-6).  Technically God didn't do the taking, but He permitted it to happen.

God can take things away from us for other reasons as well....

The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them until the Lord removed them from his presence, as he had warned through all his servants the prophets.  So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there. - II Kings 17:22-23

The nation of Israel was in a very nice land -- but God took it away, because the people kept sinning.  So did the coming of Jesus (the Son of God) make things any different?  The Lord said no:

"Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit".... When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus's parables, they knew he was talking about them. - Matthew 21:43, 45

The Pharisees thought they were in line for God's future blessings.  But Jesus's parables (especially the one beginning in verse 33) warned them the blessings would be taken away.

So if you think of God and Jesus as keepers of a big "payoff window" ready to toss out gifts to poker players, you're missing the full picture.  They take things from us, as well.  A future post will examine what we should be ready to give up.

Poker Night 360: When Kings Go to Battle

Chris Berman noted during tonight's Monday Night Countdown second place on Election Day used to reward a U.S. Presidential candidate with the title of Vice President.  These days it doesn't.  Second place in a poker tournament might gain you a nice payday.  But what if you start somewhere around 22nd?  We face that every week at The Red Barn, so we need every big-name endorsement we can find....

BLINDS: 50/100

IN THE POCKET: K-K

A soda purchase gave us 2,000 extra chips, to start at 7,000.  But other players pay more to begin with 30,000 or more -- so careful play matters to us.  This high pocket pair in the is our best chance to make a move.  And a player ahead of us helps, by raising to 400.

"One-thousand more," we announce when our turn comes.  Three players call -- and we know from experience some of them could be speculating with iffy hands, because they can afford it.

ON THE FLOP: 3-5-9

We have the overpair, and we plan to exploit it.  When the play checks to us, we bet 1,000 again.  Two of our three opponents call.

ON THE TURN: 9

This puts a troublesome pair on the board, but we don't want to look weak.  We bet 1,000 more.  The two challengers call again.

ON THE RIVER: 8

We're now ready to hit the brakes, because we're wondering what our opponents are doing.  A man across from us checks -- and this time we check.  But a young man to our left tosses in 5,000!

"I have to call," says the man across from us.

Ooh boy.  We don't have 5,000 -- our stack is more like 3,150.

"I've got nothing, man."  Hmmm -- the young man to our left may have given us a huge clue.  He holds his cards up and out, like he'll fold any second.

"Are you going to call?"  asks the other man.

"I'm thinking about it," we answer -- and we mean it.  Our concern is that he has a 9 for a winning three of a kind.  After a moment, we decide.

"I'm going to fold."

So does the young man who acted like he would.  The pot-winner then turns over pocket Jacks!  We don't show our cards, but we guessed wrong and lost a big gain.

We tried again a few minutes later with A-K, and a man forced us all-in on the flop.  But he also had A-K, so we gained some chips back.  Then J-10 turned into top two pair on the river, and we were back above the starting level at 7,350.

But after the one-hour break, our attempts to get in small with semi-promising hands were beaten down by large pre-flop raises.  We finally went all-in again with A-7, and were happy to see an Ace on the flop.  But an 8 on the river gave a man with A-8 two pair, and turned our happiness into disappointment.  We left in a lowly 18th place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: "Happy Election Eve, everybody," we said when it was our turn to shuffle and deal the cards.

"Who do you want to win?" a man to our left asked.

"I'm not even registered to vote," we answered.

The man took that as a dodge of his question.  "Who do you want to win?"

"I gave my vote to a higher authority a long time ago," we explained.  "I'm letting God put the right people in office, because He's a lot wiser than I am."

Surprised?  We belong to a church association which preaches not getting involved in the politics of this world.  Even though we know a longtime member of our congregation who's told us of plans to vote, the official "party line" of our denomination is against it.  Why?

Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: "Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his.  He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them.  He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning." - Daniel 2:19-21

For years we understood this to mean God decides the rulers who are in authority -- whether they be kings, queens, the U.S. President or even your boss in the workplace.  But our pastor has changed that explanation since Barack Obama became President.  He's indicated God steps aside and lets the U.S. population have what it wants and deserves.  (The pastor has left little doubt he's pro-Republican.)

The thinking behind this goes all the way back to the first king of Israel....

So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah.  They said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead us such as all the other nations have...." And the Lord told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king." - I Samuel 8:4-7

Believe it or not, God didn't really want a "republic" or a "democracy" government.  He wanted to rule the people through prophets He appointed.  Admittedly, changing to that method today would cause all sorts of problems -- because all sorts of people claim to be "prophets" of God, sometimes teaching different things.

If you'd like to look further into this, review the magazine article we've been using for Bible study in this election season.  In the meantime, we leave you with this U.S. election riddle -- which stumped the Tournament Director when we asked it tonight:

Q.  What is the Republican Party's favorite book of the Bible in this election?

A. Deuter-Romney!

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 124 final tables in 360 nights (34.4%) - 19 cashes.

High-Handedness

This is a big week for Jews and practicing Christians -- the "Passover season," or the Days of Unleavened Bread. It marks the time when ancient Israel sounded like it was playing poker.

"And they departed from Rameses in the first month.... the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians." (Numbers 33:3, KJV)

We could have some fun joking about what sort of "high hand" the Israelites had:

* A full house? No, they left their homes (Ex. 12:37).

* A straight? No -- check a Bible map and you'll probably see their exodus was a rather wandering path.

* A flush? No -- because the pursuing Egyptian army was flushed away at the Red Sea (Ex. 14:27-20).

We're open to ideas on this, but we think Israel's "high hand" was simply a pair. Moses was the human leader. And the Lord brought His children out (Ex. 12:51), leading them with an interchangeable pillar of cloud and fire (Ex. 13:21).

As some ministers like to say: one person and God can make a majority. Make God your partner -- not only during the Spring Holy Day season, but all year long.

Heads-Up Week 1: When Moses Met Jesus

"He's known as Jesus. I'm Moses." So comedian Gabe Kaplan declared Sunday, on the opening week of NBC National Heads-Up Poker action.

And in what some might call an upset, Moses prevailed -- eliminating defending champion Chris "Jesus" Ferguson. And of all the days for NBC to show this: the middle of "Passover season" for Jews, and resurrection Sunday for many Christians.

Both names are Biblical figures, of course. But did you realize Moses isn't listed in the genealogy of Jesus?

Moses came from the tribe of Levi, according to Exodus 2. But Jesus came from a different tribe of Israel -- the tribe of Judah (Mt. 1:2-16).

Some religious groups have debated for centuries which line is better. But if Moses was alive today, we think he'd tell you Jesus is superior.

I Corinthians 10:2 says the Israelites "were all baptized into Moses" as they came out of Egypt. But they had a "spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ" (verse 4).

Moses won at the table today, but ultimately he can't save you. Jesus can. Which one is YOUR rock?