Games Back On?

Did you hear about the recent charity poker tournament in Wichita?

If you didn't, that may have been by design. When we spent a Monday night at Yvie's a couple of weeks ago, the Tournament Director referred to an approaching weekend charity event with a buy-in.
We didn't ask about it further, to avoid the appearance of prying. But we thought that sort of thing had been stopped by the local police a year ago.

On top of that, the old Arrowhead Poker has reopened as a private club. Its Facebook page says:

Winners Game Room is a private social club where patrons can enjoy a variety of games, billiards, and entertainment in an alcohol-free setting. Memberships are $10 per day. You can also buy a 20-visit pass for just $100.

A video clip posted by the owner in February indicates the "games" include poker. It didn't show any billiard tables.

So what happened here? Is a private club format legal, while the old "chair rental" approach was not? We admittedly don't know the law on such things. But we found what the Bible may say about it - and in rather grotesque terms:

As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. - Proverbs 26:11

In other words, some habits can be hard to break. People who want to get drunk or smoke marijuana will find ways to feed their "needs." Some poker players can be the same way - except poker players have other options. They can go to a casino for tournaments and cash games. They can play online for free. Why do something that risks getting in trouble with the law all over again?

Rather than return to questionable practices, the Bible recommends a different "rate of return"....

Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! - Hosea  14:1

You may have wandered away from God and not even realized it. Maybe not by playing poker, but by doing other things that violate His laws.

The Lord was very angry with your forefathers. Therefore tell the people: This is what the Lord Almighty says: "Return to me," declares the Lord Almighty, "and I will return to you," says the Lord Almighty. - Zechariah 1:2-3

Making that return isn't always easy. It can mean admitting you're wrong, and asking God for mercy. But the good news is....

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. - I John 1:9

That process starts by examining yourself and your life carefully. Are there areas where you've wandered off God's course? It's something we're personally doing right now, so you can do it as well. It could be the best move you've ever made - well, this side of going all-in with pocket Aces.

Sunday Slience

Something was telling us, "Go to Arrowhead at 1:00."  But no, this time we were doing due diligence. Today we checked the Facebook page for Winners Cardroom - not once, but several times. There were no posts since Saturday morning, so we felt comfortable driving there for the 4:00 p.m. tournament promised on the Winners website.

And when we arrived.... the doors were locked. No one else even showed up, as we waited until 4:15. The poker room, without any explanation, was closed.  But Arrowhead Poker apparently had its 1:00 p.m. game as usual, with cash games going hours later.

Once again we fell victim to a shifting schedule -- only this time, silence meant no game. The good news is we didn't lose any money. But we lost a bit of time making the drive, and missed out on an opportunity to share the things of God around the table.

Do you have times when it seems God is silent? When you ask for answers or guidance in life, and there doesn't seem to be a response?  We can relate to that, having gone through a couple of long searches for employment in an area where playing poker for a living wasn't an option.  At those times, we're reminded....

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. - Psalm 27:14

King David wrote those words, showing even "Bible All-Stars" faced times of waiting.  It even happened in New Testament times:

When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. - Acts 16:7

We're not told how this happened; there could have been everything from a vision to a hang-up with government paperwork.  But the apostle Paul went somewhere else, and then received instructions:

During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."  After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. - Acts 16:9-10

Wait in faith for an answer, praying to God for guidance, and we believe you'll eventually get it.  It could take awhile, but it will come.  In the meantime, we're enjoying s 73-cent "consolation cola" from a convenience store on a hot July day - a big cup we bought on the way home from the poker room.

Changing Times

"SUN 4P" said the sign outside Winners Cardroom, as we pulled in today around 3:53 p.m.  We walked in the door and saw "Crazy Pineapple, 4pm" on a whiteboard to the left.  A few steps later, a seven-day schedule said, "Player's Choice, 4pm."

But there was one big problem.  Today's big Sunday tournament actually began at 2:00 p.m. The final table was down to five players as we walked in.

We knew the schedule had changed - but not until we checked the poker room's Facebook page at 3:20 p.m.  Nothing had changed online, as of late Saturday night.  But we went in hopes of getting into a possible second tournament, following the first one.

"How are you?" the man behind the desk asked.

"I'm confused," we admitted. The man explained they'd decided to try something different, and he hoped enough players would stick around for a second tournament.

The big game ended with a four-way split of the money around 4:15 p.m. A second tournament was promoted on social media for 5:00 p.m., but that's a bit late for us given our current schedule. We went away, and did a little shopping on the way home.

If there's one thing which disappoints us about poker rooms in our city, it's this sort of inconsistency. We've learned to check websites on Saturday nights, if we want to play on Sunday afternoons -- but even in this case, it wasn't good enough.

Thankfully, we serve a God who's not like that most of the time:

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. - James 1:17

God made the sun and the moon (Genesis 1:16) - and with extremely rare exceptions, He's kept them on schedule.  Astronomers can tell you when the sun will set tonight, when it will rise tomorrow and when it will rise six months from tomorrow. There's an unchanging orderliness to that - something believers in evolution can't explain.

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

God's timing of things is trustworthy. But sadly, men tend not to be.

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. - Psalm 118:8-9

Even the best of humans eventually will let you down. We must have faith that God will not - because otherwise, what hope do we have?

The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. - Psalm  145:13b

May you be faithful with your promises as God is with His. And if you have to make a change, please try to spread about it as early as possible. That will be better for all of us.

Poker Night 441: An Epic Decision

"I guess we know who the singles are!"  That's what one man said Saturday night at Winner's Cardroom -- and he probably was right.  It was February 14, "Valentine's Day" for many -- and here we were in a poker room.

The Saturday night game at Winner's is $20 less expensive than a Sunday afternoon at Arrowhead Poker.  But the "holiday" (more on that later) meant a lot of players apparently were missing.  So we sat down for another one-table tournament, hoping to hang around long enough to win some money.

BLINDS: 200/400

IN THE POCKET: A-J of clubs

We haven't won a pot yet, although we could have -- throwing away 5-6 on the opening hand that would have made a straight.  Now we have high suited cards and the Dealer button.  When no one raises ahead of us at the table of eight, we raise to 1,200.  About four players are in.

ON THE FLOP: 7-2-2

"And that is an epic flop!" the professional dealer jokes.

"No one really expects that," one player admits.

So the players in front of us check - and we make a continuation bet of 1,100.  Two players fold, but a woman across from us calls.

ON THE TURN: 3

That card doesn't seem to enhance things.  The woman checks -- but we're wondering about that call, so we check as well.  Could she have a hidden pair?

ON THE RIVER: 5

It's not a blockbuster board at all -- but now the woman sets out 4,000 chips.  She could be trying to outbluff us, but somehow we don't think so.  After thinking it over for a moment, we fold.

"That was an epic flop," she now says - and she shows 7-7!  She scored a full house on the flop, then waited us out.  We're thankful it didn't cost us more than it did.

We finally won a couple of pots, including a double-up with K-K which turned around our evening.  We reached a high of 61,000 chips, as other players were knocked out.

Then with four players left, we had 3-4 in the Big Blind.  The flop was a lovely-looking 3-4-5.  After checking the flop, we went all-in on the turn -- and were called by a man with A-2!  He slowplayed us to our hurt as well, with a flopped straight.  The river brought no full house for us, and we went home in fourth place (only the top two earned money).

MINISTRY MOMENT: We intentionally did NOT try to have one.  The reason why goes back one year.

Regular readers will recall on Valentine's Day 2014, we went to a casino on a Friday night (an evening we turned into a three-part post).  For one week we broke the seventh-day Sabbath we normally keep fervently, because the church group we attend considers Valentine's pagan and wrong....

Thus says the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed by the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. - Jeremiah 10:2 (KJV)

That group had left the impression last year that any act of love on Valentine's was wrong.  And since it also teaches this....

This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.... - I John 5:3

....we logically concluded keeping the Sabbath commandment would be showing love, and thus be wrong.

But this year that church group's messages about Valentine's Day were scaled back a bit.  The emphasis was on showing acts of love all year long, instead of something special on February 14.  So we decided to have a "bare minimum" Saturday - keeping the Sabbath and even going to church to be obedient, but not doing anything that might be considered out of the ordinary and over the "holiday" line.

It turned out only one or two players brought up Valentine's Day in the poker room.  Only two of the eight players at the table wore red tops.  So this group wasn't really keeping that "holiday," either -- and we really couldn't complain about that.

But maybe you're confused by all this.  You may wonder what possibly could be wrong with a day set aside for "showing love," such as Valentine's Day.  We recommend carefully considering this blog post by a church pastor, with an open Bible and mind.  What "holidays" does God really consider, well, epic?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 159 final tables in 441 games (36.1%) - 26 cashes.  We've reached four final tables in a row.... even if only enough players show up for one table.

Poker Day 423: Fake or Double Take

"If you're learning, this is a good place to do it," one of the managers at Winners Cardroom told a couple of players leaving the table this afternoon.

"Or if you're a cheapskate, like me," we said to him half-jokingly.

We were at Winners because "freeroll fever" has struck local poker rooms -- with several games being played with no chair rental every week.  It means we can play as we once did in Georgia: paying only the cost of food, drinks and tips.  And on Sunday, there's money to be won -- as Winners pays $150 to the tournament champ.

But with other players paying $10 extra for a "double stack" of chips, we'd have to play carefully to gain an edge.  So we tried to strike early....

BLINDS: 100/200

IN THE POCKET: K-9 offsuit

It's the second hand of the day, and we have close to our starting amount at 11,400 chips (2,000 extra for arriving on time).  We have the dealer button.  No one at the full table is raising, so we dare to enter small.  Most of the table is in.

ON THE FLOP: 5-6-7

This 5-6-7 doesn't strike anyone as heaven.  Everyone checks -- and while we have a straight draw, we choose to do the same.

ON THE TURN: 3

That's a miss for us.  But the table checks again -- and since we're last to act, we can try what they call on TV a "stab at the pot."  We bet 700.

"Oh no, you might have a 4," a manager at the table declares as he folds.  Uh-huh.

A young man next to him says nothing - except to raise.  He goes up to 2,200.  The players between us get out of the way, leaving us with a tough decision.  Did he raise because he smelled (correctly) a bluff on our part?  Or is he trying to out-bluff us?  We think it's the latter.  And in a way, we have 10 outs (3 Kings, 3 9's, 4 8's) - so we dare to call.

ON THE RIVER: 8

Thank you very much!  We made the top straight.  Now we hope betting history repeats itself.  Our opponent checks.  We offer 700 again -- but this time, he simply calls.

"I didn't have the 4," we say as we slowly turn over the cards, "but I have a 9."

We never see what our opponent has - but we hit the river well, to take a pot of more than 5,000 chips.

We won a few other hands as well, including a timely deal of Q-Q which brought a third Queen on the flop.  But the cards went dry as blinds went up.  With 12 players left, we went all-in on the flop with A-K and a flop of K-3-J.  A man called us with J-9.  But of course.... a 9 came on the river.  His two pair prevailed, and we were eliminated in 12th place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: We took a small reflector light for our "card protector."  We told a man sitting to our left during the one-hour break we brought it as a reminder to reflect the light of Jesus Christ.

"What do you think of Jesus?" we asked.  "Is he your Savior?"

We might as well have asked the man to turn over his cards before the flop.  He said nothing, simply staring with his best poker face.

"I hope everyone believes in Jesus as their Savior," we said.  He still said nothing.

Maybe he didn't expect our question.  Or maybe he was reacting to Jesus as other people did long ago....

Then Jesus asked them, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they remained silent. - Mark 3:4

"They" were people in the synagogue -- probably Pharisees, who didn't respect what Jesus was doing (verses 1-2).  Jesus refused to back down:

He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. - Mark 3:5

The "Lord of the Sabbath" did a healing act in a synagogue on God's Sabbath day.  Then the crowd started talking....

Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. - Mark 3:6

There's a time when we should be silent when it comes to Jesus.  That time is in worshiping Him and God the Father....

But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him. - Habakkuk 2:20

But if you're silent when it comes to the simple (well, seemingly simple) question of believing in Jesus, that can be another matter.  God can track our thoughts -- so what is your silence about Him really saying?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 150 final tables in 423 games (35.5%), 25 cashes.  This was our first final table miss of the year, in six tries.

Poker Day 418: Omaha, Hike

There may have been competition before, when it comes to poker rooms in our city.  But there certainly is now.  After seeing a front-page ad in a weekly newspaper, today we went to Winners Cardroom - a room which has been open only about a month, and still had things being installed as we waited to play.

The set-up is similar to River City Card Room - with "free" tournaments every day, if you pay a $20 "chair rental."  One big difference is that food and drink costs money at Winners, instead of being free.  Another is that you can buy five "tip chips" to pay the dealer during the games, in exchange for 5,000 bonus chips.

Call us a cheapskate, but we plunked down only $20 to take our chances -- at what turned out to be a one-table "Dealer's Choice" affair:

BLINDS: 100/200

FORMAT: Omaha Hi/Lo

IN THE POCKET: 7-5-6-J

Someone else selected this format.  We certainly would not, because we've had no success at it.  But three connectors in a row seems "good to go" for us, so we call.  Keep in mind, Omaha rules only allow players to use two of their pocket cards in building hands -- and in "Hi/Lo," the highest and lowest hands will split the pot.

ON THE FLOP: 7-K-4

We have a pair, but hope for much more.  Our 5-6 gives us an open-ended straight draw.  We've lost a little of our starting stack, so we want to stick around.  As best we recall, a player to our left bet around 700, and we called.

ON THE TURN: 10

No, that's not it.  Now, as best we remember, the player to our left put out 1,200.  With that straight draw still possible, we call again -- as a man to our right who's already folded mumbles something about having a 9-8.  Uh-oh.  That would be a higher straight than ours.

ON THE RIVER: 3

That's it!  At least, we hope so.  Now we bet 1,000 (as best we recall).  A couple of people call.  Then we announce, "56 Straight."

Our two "hole cards" wind up succeeding!  The straight wins the "high" side of the pot.  Then the dealer declares we also have the "low" side -- apparently from the 5-6 joining with 3-4-10?! (We invite readers to help us understand this.)  We take every chip in play, and a pot in the thousands.

This started us on a run to take several hands in the first hour.  We reached a high of 50,000 chips (from a starting 15,100).  But then the winning stopped, as our chip stack slowly eroded due to rising blinds.

We stayed alive at one point on an all-in bet with three Jacks.  But then another Omaha hand came with five players remaining, and were forced to go all-in for our last 10,000 chips.  The cards gave up a club flush -- but our clubs were 3-2, and someone else had two higher clubs to defeat us.

On a day with an estimated 12 players floating in and out, we wound up fifth.  Only the top two players won money, but it still was a rather satisfying finish in a format we admittedly don't feel comfortable playing.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Before the game began, two men were talking about recent bad beats they had in cash games.  One man described having J-J, and feeling thrilled about a flop of J-10-10.  Then he was shocked to see 10-10 on the turn and river -- and another man with a King wound up with the better quads!

"That's a sign from God that's it's time to get out," the other man told him.  Interesting.

"But doesn't God give signs that things are going well?!" we asked moments later.

The man seemed reluctant to accept that -- but let's consider this issue.  Signs are discussed many times in the Bible.  Take this example given by Jesus:

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky.... - Matthew 24:30

If you saw this sign of Christ, what would your reaction be?  Would it be positive or negative?  Jesus continues:

....and all the nations of the earth will mourn.  They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. - Matthew 24:30b

The nations will mourn when they the sign of Jesus's second coming.  Why?  Probably because the nations as a whole have doubted God's existence, or didn't think the Bible meant what it said.  Yet those who believe in Jesus will have no reason to mourn....

And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. - Matthew 24:31

Other verses show God's "elect" will meet Jesus in the air, at His second coming (I Thessalonians 4:16-17) - and they'll live with the Lord forever.  The sign of the Son of Man will be absolutely positive for them.  So it comes down to a simple question: how do you look at Jesus -- and do you believe His promise about a second coming?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 146 final tables in 418 games (34.9%) - 24 cashes.  Today marked our first final table in the last six live tournaments, and the first since late September.