Poker Night 322: A Wing and a Pair

Big Dog Poker has a new Sunday night "free spot" -- Mr. Wing Sports Grill, near St. Francis Hospital in Columbus.  Since it was a rainy Sunday with little else to do and our schedule for this week is a bit different, we stopped by tonight.

The "grand opening" sign was out, the service was outstanding (we received a soda refill for the road without even asking) and a man at our table praised the chicken wings.  In short, the place impressed us.  Maybe a bit too much, judging from a few hands we played....

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: 10 of hearts - 10 of diamonds

We're in the Big Blind, early in the game.  After a modest loss with a missed flop, we have 5,500 chips when the blind is removed.  No one at this full table raises, and the play has been tame so far.  Would you elect to turn up the heat, seeing this nice pocket pair?  We're tempted, but we decide after a moment to check and "play possum."

ON THE FLOP: 5s-5c-Ac

We wanted to see numbers here, not letters.  We have two pair with a "top kicker," but that kicker could be something anyone is holding.  The small blind checks, and we decide to semi-bluff to test the waters.  We bet 300, and several players call.

ON THE TURN: 7c

This card seems harmless to us.  But we're still puzzled by what our opponents have, so we check.  A man across the table spreads out 700.  This might be a signal to some players to fold, but something tells us to press on.  We call, as do one or two others.  "No club," a man then says.

ON THE RIVER: Jd

Wish granted for him.  Not really for us.  We now feel seriously defeated, so we check again.  The earlier bettor offers 1,300 -- and we wonder to ourselves what we were thinking earlier.  Playing firm and stubborn seemingly got us nowhere here.  We fold.  Someone else calls -- and the bettor shows Kc-2c.

It's admittedly not a good excuse, but the poker tables at Mr. Wing were set up around big-screen TV's.  The action on two screens distracted us at times.  (Have you ever played poker to The Cleveland Show?)  So we never realized three cards for a flush were showing.  That man hit it.  At least we minimized our losses.

We thought an early exit was looming, as another big loss dropped us to about 1,200 chips.  But then good cards came to win us a couple of all-in bets.  We rebuilt to 3,350, then missed with A-J and dropped to 1,550 at the one-hour break.  Then came one of those second-hour comebacks, as a couple of pushes paid off to get us to 6,500.  Two more pot wins (including a "Big Blind Special" with 10-5 bringing two pair on the flop) and we reached the final table with 17,000.

But with seven players left, we had a Queen in the Big Blind and saw Q-8-4 on the flop.  We went for it, pushing again with top pair.  A man across the table didn't hesitate to call -- then showed 8-8.  His three of a kind took another player out with us.  Yet a night of ups and downs ended on an uptick, as we wound up tied for sixth place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Our small bottle of Liquid Paper was back on the table tonight as a card protector.  We told a man to our left, "I brought this to remind me that Jesus can wash my sins whiter than snow?"

That man then asked an excellent question.  "Do you need the bottle to remind you of that?"

We paused for a moment -- then confessed.  No, we really don't need that bottle.  But we're aware some people wear crosses around their necks as a symbol of their commitment to Christ.  The idea actually goes all the way back to ancient Israel.

The Lord said to Moses, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them, 'Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel.  You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the Lord, that you may obey and not prostitute yourselves by going after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes.'" - Numbers 15:37-39

Let's open the blog for discussion on this.  Do you carry something as a reminder of your relationship with God and Jesus Christ?  Do you intentionally avoid doing such things?  Why or why not?  We'll look more closely at this in an upcoming post.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 114 final tables in 322 nights (35.4%) - 17 cashes.  The "first of the week" game succeeds again, with six final tables in the last eight on Sunday through Wednesday nights.

Where's the Evidence?

Let's head back to Thursday night's lively discussion with an admitted skeptic of religious things.  Among other things, the woman declared, "I wake myself up every morning."

If this woman has power over her own sleep, we find that amazing.  We're more inclined to believe what the apostle Paul said before an audience of skeptics:

For in him we live and move and have our being.... - Acts 17:28

One man pointed to life itself, as a proof of God's existence.  We know of no scientist who's been able to accomplish this feat....

The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. - Genesis 2:7

In a tournament, poker players can fulfill a cliche and "come back from the dead" -- except they do it through "re-buys" or multiple double-ups.  You don't see actual corpses playing in tournaments.  Someone would have to give their bodies life to do that.  While CPR can save lives, it can't resurrect truly dead people.

It was fascinating to watch other people at the poker table take our viewpoint when it comes to the existence of God, while we sat back and waited for a moment to comment.  (In fact, it was a lot like the poker strategy of those players that night.)  One man noted how he rescued someone years ago by picking up a car, through some sort of "superhuman strength."

"That's adrenaline!" the skeptical woman countered - contending "Jesus" didn't pick up the car.  Yet note these words of Jesus from Scripture:

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing.  He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. - John 14:12

We do not take this as a guarantee faith in Jesus will turn you into Superman or Wonder Woman.  Jesus's primary mission was to preach the gospel of the coming Kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-15) -- then live out the Bible's message by becoming our Savior.  Believers might accomplish things Jesus never did.  (Perhaps even blog about Him on the Internet?!)

Another man finally brought up the words of that great (ahem) U.S. philosopher, D.L. Hugley.  The stand-up comic once said if you believe in God and nothing happens after you die, it's no great loss.  But if you don't believe and wake up in a judgment, what will you say then?

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. - II Corinthians 5:10

We're not finished with this discussion, and we'll have more in an upcoming post.  But in the meantime, we found an online article offering several proofs of God's existence.  Do you agree with them?  If not, why not?  And how would you answer our table skeptic?

Two for Nothing

We won an online poker tournament at National League of Poker today, for the second time in 60 days!

Here's a screenshot of the decisive moment, as we topped 40 other players and won with 7-9.  But we have to admit there was a catch or two:

• It was a qualifier for the monthly "Poker Studs Championship" in the last week of June.  The top ten automatically qualified.
• The winner claimed more than 9,000 NLOP points - but no money.  (This explains our title, because that was also the situation in April.)
• Because of those facts, everything at the final table was a bit like "garbage time" in basketball.  Some players bet big with relatively little.
• Two of the final four players we eliminated (including "Smoker" defeated in the final hand) apparently left the table early.  Their hands "auto-folded" when we challenged them.  So all we had to do was "drain the pool" to win.

But we did rally from about ninth place at the start of the ten-seat final table.  And we even had to overcome an NLOP computer freeze at "three-to-go," which seems to happen to us every other day these days.  And in heads-up play (albeit against a player who had left), we won 17 pots in a row!  The streak ended with identical hands, and an "all-in" tie.

So all in all, we say a win is a win is a win.  Thank God for even little wins!

Poker Night 321: Heavy Artillery

"If anyone ever hits you in the face about God, send him to me."  That's what a man across the table said to us, before play began tonight at Lil Kim's Cove.  We tried to tell him Christianity isn't supposed to work that way.  But once the poker tournament is on, sometimes you do see a need to fight fire with fire:

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: A-9 offsuit

Our table is betting big and early -- which we take as a sign a critical basketball game is on TV.  Two players already have pushed themselves over the cliff and out to the rail.  But we've been biding our time, waiting for a good hand.  When a player raises to 300, we decide this could be it.  We call, and about five players get in.

ON THE FLOP: 4-7-9

An ugly flop to some, but good-looking to us -- top pair with a top kicker.  A man across from us who likes to bet big tosses in 1,000.  We see no reason to object.  We call; everyone else bails out.

ON THE TURN: 9

Three of a kind makes us feel downright dangerous - especially because we don't think our opponent has anything more than a high pocket pair.  He bets 1,500.  We shake our head no, and double to 3,000.

"How much do you have?" the man asks us.  We've dealt with him at local tournaments before, so this is no surprise.  His tendency is to make huge bets, to force big decisions from opponents.  Now he's answered our raise by going all-in.

"I have 2,650," we say after a count.  We call, and see no reason to turn this into a Western movie drama.  "Three 9's with an Ace."

Our opponent looks stunned for a moment, then slowly shows what he has: 9 -- with an Ace.  We have matching hands!  And with no flush threat for either of us, the river card doesn't matter.  A split of the pot means a gain of about 600 for us -- but oh, what might have been.

The big betting continued throughout the first hour, and we were right to lay low -- even folding A-Q pre-flop when several players bet 5,000.  (It would have lost.)  We finally emerged with suited connectors, but lost a lot of chips when we missed a flush draw.  Near the one-hour mark we tried A-8, then was forced all-in after seeing a flop of Q-8-2.  But true to the mood of the table, an opponent topped us -- with three 2's!  Bad timing left us eliminated in 24th place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Our game was overshadowed by unquestionably the most robust religious discussion we've ever had in a poker room.  And it all started when a woman to our right asked about the little bottle of Liquid Paper we used as a card protector.

"I brought this to remind me," we explained while shuffling the cards to deal, "Jesus can wash my sins whiter than snow [Isaiah 1:18].  Do you believe in Jesus?"

"Actually, I don't believe," the woman answered.  "Show me the proof.  There's no proof He lived."

"There's all sorts of proof."  This comment didn't come from us -- but from the man across the table who had offered to come to our defense in a fight.  (Thankfully, no punches were thrown during the discussion.)  Yet his support for his claim sounded curious to us.  "There are pieces of the ark...."

There are?!  We thought Noah's ark and the "ark of the covenant" were missing pieces of Biblical history -- despite occasional expeditions to Turkey and that Indiana Jones movie.

Then a woman sitting to our left spoke up.  "I'm not into God at all, but I believe."

That's indeed a nice start.  But consider these words from the New Testament:

You believe that there is one God.  Good!  Even the demons believe that -- and shudder. - James 2:19

The Bible indicates demons are "fallen angels," who sided with Satan long ago in a heavenly insurrection:

The great dragon was hurled down -- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.  He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. - Revelation 12:9

God wants a belief that goes beyond "fair-weather friendship," or waiting for the opportune moment to do something like pot-stealing.  Jesus summarized it in terms of two great commandments....

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.  The second is this: "Love your neighbor as yourself."  There is no commandment greater than these. - Mark 12:30-31

Now that's what "going all-in" really means, from a heavenly perspective.  But none of that would impress the skeptic to our right.

"I wake myself up every morning," she maintained.  "When I die, I know death is all there'll be."

How would you respond to this firm non-believer?  We'll get back to this lively chat in a future post.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 113 final tables in 321 nights (35.2%) - 17 cashes.

We've been doing well at tournaments early in the week (five final tables in the last seven), but haven't reached the final table at Lil Kim's since 1 March.

NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Full tournaments - 232 point wins in 980 games (23.7%), 74 final tables, 7 cashes plus 1 other win. No-River Hold 'em - 5 point wins in 32 games (15.6%), 4 final tables, 1 win.

We had a sixth-place finish out of 61 players in a monthly qualifier Tuesday.  But sadly, two other point wins came in games where the NLOP browser froze (in one case three times) - which seems to be a common problem for other players.

POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Pretend cash games - $79,421, up $561.

First to Act

Let's head back to that pre-game discussion about God from the other night.  A man noted the challenge of attempting to believe in something you can't easily see.

"Besides," he added, "how do we know Buddha wasn't the first god?"

The answer to that can be found in history.  Researchers agree the ancient Buddha was alive and teaching about 2,500 years ago.  The roots of Judeo-Christian faith have been around much longer.  Take this example....

Because they had been unfaithful to the Lord, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem in the fifth year of King Rehoboam. - II Chronicles 12:2

When was Shishak on the throne?  Archeologists who research these things (and know much more about it than we do) believe he was in charge around 925 B.C.  Rehoboam was the successor to King Solomon (I Kings 11:41-43) -- a leader who had several personal encounters with God (I Kings 9:1-2).  So this is a God who predates Buddha by hundreds of years.

But beyond the historical record, there's that matter of faith.  Faith that says....

Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. - Psalm 90:2

How could God be around before there was a world?  Many have asked that question through the centuries.  It's a mystery waiting to be revealed after God sends His Son back to Earth.

My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. - Colossians 2:2-3

Isaiah 55:9 adds God's ways are "higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."  Are you prepared to have faith to trust God to reveal Himself -- at the time and schedule He considers best?

Poker Night 320: Slow and Go

Monday was a time for Kings and Queens - in some places, at least.  Britain celebrated Queen Elizabeth's 60th anniversary on the throne.  Then Monday night, the Los Angeles Kings moved within one game of their first Stanley Cup hockey title.  But we lost a hand with pocket Kings at The Red Barn, when a woman made three of a kind with 9's.  An earlier hand was a little bit loftier....

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: A-A

A big bet on the turn chased us off a potentially winning flush on the river in an early hand.  That reduced our starting stack of 7,000 to about 5,800.  But here's our chance for a comeback.  Sitting second in line, we limp in and wait for players with bigger stacks to make confident raises.  Too bad - no one does.  But most of the table calls.

ON THE FLOP: 7-8-9

Uh-oh, here's potential trouble -- three cards in a run.  But the play checks to us, allowing us to offer a guessing-game 600.  A few players fold, perhaps thinking we caught a straight.  But about three others call.

ON THE TURN: A

That's safely out of the "straight road," giving us three of a kind.  Players in front check again, so now we increase the bet to 1,200.  Two players don't seem thrilled about it, but they call anyway.  The lack of a raise leads us to think they're "on draws," and don't have the straight already.

ON THE RIVER: A

Whoa -- we didn't expect that!  We now beat any potential straight with top quads!  The play checks before us again, and we decide 2,000 is the right amount to maximize our profits.  A woman calls; a man folds.

"You have an Ace," a man out of the hand predicts in our direction.

"No," we answer. "I have two of them."

We show our quads; the woman indeed was on a straight draw, with at least a Jack (we think it was J-6).  The quads give us not only a big pot, but a 5,000-chip bonus -- plus compliments from a couple of players for how we slow-played a monster hand.

Another pot of two came our way, allowing us to reach the one-hour break at 15,025 chips.  Then things looked bleak, as due to missed flops and players making huge bets to force all-in decisions.  But a push with A-Q brought a pair of Queens, to restore us to 18,000.  Then we were invited to move to the other semifinal table, and took a modest pot there.

That brought us to the final table with 25,000 chips.  But another all-in moment with A-Q fell short, when the board didn't pair for us.  We finished the evening satisfied with another "mountain climb" against larger beverage-bought stacks, and a seventh-place finish.

MINISTRY MOMENT: An interesting discussion developed before the tournament when a man across the table mentioned how he'd like to die a certain way.

"And then what?" we asked -- borrowing a line from a Christian radio broadcast we heard recently.

The man admitted he didn't know for sure, but offered to mention something he saw "in a book."  We noted we have ideas as well, from "a good book."  For instance:

Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.... - Hebrews 9:27

"But how do you know your book is better than any other book?" the man asked.  "I think there's only one God...."

"I agree with you," we answered.  "There's only one God."  Our "good book" mentions that, too:

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. - Deuteronomy 6:4

"You're trying to draw me in," the man said a bit defensively.  "It's just hard to believe in something you can't see."  He's correct about that, too.  That's why the Bible also says:

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. - Hebrews 11:1

We're reminded of a line from Paul Stookey's classic 1970s tune The Wedding Song: "Do you believe in something that you've never seen before?"  He's referring to marital love -- but the same sort of belief is involving in accepting God and Jesus Christ as your Savior.

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. - II Corinthians 4:18

(There was more to this discussion; we'll continue it in a future post.)


UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 113 final tables in 320 nights (35.3%) - 17 cashes.  We'd normally pause at this point for a 20-game update on our live tournament play.  But we're going to postpone that for a few days; you'll understand why when the update appears.

Take a Bow

Before play began at a live tournament the other night, a man to our left did something unusual.  He lowered his head toward us a couple of times, palms down toward the table.

Some people might have soaked in that moment of attention, and begged for more.  We didn't.  Instead we responded by saying, "I am not worthy, I am not worthy" -- the sort of phrase you'd expect the other man to say as he bowed.

Why did we say that?  Because we have nothing to deserve people bowing at our feet -- poker players or otherwise.  Besides, we remembered a similar case at the end of the Bible.

I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things.  And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me.  But he said to me, "Do not do it!  I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book.  Worship God!" - Revelation 22:8-9

John had amazing visions in Revelation -- including the judgment throne of God and the lowering of the "new Jerusalem" from heaven to earth.  He was awe-struck, as probably anyone would be.

But this actually marked the second time in Revelation that John was corrected on his worshipful response toward an angel....

At this I fell at his feet to worship him.  But he said to me, "Do not do it!  I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus.  Worship God!  For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. - Revelation 19:10

If we're not supposed to worship angels, why should anyone even think to worship humans?  Yet it happens throughout our world.  The World Series of Poker which began this past week is likely to provide new champions and "stars" that other players will want to emulate.  But there's only One who's truly worthy of our worship.

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. - Psalms 95:6-7

Christians are simply ordinary people who have come to see their need for an extraordinary God and Savior -- and who live their lives praising and worshiping Him.