206 replies to this topic

[Edcoach]

It's amazing how God sometimes nudges us and says "Hey, dont forget about me!!" It sounds like he may have been doing that a bit to you, Daniel. I dont believe you have to apologize for your beliefs or sounding preachy. You have a huge stage and a huge audience with immense popularity around the world. This could be one of the reasons God has blessed you with the talents you have. Who knows, Im sure you have probably already, with your faith and your message, touched many lives and led people to Christ without even knowing it. I believe actions speak louder than words and your actions speak very loudly for you, hence your amazing popularity. It sounds to me like you have righted the ship and 2007 WILL be a great year for you!!

God Bless

Ed

[socalpoker_j]

DN, its always important to recognize what we value most and to remember that this should be first priority in our lives. Often times in the "shuffle" of life what is most important to us can be lost in our problems, concerns, and even our accomplishments. It's great to know that you are making God first priority in your life as this will surely pay dividends that are of more significant worth than any poker tournament you could win or award you could receive.

It takes a man to recognize when he is deficient in an area, and I congratulate you on recognizing that. Maybe set some time aside every morning with a good devotional or even something like Rob Bell's DVD series which has helped me gain the right perspective on life lately. Finally, this verse in II Cor 4:16-18 always encourages me when I'm in a "rut":


"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 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."

Be encouraged and God Bless.

[nutzbuster]

In fact, I'm going home. I'm going home tomorrow. Unfortunately, Lori won't be there for the couple days I'm home before Tunica, but I just need to recharge my batteries nonetheless.

Wow....totally picked up on that you seemed down. Figured it was just all the traveling. No one is immune to that. Part of why I wrote in the Aussie blog that there was no way I could stay away from my wife/home for that long. All that flying, getting older, missing my wife, etc. As much as poker tour life seems enviable, that would not be for me.

I also applaud your religious candor Daniel. Let the flamers have their way if they will, but I doubt they will. I find it refreshing and inspiring.

As always, best to you, Lori and your family throughout '07.

Travel safe!

[The Czar]

Probably feels good to get this off your chest, time to move on now and clear your mind. Regardless of others beliefs, they should respect yours. Your candor has been refreshing. gl the rest of '07.

</seriousness>

Now tell God it's OK to allow you to suckout once in a while, even if the decision is wrong.

[Balloon guy]

Get some guys togther and start a small men's group.

I've been meeting with 4 other guys for about 10 months now. We take turns doing the study, and we pray for each other each day. We also call each other and keep each other accountable.

I love my wife and love praying with her etc, but I need a man's perspective to tell me why I am a bonehead sometimes. Plus I am forced every few weeks to find a section of Bible and study it so I can teach it to he others.

We also spent a few months and did the Purpose Driven Life. And we golf together, and we all smoke cigars.


Small men's group studies are the bomb.

I would imagine though that you would have a harder time finding 3 or 4 guys that can relate to you, and also understand what you have to deal with with media, etc.

Good luck

[seriousjoker]

God is important to me. Without God, I am nothing.My life is better when I make God the center of it. When I don't, regardless of any tournament success or accolades, I just can't be happy unless I feel like I'm at a good place with God. Without a close, personal relationship with God, happiness would be impossible.
I just rearranged your lines and put them together. You should put those words in a frame and hang them in your room and have a copy of it in your wallet where you can see it everyday.You can rearrange them the way you like it or add a few more lines to it.
Make that your Life's 101.
You are obviously on the right track; You know what's wrong, and you know exactly what to do to fix it.
I don't believe in a god of religion myself, but that what works for me and I couldn't be happier any other way and you should do what works for you.

[mario_kelly]

First off DN I must say we are lucky to be able to read your thought and the fact you felt the need to post that showes how you carel. I am personally not religious but can read what you said and can take away alot from it. I think alot of us just think of you as a poker player and want you to go make countless final tables but we dont realize there is much more to the person.
Thanks for taking the time to post this and we are lucky to be able to read and then use what u say for our own ideas on thoes topics.
Thanks again
best of luck in 07 and the future.

[Oziumrules]

Great Blog D. Without God in my life, I dont know where I would be. We all forget sometimes how important the Lord is in our lives and it is easy with all of distractions in this world to put God on the backburner. But remember, God is always there for us and recognizing the fact you are missing your relationship with God will only make you a better person.

God Bless & Good Luck in Tunica.

[BigSlickColorado]

Daniel,

I play a weekly game with a bunch of great Christian guys...we respect you, your heart, and desire to pursue God "when the chips are down". We'd like to commit to pray for you - if that's cool with you...just let us know (somehow) how things are going and what we can do to encourage you.

Proverbs 27:17, "Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

Peace to you,


Brian Beatty
Colo Springs, CO
brian@kaizencreative.com

[rahula]

Daniel,

Though I am a Buddhist, I admire your courage to admit your faults and your faith in God. One thing I picked up on was the conversations you had with friends and the openness about yours and their faith even though there was a difference in opinion. That's a rare thing. I moderate an inter-faith message board and it can get really heated, but at the end of the day, we have to resolve to respect each other's views. I'm glad you are also an open-minded person.

Keep your chin up buddy!

I support you.

Peace...

rahula

[Mr Baiter]

DN, as a first timer poster (and I hope you read this), every human being on this planet has the right to believe in whatever they want (even though that right is does not exist openly for some). Perry and the guys you hang out with are class acts, ackowledging the differences we all have. To the point, you feel you've lost touch with your beliefs, could you consider you've lost touch with yourself? We all have moments in time where we feel we've lost something within our belief system, but look at your inner self first and the rest will come naturally based on your beliefs and the good person you are.

Expressing your feelings for Lori even as much as "a little" on this blog is who you may be missing more, and it's natural to feel down about it especially while being so far away. My daughter is considering moving to Perth, AU with an Australian and move sometime in April of this year. It can be depressing at times knowing how often we'll get to see her in the future, but looking witihin our heart at the love we have for her and knowing she will be safe gets us through it (sometimes even with a little prayer).

When you get back to Vegas, soak in the environment you've become accustom to and see how it will lift your spirits. The distractions you dealt with in AU will continue, but eventually will go away once you are able to deal with "this is who I am". Most of us have had your kind of emotional swing that has made our "game time" decisions a bad one. Just because you are near the top of your profession doesn't exempt you from your own feelings.

I look forward to following you in Tunica and seeing you climb the leader board.
Peace.

[showstopper24]

hopefully Daniel's time at home will help him feel better because this blog is completley different than his wpt bellagio blog

[socalpoker_j]

Get some guys togther and start a small men's group.

I've been meeting with 4 other guys for about 10 months now. We take turns doing the study, and we pray for each other each day. We also call each other and keep each other accountable.

I love my wife and love praying with her etc, but I need a man's perspective to tell me why I am a bonehead sometimes. Plus I am forced every few weeks to find a section of Bible and study it so I can teach it to he others.

We also spent a few months and did the Purpose Driven Life. And we golf together, and we all smoke cigars.
Small men's group studies are the bomb.

I would imagine though that you would have a harder time finding 3 or 4 guys that can relate to you, and also understand what you have to deal with with media, etc.

Good luck

You make some huge points. Having an accountability "partner/buddy" etc really does make a difference and it doesn't have to be all stuffy and proper.

[hockey fan]

Excellent blog....very open and honest.
You struck a chord with me because I have been feeling very much the same as you lately.
Like you, I need to re-assess my priorities because I know they aren't right.

You've at least gotten me to think about this seriously, even though I know I should have before.
No time like the present to try and set things right.

Good luck in your pursuit Daniel....and thanks for the wake-up call!

[Zagara]

Daniel,

I admire the courage it takes to post this kind of blog for everyone in the world to see. It's not easy to do when you're a small-time blogger with a limited number of readers. I can't imagine doing it with the number of readers your blog gets. It's just another reason that I admire you and your play. Good luck, God bless, and know that prayers are coming your way.

Katelyn

[darkrider88]

It takes two large ones to type up a blog like that and post it online, and I can only respect you more for it. I would wish you good luck, but that assumes that there is luck involved in what you described. Keep it real DN.

[Seattleallstar]

thanks for the blog man. It too made me realize that ive been caught up in other bs, that God got lost in the shuffle of other selfish needs and goals.

Thanks Daniel!

[reyho]

This was a very insightful and personal relection from Daniel. I hope you find the right balance in your life and this blog is hopefully a positive step forward. Reading about all the gambling and money being tossed around it would be very easy to get eaten up by that lifestyle. Glad to read you have a solid and grounded perspective on the big picture.

[Bohica]

I enjoyed the blog immensely Daniel.

I am not a "practicing" religious person, but that doesn't mean I don't have faith. And, I only wish I had people with whom I could share my feelings (other than my wife).

I applaud you for speaking your mind, because it is your life after all....and your blog. If you feel the need to vent, or share something about your life, so be it!!

Never let anyone question your motivation, or your right to share your feelings & thoughts with us.

Thank you again, and good luck from here on out.

[Babkanoosh]

Wow Daniel,
I cant describe how I feel about your recent posting on your blog cause it actually brought me to my knees. Not only for you, but for myself as I have lost sight of what is truly important in this life, the Lord Jesus Christ! This is my first post, but I will read your blog now as I have never in the past. I am not much of a blogger, or a forum junkie. I play a ton of poker (no where near your lvl of course) and struggle with guilt over it. But I think most of my struggles come from an inner battle over putting self before God. I do this quite frequently as I am a selfish individual that from time to time thinks he doesnt need God's help or guidance. I am also a perfectionist and when I am not doing things God's way get frustrated and tend to tail off. Your blog has brought me to my senses, so while you may think you are in the worst position you have ever been in as far as your relationship with the Lord, you helped a sinful, selfish man come back to the Lord. Your insight into your own life so mimicked thoughts that I have suppressed for so long that I almost couldnt finish reading it. It was very touching and personal to me, so just realize while you were trying to avoid sounding preachy, it preached to me and maybe just maybe I can get my rear end back on track.

Thanks for the great post and God Bless

P.S. I will be praying for you as I hope you will for me

Babkanoosh (screen name on Pokerstarz)