Why Jesus is the best boxer of all time (and bragging about sports is useless)

Houdini, our goat, broke free from her pen — again.

“I’ll rope her,” I told my mom as I cupped my hands over a purple training lasso given to me by our neighbor, Speed Williams—an eight-time World Champion Team Roper.

“You can’t rope that goat.”

But I did. I bound Houdini.

To this day, roping our goat is my greatest athletic accomplishment. I still brag about it, despite knowing how pathetic it is.

How often do we brag about useless achievements, though? A lot. I brag about my favorite sports teams; I brag about articles I’ve written and the publications that ran my stories.

Our world is full of useless bragging. As Christians, we should remember what’s worth our praise.

Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” — 1 Corinthians 1:31

Football season is underway. A week ago, I watched last year’s Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots, take on the Kansas City Chiefs at home. The pregame was a tribute to the franchise’s successes.

The Patriots' achievements are impressive. They won their eighth consecutive division title last season.

But as I watched, I couldn’t help thinking of the ridiculousness of our bragging. What good is it to boast about something that won’t last?

One day, the teams we cheer on and the trophies we hold high will crumble under the strangling hands of time.

When Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather had a fisticuff August 26 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, ticket sales brought in more than $55 million. Pay-per-view watchers threw another several million into the ring.

There’s only one real champion in history, though — Jesus. None are worthy of His crown. None deserve His throne. He alone is deserving of our time, money and attention.

No other has entered the ring with death and walked out victorious. Death can, has, and will knock out any who step into its ring without Christ.

Floyd Mayweather can’t dodge death without Christ; Tom Brady can’t outplay the Grim Reaper.

In the end, the only thing worth bragging about is our Lord. Our boasting and pride should be about His goodness and accomplishments.

Everything else is goat roping.