Kingdom Mentality

In our growth in Christ, we should all strive to be more disciplined, possessing a focus on the Lord and honoring Him in all things, as He gives us the power. In 1st Corinthians chapter 9, the apostle Paul uses two sporting analogies to underscore the importance of spiritual discipline; he writes:
24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.
25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.
26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air.
27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.

Antonio Vargas is a professional athlete - he is also a Christian, and strives to be disciplined in both areas.  A Movieguide article relates:

Pro boxer Antonio Vargas worships from the ring, but he told Sports Spectrum’s Matt Forte that he makes honoring God in all areas his lifestyle.

“God delivered me about 23, 24, and that’s why, every time you see me in the ring, I come out to Christian music,” Vargas said while on the podcast. “I worship. That’s not something I just do just to fight. It’s a lifestyle. In private, I don’t listen to worldly music. I watch what I hear. I watch what I see. I’m always guarding things, always reading scripture.”

He provides a Biblical perspective on his work, saying:

“My job as a fighter is to shine the light of Christ and to lead people to Christ because you see a lot of hypocrisy in the church and stuff like that, and I’m like, ‘Lord, I want to practice what I preach. I want to walk the walk,'” he declared.

The article noted how Vargas shares his faith on social media:

In a post he shared on Instagram, Vargas included Psalm 128:1-2: “Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in obedience to him. You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.”

“This is going to be a good year for me🙏🏼 All glory to my God, Jesus,” Vargas added in the caption.

Vargas put his faith into action in a recent fight; the Movieguide piece says:

In Vargas’ last fight, he was knocked to the ground in the second round.

“I’ve never been hurt like that in my life. I was hurt bad,” he told Sports Spectrum, adding, “But when I fell on the ground, I remember I said the name of Jesus. I’m like, ‘Jesus, help me.'”

Vargas got up, experiencing double vision and “wobbly” legs.

“This fear hit me,” he recalled. But then he prayed, “Lord, I know if I’ll make it out of this round.”

He went on to win the fight in the 10th round via a TKO - a technical knockout. 

Vargas possesses a Kingdom mindset (he uses the word on Instagram), a mindset that we should all strive to possess - he recognizes that his profession, his sport, is not something separate from his Christian walk, but that his faith in Christ should be integrated in all that he does. The Bible tells us that in whatever we do, we are to do it for the glory of God.

There is certainly a spiritual parallel here - Paul noted it in 1st Corinthians 9: we are all called to be fighters; Vargas actually is a physical fighter, but we have spiritual battles that we fight.  Fortunately, when the devil knocks us down and we may be tempted to give up or give in, we can rely on the depths of the resources that God makes available to us.  When the lies of fear and discouragement beset us, we can dig deeper into the well of living water that the Lord promises to us.