The Men of Iron Minute

by Chad Zueck | Director of Content Creation

The Boxer

I am a sucker for sports films! The sport doesn’t matter as much as the story. Usually, the story is why they made the movie, so I cannot go wrong. My wife and I sat down the other night, and as we scrolled through the numerous movie options in our subscription services, we landed upon the 2010 version of The Boxer. Just in case you’re wondering. It’s the Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale movie. The acting was on point, and the character development was remarkable. Christian Bale’s character, Dicky Eklund, portrayed a worn-out boxer that had fallen into substance abuse, and the younger brother, Wahlberg, with a career on the rise. Bale’s acting leaves the audience in no doubt of how bad his addiction truly is and how his dysfunctional family played the enabler. It’s a tragic tale of how addiction breaks hearts and ruins lives with a redemptive twist.

Dicky’s inability to move beyond his past is as sad as his crack addiction. His boxing career didn’t pan out as projected, so he created a narrative of a “comeback” to resurrect his path to fame. Enablers kept the dream alive by feeding into the myth. This movie is based on a true story, and the challenge for every man to move beyond his past is equally true. A worldly conspiracy looms, calling us to believe we can never be as good as our best day, and further, you can never recover from your worst day. Both lies.

Praise God for our best days, and praise God that his grace covers us on our worst days.

His grace sufficiently covers both.

Be a mentor.

Find a mentor.

Be a better man.

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