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And David avoided out of his presence….1 Samuel 18:11

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is considered one of the greatest boxers of all time. He is one of only a handful of boxers to have a perfect record.

His record is 50-0.

However, some of Mayweather’s critics, students of boxing and other purists often seek to discredit his achievements by pointing out that Mayweather has only won 27 of his fights by knockouts. They contend that makes him less impressive than someone, say like Rocky Marciano--who won 43 of his 49 fights by knockout.

I have two words for all of those in any of the aforementioned groups: who cares? A win is a win!

One of the lessons that we can learn from Mr. Mayweather is that there is an equally (and perhaps more effective) methodology for racking up wins in life. You can win by knocking someone out. But you can also win if you avoid getting knocked out!

According to one calculation, Mayweather’s opponents only landed 17% of the punches that they threw at him during his career. That is a significant statistic. My older brother Jonathan (who used to box) tells me that the single greatest expenditure of energy that a boxer can make is to miss a punch. So if Mayweather’s opponents misssed 83% of the punches they threw at him, it is easy to see why he is undefeated.

Mayweather is not the first champion to employ this strategy.

The scripture tells us that after his stunning defeat of Goliath in the valley of Elah, David stepped onto a far more dangerous battlefield. He began working as a musician in the palace of King Saul. What made that position so precarious is that Saul harbored a murderous envy toward David for his success, saw him a rival, and apparently wanted him close so that he could watch him—and eventually eliminate him.

Goliath was strong. But Saul was cunning.

As David plucked melodies from his harp, we are told that Saul threw his javelin at David—not once, but thrice! The scriptures announce Saul’s intention in doing so with brutal clarity:

And Saul cast the javelin: for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it.

But Saul missed. Well, David made him miss. If Saul hadn’t missed, David would have missed his destiny. But David avoided him, and eventually sat on the throne he had been promised.

This story makes us face 3 uncomfortable truths:

1. A spear is coming

2. The spear often comes from a familiar hand

3. God doesn't stop all spears

When your spear comes, may I suggest the “Mayweather maneuver?” Or the Davidic defense?

DUCK!

There are some people I am trying to avoid.

There are some situations I am trying to avoid.

And there are some battles am I trying to avoid.

This approach is not rooted in fear. Avoidance is altogether different from evasion. Avoidance is a strategy designed to help me win.

I know that many of you reading this are strong enough to take a punch. In fact, you may take enormous pride in the fact that not matter how many times life has knocked down, you always get back up. Well, bravo! It takes incredible stamina, courage, and resilience to keep getting back up after life knocks you down.

But as we enter this post-pandemic season, why don’t you try a new strategy?

Instead of asking God for the strength to get back up after you get knocked down, why not ask God to give you the wisdom to avoid getting knocked down in the first place?