Sometimes in life, you come across advice that is good, not only for the activity you are learning, but for life in general. That happened to me at my latest boxing class.

I was practicing some combinations with a rather “experienced” boxer. He was 61 years old man and had been boxing for quite some time. He noticed how focused I was trying to keep my gloves up in a defensive stance, and how tense that was causing me to be. All of this caused me to expend much more energy than was needed.

Based on how he talked about my technique, it appears to be a fairly common mistake made by many novice boxers. He said that guys are so scared of getting hit, they overcompensate by tensing up too much. Then, he said something that struck me to my core. He said, “You gotta learn to live in the chaos of the fight. You gotta learn to settle in and breathe. And just tighten up when you need to.” Which is not just good boxing advice, but good life advice in general, as it reflects what we can see in scripture.

Because life in this sin-filled and broken world is full of its own chaos. And all of us are so scared of getting hit too much in life—be it with a sudden diagnosis, a lost job, family trauma, or a combination of 1000 little things that combine to overwhelm. “You gotta learn to live in the chaos.” Or, it says in Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

The 61-year-old boxer was letting me in a boxing secret, that even though the punches will come and some might even land, amidst that chaos, it’s important “to settle in and breathe.” The Apostle Paul says it this way in Philippians 4:12-13, “I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Sadly, verse 13 sometimes gets misunderstood as God will give you special success, or significant monetary gain, or a distinct ability to “do all things.” But when you read and
understand this verse in the context of what comes just before it, you can see that, in the midst of the chaos of Paul’s life, the secret he had learned was to settle in and breathe trusting in God, as He gave him the strength he needed to continue in the fight of faith.

Now, this doesn’t mean the Christian life is to just be a punching bag for everyone else. Because, by living in the chaos of punches being thrown in life, and by settling in and learning how to breathe, God also helps us to clench up when we need to, not just to defend, but to strike back. The Apostle Paul helps identify what we’re up against in Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

And what weapon do we get to wield in that fight? Not just some clumsy boxing gloves, but the very Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:17 that we hold, “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” He also says in 2 Corinthians 10:4, “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.”

This “divine power” of the weapons of our spiritual warfare finds its source in the ultimate victory Christ has achieved over sin, death, and the devil through his death and resurrection. Jesus says in John 16:33, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

So, as you engage in life in this world that Jesus has overcome, live in the chaos of the fight, settle in and breathe, and tighten up when you need to, confident your God is on your side. For like it says in 1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”