Dragon training and lion chasing

Today: Proverbs 22-23

Last week I was hanging out in my living room with my sister. She was typing on her laptop.

"What are you working on?" I asked.

"A dragon training presentation," she replied.

"What?!?" I asked,"That sounds pretty intense!"

She smiled and explained that the course is about a software program called Dragon--and that no firefighters would be required to be present (darn!).

While the idea of dragon training sounded a bit odd to me, in the Bible, there were people who braved similar tasks. There were people who literally chased lions or killed giants, for example. Perhaps it's because of last week's conversation with my sister, but these two lines from today's chapters caught my attention:

The loafer says, "There's a lion on the loose!
If I go out I'll be eaten alive!"

Kind of weird, right?

As I read these lines over and thought about their meaning, a few possibilities came to mind:

• First, I think it could be saying, "Don't be a lazy person content to let big challenges or enemies run wild--get up and tackle them."
  
• Another possible interpretation? "Lazy people sometimes allow fear to run their lives." Is there really a lion on the loose? How do we know that the lazy loafer even looked outside or saw anything?
  
• The third possibility is a mix of the first two--"Fear can cloud reality and turn crazy cats into lions on the loose." Maybe the lazy person saw something, but because of fear, she turned a crazy cat into a "lion on the loose."

A few other observations?

• The lion was described as "on the loose"...which means it could symbolize something that is dangerous to other people. The lazy loafer is content to stay comfortable while a deadly predator could attack his neighbors. This strikes me as not only fearful, but selfish.
  
• The lazy loafer has no faith--she automatically jumps to, "If I go out, I'll be eaten alive!" rather than praying, planning a strategy, partnering with other people to capture the lion...you get my point.

I don't know if any of these possibilities are right...and maybe all of them are correct to some extent. I think the main point is that sometimes, you and I may be called to chase lions--to protect the innocent, to conquer fear and/or to trust God to help us face challenges directly.

Next up: Dragon training. Can I bring a firefighter? :)

Tomorrow: Proverbs 24-26