Lightning Bugs

One of my most treasured memories from childhood summers is waiting until dusk, when lightning bugs began to appear. Some people call them by the more elegant title of fireflies but in our family culture, we call them lightning bugs. My grandmother would hunt me up an old mason jar (one that was past its prime, chipped, etc., because everyone knew a good jar was for canning, not bugs.) The same for the lid! My dad would take a screwdriver and a hammer and make holes in the lid so any bugs I could catch could get air. Then my cousins and I would sit on the porch and wait for the magic to happen.

First, we would spot one or two and leap off the porch in hot pursuit, but the bugs would be taken to the higher branches. It seemed they would taunt us, flashing at us from a place we could not reach. But pretty soon, as the darkness fell, more and more lightning bugs appeared until the whole yard and the fields beyond were aglow with these magical insects. We would catch as many as possible and put them in our jars, creating makeshift lanterns. We would hold the jars up near our faces, relishing the illumination and making faces at each other. The more bugs, the brighter the light. What a magical time to fall asleep to the blinking lantern. But come morning, the magic was gone, and all that remained was a few beetle-looking insects that seemed sluggish from their night spent in the jar. Some had already died from their brief captivity. I was sad but looked forward to another summer night when I could once again experience the iridescent glow these little creatures provided. Though short, their impact on my childhood experience has never been erased from my memory.

Because I was a curious reader and we owned a set of encyclopedias (Pre-google), I looked up everything I could find about lightning bugs. I learned their life expectancy is about 2 months long. I learned how they produced light through a chemical reaction in their little bodies. I discovered they were beetles and did good things in the garden, like eating snails and slugs that could destroy plants and harm vegetation. But sometimes they don’t reach maturity and never become aglow. I was amazed to find out there were multiple species in different parts of the country and that the state bug of Tennessee was a lightning bug! I also learned their glow is as bright as about 1/40 of a candle. But despite all the information I gained, it didn’t compare to the little critter’s impact on my summer nights.

Whenever I read the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus makes this statement, I think of lightning bugs. He said, “You are the light of the world! The Message reads like this,

“You are here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I will hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a lamp stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand…. shine! ”

Matt 5:14-16 MSG

The scriptures tell me my life is like a vapor, here and gone, before I know it. It is brief. (James 4:14) Just like the lightning bug, I’ve got a short time to share light. And He has appointed this time for me to glow for Him. Part of my mission is to come into the dark places and bring illumination of Him and for Him. Jesus said He has destined me to high places where my light can be seen. Of course, the unbelieving faithless world would like to capture me like a bug in a jar and try to use the illuminating qualities God has given me to shed light on their purposes and causes. But that is not to be! I am commanded to shine for Him.!

What does that look like in the daily vineyard of life? When the darkness of evil falls around me…(and it will), God will use me to share His goodness, holiness, and rightness in a wrong upside world. When the dusk of gloom, death, and sickness comes around (and it will), God can place His words in my mouth to bring comfort and hope. When the twilight of despair sets in (and it will), God can make me shine joy and laughter into lives and situations that are silent and grievous. All of these opportunities to shine can help eyes plagued with night blindness to see the Light of the World, Jesus, our only source of love and light. Without His presence and a relationship with Him, just like the lightning bug that never reaches maturity, I am just a beetle crawling through the garden of life. I will never shine and reach the maximum potential that He has placed within me.

I can’t help but think of the candle power one bug has. Think of how many bugs I gathered to create a makeshift lantern. Think of how, when we gather with other believers, the amount of light we can shed together is compared to what we can do on our own. Jesus said He has made us a lamp! In one translation, He states His family is a whole city of light set on a hill! It has been said it is better to light one candle than to sit and curse the darkness. According to the lightning bug scale of glow, one bug is 1/40 of a candle. So, let’s say 40 believers gather; we could light a candle for Christ in a place of darkness that might otherwise remain dingy and unlit. A lot of followers of Christ today have lost their confidence and sense of purpose. We are starting to buy into the fact that we cannot effect change around us. That somehow, the love and light of God aren’t enough. But one candle can make a difference! For that fact, one lightning bug can bring hope and change. I think of all those moments at dusk when, as a child. I would spot the first one. It brought excitement and anticipation because I knew there were others coming.

Jesus, Let be waiting at the edge of night, ready to glow and illuminate you and your love. Lord, let me soar in the treetops and the low grasses of life and shine. Let me never get callused by your mysterious ways. Help me reach my full potential to glow for you.

Come back next time when the 5 o’clock worker meditates on the fulfillment of the law when the series “Moments on the Mountain” continues.