“Come on, Mommy! Let’s catch fireflies!”
Each evening, while visiting her uncle’s home in the Midwest, our granddaughter, Sophie, wanted to capture those glowing insects. Where she lives in the Pacific Northwest, the little creatures do not abound.
I, too, was visiting Sophie’s uncle (my son) and delighted in those fireflies as much as she did. That’s because Steve and I have lived in Florida for over thirty years, and although a habitat map for fireflies includes our state, I’ve never seen one here.
During our visit, we’d all sit on the front porch in the evening. Sophie and I, in particular, would watch for the magical moment when the soft, silent glimmering would begin.
The fireflies drifted up from the grass and lilies of the valley in front of the house. Just a few at first. But soon there were too many to count.
I became curious about whether they blink at even intervals or not. Since they move slowly, it was quite easy to choose one, follow its course, and count the seconds between blinks. I can confidently report that this particular variety (There are over 2000 world-wide!) chooses to blink at random, although within a range of 4-6 seconds.
As soon as the first firefly was spotted, Sophie was off the porch and into the yard with her jar. She took great joy in the catching, but kindly released them when it was time for bed.
We’d say good-bye as each one took flight from the edge of the jar. I gave them names.
“Good-bye, Floyd!”
“Sleep well, Beulah!”
“See you again tomorrow night, Fred!”
* * * * * * * * * *
These images came to mind as I read, “Love in the Dark,” by Danielle Ayers Jones–a meaningful post for the (in)courage blog, July 9. She wrote about experiencing God’s love, even in the midst of dark, hard, confusing, even seemingly hopeless circumstances. Joseph was her example.
As I read, I thought of those fireflies in the dark we had witnessed just the week before. The soft glimmer, blinking here and there, reminded me: the steadfast love and favor of God glimmers here and there in all circumstances—including the hard, confusing times. Sometimes it’s an encouraging word from a friend, a Bible verse that speaks directly to our situation, or an unexpected God-incident that ministers to our hearts.
That word unexpected highlights how our God works. He likes to surprise us sometimes. His glowing love gifts often come randomly, not at precise intervals.
We have to keep alert or we might miss the blessings.
But the more alert we become, the more we’ll see—until we can no longer keep count.
What fireflies have glowed in the night for you? In other words, how has God’s love penetrated the darkness in your life? Please share your experience in the comment section below.
(Art & photo credits: www.headofleslie.com; addins.wwa.com; http://www.charlottesfancy.com)
From the Inside Out 