Lightbulb Moments

You can’t plan them.

They are unrehearsed and often unpolished. They usually don’t happen in calm and happy situations, and many times they are born from stress, frustration, or sadness.

Growing up, I was a people-pleaser and a rule-follower – a quiet little kid. But my dad gave me a telling nickname.

CC

It stood for “Chronic Complainer.”

Me around that time.

When I got in trouble, it was for whining, and my mother was determined to break my bad habit.

She would set up the consequence, and I would get my warning.

I would work hard to avoid the punishment, holding back the complaints until they would burst out (like Anne of Green Gables and her “irresistible temptations”).

Then I had a Lightbulb Moment at the age of five.

I don’t remember what I was whining about, and I don’t remember my punishment, but I remember what room in the house I was standing in, and I remember the exact words that came out of my mom’s mouth.

Unplanned and unpolished… and she probably regretted them as soon as she said them…

“I don’t want you to become like Grandma.”

Flash – into my brain came the picture of my grandma:

• Whining to my mom for hours every time we visited.

• Lying in bed and complaining about all her problems day after day.

• Crying and yelling at my grandpa because he wasn’t doing exactly what she wanted.

💡 Lightbulb – my mom wanted me to have a happy life, and whining and complaining could lead me in a completely different direction.

I understood for myself exactly why my mom was punishing me, and suddenly it wasn’t a matter of avoiding punishment anymore. I no longer needed my mom to set up warnings and consequences because I wanted something better for myself.

I was ready to choose a better path.

Young Maralee

Imagine the disciples being taught by Jesus for over three years. They were learning, but their BIG Lightbulb Moment came after a time of extreme stress, sadness, and confusion. Jesus died.

Then Jesus rose from the dead, and suddenly…

Lightbulb – God’s Kingdom isn’t like earthly kingdoms… Jesus had said:

“The greatest among you will be your servant.” (Matthew 23:11)

“The last will be first, and the first will be last.” (Matthew 20:16)

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.” (Matthew 7:12)

It’s all about love. They finally understood for themselves and were ready to turn the world upside down for Christ. (Acts 17:5-6)

Jesus taught with wonderful words.

When we try to teach our kids, our words often seem to fall short. But God is faithful.

God took my mother’s unplanned and unpolished comment about my complaining grandmother and used it to open my ears to a greater understanding of her love for me and the kind of person I wanted to become.

So be encouraged! God can open the ears of our little ones to those wonderful, unexpected, and life-changing Lightbulb Moments.

My family around the time of my lightbulb moment.