Septemeber 2025 Revealing Light Newsletter

I look forward to our regular 60 second conversations. We don’t have a lot of time to catch up, but when we get to regularly catch up for the few seconds we have, we end up sharing more of our stories together. This may be with the regular cashier you’ve grown to know, or the bank teller you routinely work with, or one of the store employees that usually helps you gather your supplies for your vehicle, the mail delivery person at your house, the first person you regularly walk by at work, that same pharmacist you routinely see, the welcoming school staff when you drop off or pick up the kids, the same hair beautician/barber [though that provides more conversational time], yet we see the list goes on and on.

We regularly have 60 second interactions throughout our weeks. This week, the 60 second conversation may be about what our families did over the weekend. Maybe last week was the rush when a main appliance broke down so they rushed to find and install a different one. Another week, it may be seeing how the transition into the new school year is going. The next time may be finding out how sick they were over the past week. The following week may result in the anticipating to hear if they are feeling better. Maybe they share about the stress of a new transition for the family who either moved or are making new living arrangements for some family members. You may hear about how their parents are doing or kids are doing. Each of these 60 second conversations add up to sharing life, knowing how you can be praying for them, and sometimes for you to be able to honestly share how you are doing that day and how God has been shaping you through each of those kind of days. Does it seem like you have hope, why? Has it been a struggle the past couple weeks, how are you navigating the strength needed for each day, what keeps you going? Knowing your hope and faith in those situations may be the very encouragement they are needing as well.

There are so many ways that we get to share life as disciples of Jesus, loving and praying for the people around us. What a gift God has given to us each day, to share life with Him and each other.

Honestly, I’ve been so encouraged by you all, to hear the prayer requests you’ve been sharing from your neighbors, co-workers, community members, and family friends. I’ve heard and witnessed over time how your love and care for the people around you has continued to grow as we get to see and know how much God loves you and the people around us. I hope you may be encouraged as well as I’m so grateful to see how God has been shaping us and helping each of us grow in the unique areas where we live and share life at. We get to shine God's Light as we abide in Him through any situation and conversation.
 
May God’s grace, love, and light continue to shine more and more through each of you as you grow to love the people around you, investing into the people you regularly see, even if it’s only in 60 second intervals. God does amazing things in even the “smallest” moments!

- Daryl Struemph

“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.”
1 Corinthians 3:6
 
“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds… encouraging one another…”
Hebrews 10:24–25

“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
John 13:35

God has blessed us each uniquely with unique talents and gifts, and those may also change in the changing seasons as well. The ways God created me are different than the ways He created you, and we are far better that way together. We get to grow and work together! I do always love the picture we’re given as the body of Christ, many different members faithfully functioning in their unique ways to make up the one healthy functioning body with Jesus as our Head [1 Corinthians 12; Romans 12]. It may be the season again to see how we can function in new ways as we’ve navigated into new seasons of life, or we’re wanting to work out to build up the muscles we’ve already been given. Again, I’m thankful that we get to be part of what God is doing wherever we each are uniquely placed at, letting our faith lead us into action.

Some of you may be struggling to find what to do now as your navigating the changes in your current season. How could you be stewards of your time to help encourage and build up the people who are already in your life? Similarly, maybe your life is already overflowing at the rim, and there seems to be no more room for anything else. It may not mean adding anything, but just adapting and integrating new ways of serving in the places you are already routinely at. We ask God to show us, to guide us, and to open our eyes up to the opportunities to shine His light in the places we are already at, with the people we are already around, sharing life together in whatever we’re going through that day. It may be shared words in conversation, it may be physical action that we engage in to help serve each other. It may be the written letter or email of encouragement to the teacher, or to your neighbor whose life has just had a drastic change. It may be offering to help teach when you are already at that place. You may have a desire to see something new happen, so you may be part of helping plan and brainstorm with some other friends or community members as well. We get to be part of so many things, and the greatest blessing is when the main thing is faithfully participating in what God is doing through every aspect of our lives together. I continue to have hope because God is at work, and we get to trust Him as we each follow Him with Faith-Filled Obedience.

- Daryl Struemph

And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 
- Luke 10:2

but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
- 1 Peter 3:15

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
- Galatians 6:9