Dean and Mindy Go To An Outdoor Acronym

A Christian Ministry in the National Parks, Wawona Campground Amphitheater, Yosemite National Park, California

“Why do we sing about Heaven but don’t talk about it?” Sarah asked. She said this in a place that a number of people would describe as Heaven, Yosemite.

Sarah is a representative of ACMNP (the name of the organization is an acronym, A Christian Ministry in the National Parks. I don’t know why it’s not ACMITNP).  This Christian organization is not a part of the National Parks system, but the Park System works with them to facilitate worship ministries throughout the country, mostly during the summer.

We went to Yosemite National Park on Sunday, in part as a celebration of Mindy’s birthday. Our son Bret joined us as we drove an hour or so from home to the Wawona Amphitheater, at the south end of the park. We weren’t camping -- we were daytrippers up from Fresno. ACMNP facilitates two other worship services in Yosemite, another 9:00 am service at the Lower Pines campground and a 10:00 am service at Tuolumne, but Wawona was the closest to us.

Three young people were running the service, Sarah, Austin, and Matthew. We arrived a few minutes before the service was scheduled to begin, and they were debating about starting the service on time or waiting for Michael. They said Michael wasn’t officially in the ACMNP program; he hadn’t gone through the training, but he’d been supportive throughout the summer. Matthew had phoned to remind him, and Sarah and Austin teased him when he arrived, saying he was late because that phone call slowed him down.

Austin said that this Sunday service was one of their larger groups of the summer, even before Michael got there. I asked when they started doing services. Austin said their first service was the last weekend in May. They were supposed to have a service the weekend before that, but no one showed. So she and Matthew had discussed Romans.

ACMNP works by recruiting people who support themselves with work in other jobs in the National Parks. Matthew and Michael work in the General Store, Sarah and Austin work in Recreation (and Laundry) at Tenaya Lodge. I asked Matthew if they ever got together with the teams who do services in Lower Pines and Tuolumne, but he said though they had a barbeque together, it was hard enough with their schedules for the Wawona team to find a time to meet and plan.

I really appreciated that the service had a good balance of singing, Scripture reading, prayer, and message -- and still wraps up in about half an hour. There were a number of small children at the service, and they were well behaved throughout, which I think says something about how the service was run as well as something about the kids and their families.

Sarah’s message about Heaven from Revelation 7 was short, but encouraging.

Some people say, “I don’t go to church, I worship in nature.” ACMNP does a great job of reminding people that worship shouldn’t be an either or situation. You can gather with folks and praise God while appreciating His Creation. One should never exclude the other, but how great to be able to do both together.

I especially appreciated Sarah’s talk about Heaven in that location, because of the incredible thought -- within sight of trees, rock formations, and flowing river, in one of the most beautiful locations on Earth -- that Heaven will top it all.

Statistics

Service Length: 27 minutes

Sermon Length: 10 minutes

Visitor Treatment: We were all visitors, and Sarah, Austin, and Matthew greeted each person as they arrived. After the worship service was over, we were asked to sign their guestbook, and the ACMNPers talked to each person in attendance, asking where they were from, what brought them to Yosemite, and other friendly questions.

Followup by Tuesday Morning: none

Our Rough Count: 17

Probable Ushers’ Count: no ushers, and we could all count to 17

Snacks: no snacks, but they’ve considered bringing some coffee to share

Musicians: acoustic guitar (woman)
vocalists (man, woman)

Songs: “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee”

“Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”

“Blessed be Your Name”

“Shout to the Lord”

“Doxology”

Distance to Church: 63 miles

Open WiFi: no

Tie/Suit Count: none

Church Website: http://www.acmnp.com/about

We Don't Need a Building to Worship God: Outdoor Worship Month

If I had a dime for all the times I've heard people say, "I don't need to go to church, I worship God in nature" I'd have enough to buy a whole lot of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups; maybe not a gross of them or anything, but still a lot.

What baffles me is that people treat these two things as if they're mutually exclusive. You can either worship God in a church building or under the skies but not both. The Psalmist doesn't seem to think it's a one or the other thing.

Scripture certainly affirms that God can be seen in His creation. Psalm 19:1 says, "The Heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands." Romans 1:20 says, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities -- His eternal power and divine nature --have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse."

Go to the Grand Canyon, go to the ocean, look up at the sky or look closely at the ladybug in the grass and you can see God's workmanship and give Him praise.

Yet the Psalmist also says in Psalm 66:1, "I will go to your temple" and Hebrews 10:24 & 25 say, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another -- and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Sometimes the exclusively worshiping in nature people don't realize how much we need other people in order to have the best possible relationship with God.

If only there was some way to bring these two things together; worship God in nature and in church with other believers. If only there was some way to bring together this spiritual peanut butter with this spiritual chocolate. This month, we will. We'll worship with other people in the great out of doors. Welcome to our month of Reese's Peanut Cup Worship.

-- Dean