In the summer of 2019, my family gathered with a small group of strangers on the front porch of Yellowstone National Park’s historic Old Faithful Inn.
Before us stretched the Upper Geyser Basin, home to one of the world’s most famous geysers. And there, surrounded by the beauty of Yellowstone, we worshiped together. We sang. We prayed. We listened to Scripture.
And for a little while, that porch became a church.
The service was hosted by A Christian Ministry in the National Parks (ACMNP), an interdenominational ministry now celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2026.
My family had traveled to Yellowstone in connection with the release of my novel Ever Faithful, a historical romance set in the park during the 1930s. My love for the national parks has always been closely intertwined with my faith. Long before I began writing novels about these treasured places, I worked as a park ranger and naturalist. To me, mountains, forests, wildlife, waterfalls, and geysers have always pointed toward the Creator behind them.
Perhaps that’s why ACMNP’s story has always appealed to me.
A Ministry Born at Old Faithful
ACMNP traces its official beginnings to 1951 and Princeton Theological Seminary student Warren Ost, who spent his summers working as a bellhop at Yellowstone’s Old Faithful Inn. During his off-hours, he found ways to provide Christian fellowship and worship opportunities for park employees and visitors.
According to ACMNP’s history, one of those early worship gatherings took place in an unlikely location—the bar area of the Old Faithful Inn. I have to admit, that detail makes me smile.
While researching this post, I dug through old newspaper archives and discovered an article from June 21, 1952, describing plans for a new Yellowstone “pilot project.” Twenty seminary students, under Ost’s direction, would conduct ministry during their off-hours, including worship services, vespers, Bible studies, and other religious programs. The hope was that the experiment could eventually serve as a model for similar ministries in national parks across the country.
Beginning of ACMNP, Warren Ost, Yellowstone, 1952 Jun 21, 1952 New Journal and Guide (Norfolk, Virginia) Newspapers.com
Seventy-five years later, I’d say that experiment worked.
Today, ACMNP sends 150–200 ministry team members to 75 locations in 45 national parks, from Alaska to the Virgin Islands. More than 30,000 people attend their worship services each year. The organization continues the same basic model set out by their founder, recruiting young people and volunteers who hold regular seasonal jobs in the parks while devoting their off-hours to ministry, service, and worship.
The Road Almost Taken
I first learned about ACMNP when I was a college student dreaming of becoming a park ranger. For a time, I seriously considered applying. Instead, another door opened. I landed a seasonal ranger position at Mount Rainier National Park and began my own journey with the National Park Service. Maybe that’s one reason attending the Yellowstone service years later felt so meaningful.
After the service, I had the opportunity to visit with the young volunteers who had led our worship. As we talked, I couldn’t help thinking about the characters I’d written about in Ever Faithful.
My heroine, Elsie Brookes, is a ranger’s daughter who has spent four summers working as a maid in Yellowstone’s hotels, saving toward her dream of attending college. The hotel maids of that era playfully called themselves “pillow-punchers.”
Standing with those modern-day seasonal workers, the distance between 1930s Yellowstone and the present suddenly didn’t seem quite so great. Generations later, young people were still coming from across the country to spend a summer working, exploring, building friendships, and perhaps discovering something about themselves along the way.
It brought me a great deal of joy to hand each of the ACMNP volunteers a copy of Ever Faithful. I liked imagining them reading Elsie’s story and recognizing a little of their own Yellowstone experience in hers.
Worshiping the Creator in His Creation
I don’t remember the sermon we heard that morning in 2019. I couldn’t tell you which songs we sang.
But I remember the joy of worshiping alongside other believers in that magnificent setting. We had arrived as strangers from different places and church traditions, but for that brief time, we were one congregation.
And just beyond the porch, Old Faithful kept faithfully doing what it has done for generations.
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” —Psalm 19:1
That’s also one of the reasons I keep returning to national parks in my fiction. These landscapes provide plenty of history, adventure, and romance, but more importantly, the beauty of God’s creation inspires me.
Perhaps You’ll Find a Service in a Park
If you’re planning a national park vacation, consider checking to see whether A Christian Ministry in the National Parks offers worship services at your destination.
Or perhaps there’s a young person in your life who would love the opportunity to spend a season working in a national park while serving alongside other Christians. You can also volunteer or financially support the ministry.
Visit ACMNP.com to find worship services or learn more about getting involved.
Happy 75th anniversary, ACMNP.
I’m grateful you’re still out there—helping people discover that sometimes the most magnificent sanctuary doesn’t have walls at all.
And for my readers–have you ever attended a worship service in a national or state park? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
Happy reading!
Howdy Karen, this is great info! Thank you.
Thanks for stopping by, Kate!
I may have attended a worship service in a state or national park when traveling with my parents–the type of thing they would probably include on a vacation. If not, I’d like to! Sadly, our national park visiting days are most likely over, due to logistics. (Maybe in a later life season I can visit and attend a worship service!)
Hi Tracie! We’ve only attended that one time, as we’re rarely there over Sunday morning. But I’d love to visit some of the services in other parks. It’s such a neat offering!
I didn’t think about checking to see if there was a religious service in Parks. We have visited. Something to look for in the future. Great article! Dana McNeely.
A few of the national parks also have churches or chapels located in them, which make for a fun visit. I’ve visited the ones in Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Great Smoky Mountains (Cades Cove), though never during worship service times. I think there’s one in Grand Canyon Village, too.