America's Holy Ground: 61 Faithful Reflections on Our National Parks

by Brad Lyons, Bruce Barkhauer

Overview

America's 61 national parks are beloved around the world for their inspiring natural beauty and unmatched diversity. They can also be places to reconnect with God and the sacred. National parks engage our five senses, but engaging a sixth sense, the sense of the holy, will transform your national park experience.



In America's Holy Ground: 61 Faithful Reflections on Our National Parks, dive deeper into a unique aspect of each park, from Acadia to Zion, and reframe how you think about the parks and your faith. Connections, sabbath, reflection, perspective, beginnings, art, restoration - these are just a few of the themes you'll encounter on your national park journey. A trio of questions with each entry will help you see the bigger picture of your life and new ways to approach your relationship with God, your community, and your faith. Whether you're on the road or at home in your reading nook, think about your favorite national park in a whole new way!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780827200753
Publisher:	APG Books
Publication date:	04/30/2019
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	1,108,863
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

The Oklahoma native and former journalist is the extremely lucky and proud father of three kind, funny, and smart kids. He serves as president and publisher of CBP/Chalice Press.


Bruce Barkhauer teaches generosity for a living. A noted speaker, educator, consultant, and writer, Barkhauer brings creativity, energy, fresh, and sometimes humorous thought into conversations about stewardship as a practice of faith and spiritual discipline.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments 11

Invocation 15

Introduction 17

The National Parks

Acadia: Beginnings 24

American Samoa: Endings 28

Arches: Connection 30

Badlands: Wisdom 34

Big Bend: Borders 38

Biscayne: Chaos 42

Black Canyon of the Gunnison: Turbulence 46

Bryce Canyon: Language 48

Canyonlands: Stones 52

Capitol Reef: Reconciliation 56

Carlsbad Caverns Imagination 60

Channel Islands: Protection 64

Congaree: Unity 66

Crater Lake: Reflection 68

Cuyahoga Valley: Restoration 72

Death Valley: Life 76

Denali: Name 80

Dry Tortugas: Emancipation 84

Everglades: Preservation 86

Gates of the Arctic: Wilderness 90

Gateway Arch: Art 92

Glacier: Consequences 96

Glacier Bay: Change 100

Grand Canyon: Grandeur 104

Grand Teton: Companionship 108

Great Basin: Adversity 112

Great Sand Dunes: Movement 114

Great Smoky Mountains: Diversity 118

Guadalupe Mountains: Landmarks 122

Haleakala: Journey 124

Hawai'i Volcanoes: Paradox 128

Hot Springs: Sabbath 132

Indiana Dunes Compromise 136

Isle Royale: Isolation 138

Joshua Tree: Adaptation 140

Katmai: Joy 144

Kenai Fjords: Signs 146

Kings Canyon: Mission 150

Kobuk Valley: Sustenance 154

Lake Clark: Solitude 156

Lassen Volcanic: Potential 158

Mammoth Cave: Darkness 162

Mesa Verde: Community 166

Mourn Rainier: Revelation 170

North Cascades Place 174

Olympic: Gifts 176

Petrified Forest: Time 180

Pinnacles: Return 184

Redwood: Peace 188

Rocky Mountain: Perspective 192

Saguaro: Nurture 196

Sequoia: Foundation 200

Shenandoah: Home 204

Theodore Roosevelt: Vision 208

Virgin Islands: Remember 212

Voyageurs: Teamwork 216

Wind Cave: Spirit 218

Wrangell-St. Elias: Guidance 222

Yellowstone: Faithfulness 224

Yosemite: Trust 228

Zion: Paradise 232

Benediction 237

Resources 243

Journal 245

Photo Credits 255

Editorial Reviews

03/25/2019

Former journalist Lyons and pastor Barkhauer (Community of Prayer) share their belief in the spiritual power of nature in these brief meditations of national parks. Each begins with a quotation from the Bible before relating natural phenomena that inspire “humility, wonder, awe, and gratitude... such as when you peer over the rim of the Grand Canyon.” The authors also provide meditations on a theme related to the park. In the entry on Bryce Canyon, Utah, which isn’t a canyon but “a collection of hoodoos, fins, spires, and other formations” formed by rain, the nature of language is the focus. In Glacier Bay, Alaska, the authors consider landscape changes over millennia, rendered starkly by the icefalls from glaciers, a metaphor for the slow movement of God’s work. Treating 60 parks in a single book (and coming up with a unique theme for each), however, leads to a few duds, but beautiful photographs, detailed descriptions, and plenty of historical information pad out even the barer entries. Relatively brief and sometimes superficial, these ruminations on American national parks nevertheless invite readers to appreciate the value of protected places and ponder their spiritual power. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly