Even the name A Christian Ministry in the National Parks hints at some of the challenges inherent in leading this organization.

• It is a Christian ministry operating in the national parks in an age of church-state tensions and religious pluralism.
• It is a Christian Ministry to the largely seasonal and transient work force and leisure guest populations that converge in the national parks each year. This ministry is conducted largely by students, who themselves are working 40 + hours each week in challenging work environments.
• It is a Christian ministry in the National parks, parks governed by government agencies and regulations.
• And it is a Christian ministry in the national Parks which are located in beautiful but remote places widely dispersed across the United States and its territories.

Thus, A Christian Ministry in the National Parks is an intriguingly complex organization for its size. It is manageable in its operations yet has an inherently challenging array of constituencies to understand and nurture.

The next Executive Director will be just the third person to lead the ACMNP in its 56 years of ministry. The longevity and service of both Warren Ost (45 yrs) and Dick Camp (11 yrs) have allowed the ACMNP to take root and thrive as an organization and ministry. One ongoing challenge is to define and protect ACMNP's core values and identity, while adapting its strategies and practices to fit current realities. Consider, for starters, worship and recruiting. How can ACMNP ministry staff better utilize technology at the worship service locations in the park to aid singing and participation by those who attend? Or, what changes in recruiting activities and focus might need to occur to maintain the high quality of ACMNP park staff, and at the same time increase the number of ACMNP staff available for placement in the parks each season? Our concessionaire partners face recruiting challenges too, relying increasingly on eastern European college age students for their workforce.

A comprehensive funding strategy is another challenge. Primary revenue sources have changed several times in ACMNP's history (the ACMNP was once a line item in the National Council of Churches' annual budget) and a stable and growing portfolio of gift income is needed for the health and growth of ACMNP's work.

These challenges, as great as some of them are, keep the work interesting and fresh and force those involved to remain deeply dependent on God; the same God who called ACMNP into existence and has sustained the staff and ministry of ACMNP for more than 50 years.