“And Lord, I pray You will give Kent and Leonda an extra special blessing this summer—something extraordinary so they can sense how special they are to You. Amen.” As our friend finished praying, I felt a sense of expectation that God really would do something different and wondered what it might be. I thought back a couple of weeks to when we were preparing to come to the States to visit family and friends and hopefully to get some rest as well. I thought at the time, Wouldn’t it be nice if Kent and I could get away to a special place this summer, maybe even alone. Our 32nd anniversary is coming up, and we’ve always wanted to go to Alaska. I wonder if there is any way we could manage that. Lord, You know our need. I trust You to provide for our need of rest and change. Amen.

Days later, I was doing some work at the AFM office in Michigan when I overheard another missionary couple discussing their summer schedule. They had been invited to speak at several Alaskan churches and had agreed, but their schedule was very tight, and now they felt it was just too much for them.

In surprise, I blurted out, “We’ve always wanted to go to Alaska! In fact, I was praying and thinking about it before we even left the Philippines!”

“Perhaps you can go instead of us,” they said.

I quickly reviewed our schedule. “Yes, I think we could go for two weeks.” Over the next few days, they contacted the churches, and our schedules clicked.

We were floating on cloud nine as the time approached for our flight to Anchorage. Here was the extraordinary blessing our friend had prayed for! We talked of how interesting it would be to speak at the churches and what we wanted to do there. My main goals were to visit Denali National Park and see Denali (Mt. McKinley), the tallest peak in North America.

As we arrived in Anchorage, my sense of anticipation peaked as I saw the airport displays filled with Alaskan big-game taxidermy. Maybe I would get to see some bears and wolves and maybe even a bald eagle! As our hosts drove us toward their home, I took in the landscape even as our hostess apologized that it was an awful summer and not very pretty. But I didn’t care. No matter the weather, this was Alaska!

Later that evening, as we walked near a vista point, I asked our hosts, “In what direction is Denali?”

They pointed and said, “It’s usually covered by clouds. Only about a third of Alaska visitors catch a glimpse of the summit. With the weather we’ve been having, I’m afraid you won’t get to see it.” In my heart, I still held onto hope and kept praying I would see the top of that magnificent mountain.

As we drove back down the mountain, we spotted a mother moose with her two babies. I was even more excited when our host mentioned that it is not very common for a moose to have twins. Thank You, Lord.

We had a blessed Sabbath at Hillside O’Malley Adventist Church. I even met an old academy friend there who was visiting unexpectedly. We made plans to get together again before we left Alaska. Thank You, Lord.

On Sunday morning we awoke eager to begin our drive up to Denali National Park for a few days of camping. As we drove north on the mostly empty highway, the feeling of immensity was accentuated by a mileage sign we passed: Cantwell 138 miles, Denali National Park 166 miles, Fairbanks 268 miles.

We stopped at a turnout intended to provide a view of Denali. Staring at the dense clouds, I prayed again, “Lord, I don’t ask this because we deserve it, but I sure would like to see this mountain. I don’t know if I’ll ever get back to Alaska, and I want to see this immense creation of Yours. I trust You, Lord.”

The next day, we finished our drive to Denali National Park. We awoke early to catch a bus for an 11-hour road tour of the park. The sky wasn’t as cloudy this morning, and our hopes soared that perhaps we would see Denali.

As our tour guide started introducing the park, he said that most people come to see Denali and the Big Five—caribou, moose, bear, wolf, and Dall sheep—but only a very few see all of them. He told us the majority of the moose population lives in the Anchorage area, so we probably would not see any that day. I was okay with that since we had already seen moose. However, around the very next corner, there were several moose standing on the tundra! I silently prayed, Thank You Lord. I know You have blessings in store for us today. Help us be able to see the mountain and as much of everything else as we can.

As the day continued, we saw several herds of caribou, more moose, several brown bears with cubs browsing for berries, and Dall sheep up high on a mountainside. We saw foxes playing with their kits, ptarmigans, bald eagles and other birds, snowshoe hares, marmots and more. We stopped on another corner to watch a distant lone wolf trotting across the tundra. He turned toward us and eventually crossed the road right in front of us. What a sighting! Thank You, Lord.

Continuing on, we passed signs that read, “Area closed. Bear activity.” We laughed as we noticed the signs themselves were bear-chewed, despite the large number of nails driven into them to discourage the bears. At the Eilson Visitor Center, we got out and stretched, glancing at the mass of clouds still shrouding Denali. After touring the visitor center, I walked outside to enjoy the vista of the lower mountains and moraines. Then, right before my unbelieving eyes, the clouds suddenly parted, and there was the peak of Denali! I stood in amazement and wonder, feeling very small. I felt as if the face of God was smiling upon me. As tears came to my eyes, I breathed, “Thank You Lord for this gift—the gift of Your creation—and for this particularly special time I know You have provided for us. Lord, I sense that You have parted these clouds just for us to show us Your loving care. Thank You!”

Much too soon, it was time to board the bus and continue on our way. I felt so very content. I pondered the things of God and prayed I would seek the Mountain of God and His presence with renewed intensity.

Further along the road, we came upon a large herd of Dall sheep blocking our way. We watched and photographed them for a long time.

Later that day, some of our tour group gathered around a campfire. The ranger asked everyone what they had seen and experienced. Several people mentioned enjoying seeing so many Dall sheep on the road. The ranger asked if anyone had seen Denali, and everyone else said they hadn’t. I couldn’t bear to tell them what our family had seen. I was reminded again that the Lord had provided that remarkable experience for us just because He loves us and likes to give good gifts to His children. Thank You, Lord!

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