My daughter, Charis, invited me to go with her on any hike of my choosing.  We decided to hike to Lake Solitude, fifteen miles round trip.  At Inspiration Point, we noticed a young couple with their baby and struck up a conversation.

When we asked them where they were from, they said Israel.  I expressed joy.  The wife said, “You mean you really like us?”  They explained that in Europe they were treated with hostility by religious people.  That opened the door for us to share the gospel with them.  We weren’t religious.  We had come to know the Lord, were born again, and loved all people.

I had just recently spent some time studying YHWH in preparation to speak at a youth camp.  Now, there I was, sharing with these young Hebrew people in terms that they could understand about YHWH, their God.  From there it was natural to talk with them how the Lord sent Yeshua, the Messiah, to die on the cross for their sins and how He would return to earth and sit on the throne of David for 1,000 years.

The wife asked how someone could enter into such a relationship with the Lord.  I had just enough time to share my testimony with her before we reached the boat that would take us across Jenny Lake.

To say that it was an incredible encounter would be an understatement.  Though they did not put their faith in Christ, they definitely listened to and showed interest in what we had to say.

Sam & Joanie Snodgrass minister to Basque peoples in Spain and Idaho.  (Photo of Sam and his hiking buddy-daughter, Charis.)