Robert Forester is the grandson and son of the pastors of Billingham Bible Church. When the founder retires and the son is unable to continue as pastor, the grandson is expected to keep the line going and move into the pulpit of the church. Only the grandson isn't so sure. His study of religion in college and then at seminary, as well as conversations with a varied group of spiritual leaders, leads to questions and doubts that threaten his call to ministry. He's not even sure he believes in God. Throughout the story, the youngest Forester wonders about his place in ministry and really questions just what it is he believes. During his struggles, his long-time girlfriend falls in love with someone else, and simultaneously, he falls in love with the granddaughter of one of his grandfather's best friends, a prominent scholar, and professor at Union Theological Seminary, in New York. Through interactions with people as varied as his favorite professor in college, a restaurant owner in New York, a Buddhist nun, an Anglican priest, and several characters who enter the story and then mysteriously disappear from the story, the younger Forester discerns what he will do with his life and what he believes. In the end, after a series of strange appearances, he confronts his doubts and makes a decision that will alter the course of his life forever.