Woody Allen is credited with saying something like "life consists mainly of showing up"? It's a witty comment, but it has substance—and application for ministry.

A friend recently told me the story of an experience he had while walking on a beach in Maine this summer.

"I came upon a young woman who was sitting by herself reading a book. It seemed appropriate to greet her with a 'good morning.' When she responded, I asked her what she was reading. She said she was reading the Bible and added, 'I'm a new Christian. Do you know what that is?'

"I told her that I did and that, in fact, I was one—although an old one."

My friend went on: "She seemed not to mind further conversation; so I asked her if she'd tell me more of her story. It turned out that she was a college student and that she was getting ready to return to school, this time as a new follower of Jesus.

"When I asked her who would be praying for her as she went back to school, she told me that she really had no one among ...