He saw the saint creep out of bed early and quietly in the mornings so as not to wake his servant. He saw him pray, write in his journal, read the office, answer some letters, then pray again. The beautiful manners, the unruffled compassion, the courtesy and humility were all on display through the peephole as they had been in the pulpit or at the dinner-table. Ministry is mainly about how I relate to others. Every Christian is a minister, a servant.
Some ministers are pastors - shepherds, leaders, mentors.
Truly 'converted' people are eucharistic, thankful, grateful. The Lord is closer when we are vulnerable, when we stop pretending to be powerful, and admit how wounded we are. The Christian life begins and continues as a via crucis. We recognize Judas and Peter in ourselves - we're both wicked and weak. And yet, in our despair, when resurrection seems unlikely we hear him in the garden or on the sea-shore, alive, calling us by name.