It explores the concepts of war and peace, good government and religious belief. It can be seen as a bridging novel between the all-human Dune universe and the ConSentiency universe series.

It is a novel expanded from four short stories:
"You Take the High Road".
"Missing link". 
"Operation Haystack".
"The Priests of Psi". 

The story focuses on Lewis Orne, an agent for a government agency which develops 'lost planets.' 
After correctly identifying a warlike civilization on the planet Hamal, he is drafted into Investigative Adjustment (I-A), which manages dangerous planets. 
Under the auspices of I-A, he travels to various planets in order to maintain peace throughout the galaxy. 
At the same time, the priests of the planet Amel, who practice 'religious engineering', set about creating a god, something they have done numerous times before: " 'We do not know from what creature or thing the god will be born', the Abbod said. 'It could be one of you.' " 
After resolving a number of dangerous situations, Lewis is injured and has a near-death experience. 
Following this, his psychic powers develop, and after passing a series of tests he becomes a god.