Minister of religion by lake in a state of abstraction (7)
I believe the answer is:
reverie
'a state of abstraction' is the definition.
'minister of religion by lake' is the wordplay.
'minister of religion' becomes 'rev' (abbreviation for reverend).
'by' says to put letters next to each other.
'lake' becomes 'erie' (Lake Erie is one of the Canadian/US 'Great Lakes').
'rev'+'erie'='REVERIE'
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for reverie that I've seen before include "A dreamlike state, daydream" , "I revere being in a state of dreaminess" , "daydreaming" , "Daydream or fantasy" , "Daydream or preoccupation" .)