Nora St. Laurent runs three book clubs outside of Atlanta and has established a successful model that has made her a resource for others who would like to establish clubs. To Nora, Book Clubs are a Ministry that revolve around relationships and through this, the Lord would love the women that He put in her life extravagantly. She facilitates a safe environment where women can enter into relationships. She says it best: "This is not about what church you belong to or how well you know the Bible. It also is not a matter of whether or not you go to church. God has called you into relationship with Him and with me and the other ladies in this group to love, to be loved and to encourage each other." She has a vision to duplicate the model to reach as many people as possible and is writing a book about how to do just this. Visit her blog at http://www.psalm516.blogspot.com/

What makes a good book club member? Would a person who never says a word at meetings come to mine? How about someone who never reads the book? In my experience, the most important quality of a book club is the members’ faithfulness.

This means being faithful to show up at meetings and calling if he or she is running late or can’t make the meeting. Book club is a priority to them—not an afterthought. I appreciate faithfulness above anything else.

How about the gal who never reads the book selection before meetings? I’ve met her. She has made our book club her livelihood and is very excited to hear about each month’s book club selection. She is attentive and asks great questions.

I’ll never forget the day I met Mildred. I was nervous because I’d never attended a book club meeting before. We were going to discuss The Last Sin Eater by Francine Rivers. This book brought lively discussion from everyone except Mildred, who kept asking the strangest questions. It made me wonder if she’d even read the book.

Since this was my first book club meeting, I didn’t really know Mildred, nor did I know that she never read the books before our meetings. Mildred’s mission was to interview all of us about the book to see if it was worth investing her time in reading. She talked plenty and often times cracked me up with her questions and comments at meetings. One thing I began to admire about Mildred over the months was her faithfulness in attending book club meetings. I’m sure if she were prepared for book club we would have stopped, looked at her in amazement, and tuned in to what Mildred finally had to say.

What about the member that who doesn’t speak at book club? Have you met someone like that? They say everything with their

facial expressions and body language. That’s why I love “live” book club meetings as opposed to the online book chats.

Let me introduce to you shy and quite Arlene. She’s the one who doesn’t speak at book club meetings. She has the most amazing grin and twinkle in her eyes. Her expression changes as everyone shares, occasionally she nods in agreement, but Arlene’s face says it all. She is quite content to soak up the atmosphere around her. How does she do that? I can’t imagine attending a book club meeting every month and never saying a word.

What makes a member valuable? Being faithful is a great quality I look for when recruiting members. I also look for someone who is compassionate and respects others.

I have three guidelines we take turns reading at every book club meeting. Reading them sets the tone for the evening. We laugh as they are read out loud every month. It’s a good mental reminder for us and also makes new members aware of the golden rule: “treat others the way you would like to be treated.”

Isn’t that what we all want? To be treated with love and respect? So remember when recruiting book club members to look for these qualities: faithfulness and a willingness to follow the golden rule. You won’t go wrong in asking them to join your group. Oh, and don’t forget to include members like Mildred and Arlene. Obviously, all your members can’t be like them, but don’t hesitate to have them join in the fun too. They will always keep things interesting. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me at bookclubservant@gmail.com.