This month on the Christian Book Club we are reading The Shack by William P. Young.

This week we will be reading Chapters 5 - 9. We are moving in to the heart of the book. The first four chapters set the stage of the tragic events that cause the Great Sadness for Mack. I have found this book to be very well written. It has been one of those books that I look forward to reading. Some books I have to kind of force myself to read. I am usually glad that I did, but it different with a book like this. There is something that keeps me reading.

As you delve in to this weeks chapters (if you haven’t already, I read the book in about a three day span,) you will begin to see where the controversy comes from. Personally, I take no offense at the story. I wouldn’t teach it as theology, but I am able to separate story from theology. I would like to hear about what you think of the way the trinity is presented. How do you feel about Papa, Jesus and Sarayu? Are you intrigued or offended? Do you believe that God takes a personal interest in you? What do you think of the illustration of the garden and Mack’s soul? I look forward to your comments this week!

I will also include a link here in case you need to order a copy of the book.

The Shack

Christian Book Club has a new look. We have added a little extra power to the site. I hope you enjoy it. The new comment section incorporates a neat little thing called a Gravatar. You can set up your own Gravatar for free at www.gravatar.com. It is fairly simple to do. You just go the site, enter your email address (make sure you get it exact) and either upload a picture of yourself, or a graphic you would like to use. I decided to go with a picture although for a while I was thinking about going with this one:

I liked it but the suit just wasn’t me. I will be setting up for the last week of Your God is Too Safe in the next couple of days and then we will begin Lucado’s 3:16. Let me know what you think about the new look. Blessings!

We have been getting a lot of visits to Christian Book Club by people who are searching for information on how to start a Christian book club. I thought I would offer some suggestions to those of you who are looking for information. I have been involved in several different Christian Book Clubs. A club consists of people who have a shared interest in reading good Christian books and getting together to talk about them. The club decides what books they will read and then get together to share their opinions and comments. There needs to be someone who leads each club meeting, and this role can pass from person to person in the group.

A Common Problem

I have been in some great club meetings with very insightful discussion that has added greatly to the reading experience. The most common problem, however, is that the clubs often start strong and then begin to fade over time. People have busy lives and it becomes difficult to schedule times for club meetings that everyone can get to. People get behind in their reading and then are embarrassed to show up and once they miss a meeting it is often hard to get back into the flow. This is the reason I started Christian Book Club Online.

A Solution

I would suggest that joining with us is an excellent answer to how to start a Christian book club. We have already picked out a list of books to read. Your club members can find out what the book is and order it simply at our Christian Book Club Books page. If you would like to add to to the list you can send us your suggestions and we will work them into the upcoming books list. Since the site is interactive people can read and comment at their convenience during the month that we are reading the book. This keeps everyone involved at the best times for them. If you would like to have a more traditional meeting, you could gather your “club” and meet once during the month for a live group discussion. A once a month meeting is a lot easier to get people to, as long as it is being reinforced with regular online interaction.

How to Get Started

If you like the idea, print up a little flyer for your friends describing your Christian Book Club idea. Give them the website address www.christianbookclubonline.com and have them check the site out. If you get two or three people who like the idea you have a club. Pick a month to start and schedule your once a month meeting sometime in week 3 of the reading. You can get discussion questions from the site for your meeting and also talk about comments from people all over the world. We look forward to having you join our Christian Book Club. If you have any questions just go to the Contact page and send us a message. Blessings!