Be My Guest - Rose Chandler Johnson

Welcome my guest, author Rose Chandler Johnson. Her debut devotional, God, Me and Sweet Iced Tea, is climbing the book charts. Written with sincerity, wit and a southern voice, Rose's book provides wonderful inspiration for the start of a fresh year. Tuesday through Thursday (January 7-January 9) the Kindle version of God, Me and Sweet Iced Tea is a FREE download.
 

Rose Chandler Johnson’s devotional journal, God, Me, and Sweet Iced Tea: Experiencing God in the Midst of Everyday Moments was released in July 2013.  Her devotions, poems, and articles have appeared in numerous Christian publications. She enjoys writing for her popular blog, Write Moments with God, and engaging with her readers.  Rose is from a small Georgia town and has lived in Martinez, GA for the last twenty-eight years.  She has been a French and English teacher for the last twenty years.  Rose enjoys baking, gardening, and spending time with her six children and their families.

 I'm pleased to host Rose today, as she is a personal acquaintance with whom I have much in common. We keep in touch regularly and give each other much encouragement. I wish each of you could meet her in person. That isn't possible, of of course, but after reading Rose's interview, you'll feel like you have a new friend. 

1. Is there a story behind your book God, Me, and Sweet Iced Tea?

I was reading some of my old journals recently and I came across an entry from 1979.  It was a prayer in which I said to the Lord I wanted to write a book that was relevant and encouraging and that would point others to the heart of God. I believe that the Lord gave me that desire and that God, Me, and Sweet Iced Tea is a realization of that desire, even though I wasn’t thinking of that consciously when I wrote it.

2. Why did you write a devotional? 

When I decided to make Jesus the Lord of my life, in 1977, I starting reading a devotional every morning.  It was just what I needed to help me focus and structure my time. I’ve incorporated devotional reading in my quiet times with God for decades. I think most people could benefit from that format.  The fact that I wrote a devotional comes back to my desire to be relevant and encouraging.

3. What is the significance of “sweet iced tea”?

I love sweet iced tea. I can’t do without it. Nothing is more refreshing than a glass of sweet iced tea, except those God moments to treasure. I can’t do without the Lord who is with me through every moment of my day.  The presence of God in my life restores my soul.  And those moments where He shows Himself are the most refreshing.  The “sweet iced tea” says it’s personal.

4. What started you on your writing journey?

I always wanted to be a writer.  I received my first undergraduate degree in 1977 with a BA in English.  In the late 70s and 80s I wrote and had some things published in periodicals, but motherhood, work, and life in general got in the way of that dream.  I began writing again in 2008 when the desire to “write it all down” became too hard to resist.

5. Why do you write now?

I am a journal keeper.  Writing is a passion that fulfills a need for me.  Devotion writing is a way to communicate what I know about God, as a living reality. It’s more or less an overflow of what I experience as a Christian. I want to share that with others.  I also like to write fiction and essays, and I’m working on a novel, but that doesn’t seem as vital to me as my devotional writing.

6. Who do you want to reach with your book?  Which audience?

God, Me, and Sweet Iced Tea is uniquely appropriate for working mothers, but it’s also for anyone who wants to put their Christianity into practice in their everyday moments and go deeper into God’s word.  Men are reading it and enjoying it as well.  As Tiffany Colter said, this devotional is simple enough for the newest believer, yet deep enough to make a life-long Christian feel challenged to go higher.  There are 52 devotions followed by questions for consideration for journaling, suggested scriptures for further reading, a prayer, a sweet tea moment (thought for the day), and a prayer focus.  Those extra helps allow the reader to use this as a personal or group study if they so desire.

Connect with Rose:

Blog: http://www.writemomentswithgod.blogspot.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/rechanjo

Pinterest:   http://pinterest.com/rosecjohnson/boards/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosechandlerjohnsonauthor

Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/18188725-rose-chandler-johnson

God, Me, and Sweet Iced Tea is available for sale on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and through your local independent book stores.