Japan Update

If you were all wondering what's up with me and Japan, you can thank Hannah for spurring this post:).

I actually just had my 1 hour 15 min telephone interview with TEAM yesterday. That's one of the last initial steps for me. I will have JCCC send my transcript in to TEAM today, then just wait for the rest of my references to finish up. At that point they finish looking over everything and, Lord willing, ask me to come up to Wheaton, IL to talk with them there. So it is coming along well, I think. Your prayers are defiantely needed and appreciated!


On another note, I went to Ned Kellenberger's orchestra concert last night, which was sweet! They played some great pieces, and ended with the theme from Pirates of the Carribean. Good stuff. Ned is amazing too, that kid's a freshman, but an amazing violinist/section leader of his high school orchestra and like 2nd chair of Kansas City Youth Symphony. I'm trying to recruit him for music school in Japan:).

Oh, and Applebees has 1/2 price appetizers after 9PM, which is only beat when you think you're paying and a friend picks up the tab instead. So, that was yesterday. Today should be awesome.

Interview Questions

Dan and Kelbs, I usually never do these, but since you guys sent it to me, I decided to. You should feel special:)
>
> 1. What time is it? 11:12 AM
>
> 2. Name? Mark Alan Miller
>
> 3. Piercings? None...
>
> 4. What is the most recent movie you've seen in the
> theater? End of the Spear
>
> 5. Eye color: Green
>
> 6. Place of Birth: Olathe, KS
>
> 7. Favorite NEW food? hmm...the last new food I tried was popcorn dipped in peanut butter, though I highly doubt it will ever be considered one of my favorites.
>
> 8. Ever been to Africa? No, someday...
>
> 9. Ever been toilet papering (rolling)? I plead the 3rd, and the 7th, and the 22nd...wait... Kelbs help me out;) jk
>
> 10. Love someone so much it made you cry? Yup, often, I think god puts more tears in male musicians than other guys, but don't tell anyone
>
> 11. Been in a car accident? twice, in fact my perfect driving record just disentegrated last week in the wal-mart parking lot.
>
> 12. Croutons or bacon bits? Both, but bacon bits are the BEST!
>
> 13. Favorite day of the week? Today (whichever the
> current one is) (is it ok to steal answers?)
>
> 14. Favorite restaurants? hmmm....Jack Stack, McDonalds and Taco Bell for value menu's, MJ's Pizza, does Starbuck's count as a restaurant?
>
> 15. Favorite Flower? Water Lily
>
> 16. Favorite sport to watch? College Football, KANSAS STATE WILDCATS, YEAH!!!!!
>
> 17. Favorite Drink? Venti Caramel Frappachino
>
> 18. Favorite ice cream? Starbucks ice cream, good stuff
>
> 19. Disney or Warner Brothers? Disney + 4 words
The Emperor's New Groove

Enough said.
>
> 20. Favorite fast food restaurant? McDonald's $1
> double cheese burger, but recently the 1/2 $1 burritos at Taco Bell have been rockin my world
>
> 21. What color is your bedroom carpet? tanish, with assorted carefully placed dark brown spots, located strategically by my study desk. (are we allowed to lie on this test, or is this blinking button on my computer some type of lie detector?)
>
> 22. How many times did you fail your driver's test?
> ...doh! You would ask. The first time, no problem, but when I moved to Indiana and had to switch my license...yeah, I failed. That was humbling.
>
> 23. Before this one, from whom did you get your last
> e-mail? I don't remember, the only two I have so far today are from Dan and Kelbs, though I did get one from my Chinese friend Tren in my other account.
>
> 24. Which store would you choose to Max out your
> credit card? Evil question, it's making me covet. Probably Sweet Water Music Technology so I could get an amazing new recording studio, wait...do I have to pay off this credit card?

> 25. What do you do most often when you are bored? You don't want to know, no really.
>
> 26. Bedtime? Probably average around Midnight.
>
> 27. Who will respond to this e-mail the quickest?
> Kristi
>
> 28. Who is the person you sent this to that is least
> likely to respond? Dan and Kelbs since they already did this
>
> 29. Who are you the most curious about their
> responses to this? Kami, cause it's bound to hilarious
>
> 30. Favorite TV shows? Sue Thomas F.B.eye, college football, but I really don't watch much tv at all.
>
> 31. Last person you went to dinner with? myself and God, if it wasn't for Him I would have a really lonely life.
>
> 32. Ford or Chevy? Toyota!
>
> 33. What are you listening to right now? Hawk Nelson, Shane and Shane on the way here
>
> 34. What is your favorite color? Green
>
> 35. How many tattoos do you have? I had a couple fake tattoos I got from a Pop-Tart box once.
>
> 36. How many animals? 0
>
> 38. How many people are you sending this e-mail to?
> Kelbs, I want to know if I got a whole number or if I counted as the .2375
>
> 39. If you could go anywhere on vacation, where
> would it be? Wow, everywhere, I love traveling. I would really love to go to Europe, see all the music history there and go to a bunch of different Symphonys.
>

Inadequate

I wanted to write about the Passion 06 conference. I still do, but I just had a hard time condensing it into words.

Coming out of it I had this thought,
I'm convinced that God left our language inadequate to describe Him and His works, so that we would be forced to be quiet and listen to Him. Sometimes, maybe the best worship is silence.

I'm really excited for this year. It's going to be INCREDIBLE to watch God work, and oh the joy at being a small part of that!

Desires

I have a Myspace account that I almost never use. Basically I got it because some friends of mine have it. Anyway, the other day I wrote an intro to myself, but I want to share it here. I want to share it, because I don't think I'm the only one who struggles with constantly burning for Jesus, when living for Him is my chief aim and pleasure. So, without further adieu...

Do you ever have a desire to desire something? But the thing you desire to desire conflicts with your flesh creating a constant state of war everyday? That's my life. But it's a good life, because I desire to desire God. I want His presence, His joy, His leading! I want His correction, His compassion, and His mastery over me. Why is it so hard? Why do I let these desires be competed with? Why do I let selfishness, pride, and lust even become blips on the radar screen do infiltrate my longing for Jesus? This is my war, eveyday I wake up in the middle of a new battle field. Everyday needs to start with prayer, and reading the letters from my Master in Command or I will fall. Each day I let my general lead I see incredible victories as He fights on the front lines ahead of me. My heart is thrilled to see Him work His wonders and supposed impossibilities in my life - what a glorious Savior! Jesus has led me into full time missions work, and I why He chose me I still haven't figured out and it humbles me beyond anything else. Much of what I do involves writing music, playing music, and descipling people, but without a doubt the greatest ministry I have is simply in building relationships and helping them see Jesus. Jesus, Jesus precious Jesus How I've proved Him o're and o're Jesus, Jesus precious Jesus O for grace to trust Him more (nope, I didn't write that one) Who am I? I am a man harldy worthy of being called such, but made at peace with God, filled with joy, and empowered by Christ to do His marvelous will and be a part of His grand story, the greatest story there will ever be.

Death by Caffeine

How much of your favorite caffeinated drink would it take to kill you? Take this quick test and find out:

After 23.89 cups of Starbucks Grande Coffee, you'd be pushing up daisies

LOL, I couldn't resist taking this test. There's all kinds of great beverages to choose from. You can take your own personalized test at www.energyfiend.com

On another note. Please keep me in your prayers as I have started the application process for full time missions in Japan:)