M U S I C
Family Bonds Forged on a Bus FATHER-DAUGHTER RELATIONSHIPS ARE SPECIAL, and Mark Miller and Madison Brown’s bond is no exception. After spending time with Mark, lead singer of country group Sawyer Brown and producer of Christian rock band Casting Crowns, and his daughter who hosts a travel show on RFD-TV called Chasing Down Madison Brown, you’ll quickly discover their relationship is steeped in trust and respect—and lots of laughter. The Miller family has always been close, but they might argue they had to be, just by virtue of spending their early years traveling together by bus. Near the beginning of Mark’s music career, when Sawyer Brown shot to fame after winning Star Search, he and his wife Lisa decided instead of keeping the family apart while Mark went on tour, they’d make a tour bus their home on the road (that’s with two adults, two kids and a golden retriever). “We literally packed up everything and put it on the bus like The Beverly Hillbillies,” Madison remembers. “There is not a lot of ‘me time’ on a bus. But I think that was really good, because you couldn’t escape, so you had to learn to deal with each other. We were always taught one of the greatest verses in the Bible was, ‘Love your sibling.’ That was reiterated many a time.” “It was a conscious effort to make life as normal
as possible,” Mark says. “And we were really strict on the kids. I had been around a lot of the celebrities’ kids, and I thought, You know what? I don’t ever want them to grow up and think that they’re entitled. I want them to grow up the way that I did, to know that if you’re willing to work, you can achieve anything you want to. But you have to work to get it.” As they crisscrossed the country, the Millers spent many hours in Bible study and prayer together. And today, they still make time to check in with each other about their faith. “My mother has decided to integrate Jesus Calling and technology together with these lovely family group texts,” Madison explains. “It’s become not only a great way for all of us to have a good daily devotional, but at the same time, it’s a great way to stay together as a family. And sometimes Mom will not-so-subtly let us know that, ‘The Jesus Calling devotion today really pertains to you and what’s going on in your life. And you could use some of that.’” Mark laughs. “I hope she doesn’t see this, but she’s usually right.” Adapted for print from Mark and Madison’s interview on the Jesus Calling Podcast.
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S P O T L I G H T
PHOTO COURTSEY OF MILLER'S PERSONAL ARCHIVES, ISTOCK
by Judy Blair
