We are a Family of Three Now!

Sophie Darlyne is here! She's already 9 days old, which is hard to believe. We love her and are so thankful God has chosen for us to be her parents.

So Much Learning....

Hello from the Millers! We have been busy working and doing lots of learning... sometimes we feel like to we have little time to process all that we're learning which can be frustrating. Ben has been a very hard worker lately, working many hours at Red Lobster. His managers love him, which is nothing new... his bosses always love him :) He started server training last week which he is very excited about as we thought he was going to have to wait until we came back in August for him to serve. He has really enjoyed it so far. I have one more week of work left, and 3 weeks from today is my due date! It's so hard to believe! While I will miss some of the people I have gotten to know through my six months at Family Video, it will be nice to be done.

So here are some things that I have been learning/thinking about. Last week we had a speaker in chapel named Brad Buser. He is middle-age and spent 20 years in a tribe in Papua New Guinea with New Tribes. Here are some things he said, that I wrote down as they made me think:

"Remember to look to the Word to find calling in life and not inward" (at what I'm passionate about, good at, etc.)

"Just because everyone's doing it doesn't mean it has a biblical basis." (Be careful with just following the American Christian norm)

"Will you die to the things you're really passionate about?"

"In Malachi, God says, in a sense, 'I want it all or keep it all.'" (He doesn't want us to just give some of ourselves) ... I didn't write down what chapter we were reading from in Malachi and am being lazy right now and don't feel like looking it up.

"Obedience is a long, difficult road" (We looked at Abraham and Isaac's story)

One thing Brad really made me think about is how in American Christianity, we often stress looking at ourselves, at what we're good at, and then deciding what we will do with our lives instead of stressing looking at the Word first. The more I think about this, the more true I realize this is, and I've been struggling as I think through this. I know God gives us gifts and passions for a reason, but I think Brad is right. We put too much emphasis on our talents and passions for deciding what we will do in our life rather than looking at God's heartbeat in the Bible which is first of all for those who are lost and also for those who are poor, sick, and in need.

I have more thoughts but don't want to bombard you with too many for now, so I will end here. Maybe our next update will include a picture of a cute baby!!

Baby Emma Nishimoto :)

My best friend, Abbey, and her husband, Andrew, welcomed their first child into the world on Sunday, February 20. They had a little girl and named her Emma. I love this little girl so much already! The only problem is... I live across the states from them and can't be with my best friend and hold her little girl. I'm hoping to go this summer so our little girls can meet one another, but as I deal with the sad emotions of not being able to see my friend and her baby right away, I realize that this is what my life will be like.

If Ben and I live overseas in the jungle somewhere, I won't just have the option of hopping in a car, or even on a plane, and going to see people when I really want to ... like when my siblings or friends give birth, or when people I love get married, or when someone special is having a birthday. I've always known this would be a reality if we choose to serve in missions overseas, but I think Emma's arrival has made it a reality. It will be a sacrifice to live away from those I love, but I know that our highest calling is to make disciples of all nations even if it means being sad along the way because of things we miss.

This past week in chapel has also been so good and challenging as Brad Buser, a NTM missionary who spent 20 years in Papua New Guinea, spoke to us. I'll try to update soon on some things stirring in my heart and mind.

Another Month, Another Blog Post

Well, I figured seems we're already into February, and tomorrow Ben and I start our second block of classes, that I better do another blog update! This past month was filled with getting back into the swing of classes, work, and preparing for a baby! I had two baby showers at the end of January and was so blessed by so many people. We are so grateful for those who love us and bought and made wonderful things for our baby. Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Classes: We just finished the first block which consisted of Ben taking theology first hour, both of us taking prophets second and third hour, and both of us taking Geography of Israel as an elective. Tomorrow we start Life of Christ... we're excited to be getting into the New Testament but are sooo so thankful for all the time we spent in the OT first. Ben will also be starting Anthropology/Hamartiology tomorrow. Today was Day of Prayer, so we had the opportunity to pray for requests we had as well as for people around the world who are doing missions' work.

Work: Ben continues to work at Red Lobster as a seater and busser. He enjoys it and likes having hours. He's still hoping to be trained soon for serving but is just waiting for the managers to do so. He's been getting consistent hours, and he works a lot over the weekends. I'm working another month at Family Video and then I'll take a couple of weeks off before Sophie comes. I've been having a few less hours now, but it's a good thing considering I'm getting more pregnant, and being on my feet for long hours isn't the best thing. It sure is nice to have two incomes though (especially seems we're both part-time), so we're appreciating it now while we have it.

Preparing for Baby!: She is due in a month and a half! It's hard to believe. Other than the baby shower, we've been taking some birthing classes at a birthing center. These are classes geared towards those who would like to have a natural, unmedicated birth in a hospital setting. They've been really helpful. We have one class left. We also have been rearranging to make room for the MANY baby things we have, and Ben built a changing table for Sophie! I am currently 33 weeks pregnant. I've had heartburn for a while but am starting to feel some back pain and am understanding what people mean when they say the third trimester is uncomfortable.

We know it's freezing outside and summer is still some ways off, but we'd appreciate prayers as we start thinking ahead. We'd love for Ben to be able to work with his friend again, doing construction. Ultimately though, he just needs a full time job that will allow us to save up for our school bill next year. We'd love to be home with our families so they can spend time with our baby, but of course, this depends on a job for Ben. Please be praying in this way for us. Thank you :)

Second Semester, Here We Go

Our second semester begins this week, on wednesday! Deep down we know we're excited to be in such enriching, wonderful classes, but it sure has been nice to have a break where we can work, sleep, play games, sleep (yes, we love sleep), watch movies, and take a few short trips. We love going to bed late and waking up late, so we will have to get used to the schedule of going to bed early and waking up early again.

Thanks to the money we had saved up, we have been able to make our initial payment for this semester which we are grateful for as some of our friends are still struggling to make this payment. The generous anonymous donation we received will cover some of our February payment, and it also covered our stay here over Christmas break (we have to pay a minimal rent in order to stay, but the amount we could make while working made it worth it). Thanks to getting hours at work, we just paid our car off! We are so thankful we will no longer have that bill. And most of all, we are thankful to God who continues to provide in ways we don't expect. First, the anonymous donation, and second, hours at work. Ben mentioned to his managers that if they ever need him to pick up hours that he is willing, and he has been able to pick up hours for others every week since then. I (Alisha) was able to work 32 hours this past week, and I'm so thankful that at 29 weeks I was able to be on my feet for that many hours. The Lord has provided us with good health and common sense in order to do the jobs we have, and even though they can be mundane, we know this is something to be thankful for.

I will be 30 weeks tomorrow! Which means only 10 to go! It's hard to believe that in just a little over 2 months, we will have a new little one in our lives :) We started birthing classes last week, and I have started my every-other- week appointments now.

We do have one new prayer request. We ask that you pray for our insurance. We're going through somewhat of a mess with it right now, and we really need it figured out quickly as we have many appointments and such right now with the baby. Please pray that things will get figured out asap!

Happy New Year!

This won't be very long year, but just wanted to fill you in quickly on the last few weeks:

1. Went home for Christmas for 5 days and really enjoyed our time with family and friends

2. Worked

3. Worked until 11 on New Years eve, and both got home in time to see the ball drop, hear some fireworks out our window, and watch a movie

4. Read and watched movies

5. Went on a Babymoon this past weekend :) We went to Hocking Hills for a couple of days and stayed in a beautiful cabin and enjoyed our last "hoo-rah" event without kids (picture above)

We also had a generous, anonymous donation given to us to help with school which we appreciated SO much. We've been working hard and taking extra hours when we can, but without working full time, extra money toward our school bill is so helpful. We are so thankful to God and to the generous donator... we thank you, whoever you are.

Semester's End

Tomorrow is our last day of classes for the semester which is hard to believe. We just have one final left and then Christmas break. While we really love the learning we are obtaining, it'll be nice to have a break from all the reading and busywork and hopefully have a chance to do some of our own reading and study in the Bible. After a semester of study in the Old Testament, you begin getting excited about the things to come in the Bible. I'm so thankful for the chronological study we've been able to have here. Ben and I both see the benefit of studying the Bible in this way. I feel like there's a lot to update on this time (i.e. this is going to be a monster update), so I'll try to categorize to make the reading easier.

School: Like I said, this has been such a good semester. Ben and I have both enjoyed everything we have learned, but most of this update will be from my viewpoint because he doesn't like to write, unfortunately. If you want to hear his viewpoint, you'll have to call him :) Our favorite class this semester is one we just had: Old Testament History. We have really loved the teacher, Rich Bruce. We have also really loved the content. One of our assignments was to write 15 write-ups. We had to choose a topic we saw in the Old Testament (Man's sinfulness, Man's pride, God's mercy, God's justice, etc) and make an outline of where we see it in the OT plus apply it to our lives. This was a great assignment to help us think about how the Bible applies to our lives and why God puts certain things in the Bible. It also allowed us to dwell on the big ideas in the OT. I really enjoyed this class after taking Prophecy at Grace College. Prophecy class helped me to see what the prophet books are really for and to understand that God took Israel and Judah into captivity because of their sinfulness. Going through the OT chronologically has helped to truly grasp how big of a deal it is that God took them away. He LOVED these people so much, and he warned them so many times. He had mercy on them and turned his wrath away many times. But finally, after years and years of disobedience and idolatry, God followed through on his promise to destroy them (because they did not stay faithful to him). When I got to the end of 2 Kings, I was devastated because I finally grasped the frustration and heartbrokenness of God.... he warned them so many times. He desperately wanted them to choose him so he wouldn't have to send them into captivity. But they just wouldn't listen. I know from reading thing that I must look at my own sinful heart though. There are many times that I choose to continue in my sin... sins like being selfish and prideful... rather than trusting God and being 100% faithful to him. All in all, this class has been a blessing, and we look forward to studying the prophets when we come back after Christmas break.

Christmas Break: We will get to spend some time with our families which we are looking forward to. We also will get to go on a short "Babymoon" (last "hoo-rah" alone before Baby comes) to a cute cabin in Ohio for a couple of days. The rest of the month-long break we will be here in Jackson working.

Work/Provision: Speaking of work, God has been teaching me. I know when I first came to Bible school that we would have to pay for school somehow and that we wouldn't have much. I might have mentioned some of this in a previous post, so sorry if I repeat at all. After hearing so many stories about God's amazing provision for people in situations like ours, I know there was something in the back of my head that kept thinking/hoping God would provide anonymous donations. I've been learning that God IS a provider, but he's provided in different ways than what I thought at first. He's provided through jobs. Jobs might not be the most fun way to make money. Especially ones that are part-time and not in our "specialty" fields. But they're jobs, and they provide money, and God has been gracious to us through them. I have been getting decent hours week after week, and often, I've been getting more hours than what I expected. I requested around 20 when I interviewed because of school. I've been getting closer to 25-30 hours most week, and God has been good to make it completely possible for me to handle all of those hours. The extra money has been very helpful. Certainly my paycheck is small compared to most that normal, functioning, American families make, but it's been enough for us to live off of so far which we are glad. We almost have our car paid off too which is very exciting! Ben has also been getting some hours at Red Lobster. He doesn't work a lot right now, but the extra hours he gets on top of mine are helpful, and hopefully by time our baby comes and I have to stop working, he will be serving and having more hours. Sometimes when we think about a baby coming and our school bills, we get anxious, still. Please pray that God will continue providing for us and that we will continue to trust his provision.

Baby: We're so excited about having a little girl. We're thankful to still have time to prepare though as we know she will make many changes to life as we know it. I am 25 weeks now, and so far everything has been looking good. Please pray that both her health and my health will continue to be good throughout the pregnancy.

And we do have fun sometimes, so we'll finish out with some pictures :)

1. This is Hae-Jung and I. I had the privilege of being one of her language helpers this semester. She is from Korea and is a student here at NTBI. She does really well with English, but listening and comprehending is still difficult for her. Her kids have also been getting sick a lot lately which takes away from her time to study. Please pray for her as she gets frustrated at times and desires to understand English. She's a hard worker.

2. This is at one of our friends, Beth's, surprise birthday party. Laken is on my side, and Payton, our neighbor, is on Ben's side (Laken is married to Jason, and Payton is married to Grace).

3. My friend Grace Cale had a cookie party... with the purpose of evangelism. We got to make cookies and some people invited friends that they have been witnessing to (I wasn't able to invite anyone as I could only stay a short time because of work). It was fun! And yumm cookies!

4. This is my friend Jessica. She is one of the single girls here at school, and I love spending time with her. She's from Canada. She watches Survivor with me on Wednesday nights when I don't have to work. She also helped me make the yummy cookies that I took to the cookie party.