Kim - Hi Mark. How are you?
Mark - I'm good. I'm eating a sandwich and I was choking when I called. It was almost an emergency call. Hey, thanks for having me.
Kim - Thank you. So, what kind of sandwich are you eating?
Mark - You're not going to believe it. It's one that my grandpa told me how to make when they were low on different things in the refrigerator and my grandma was gone one night. Peanut butter and jelly with a slice of ham.
Kim - I've never done peanut butter and jelly with ham but I've done toast with butter and jelly and ham.
Mark - Oh that's nice. That's a nice variation. I love that.
Kim - I'll have to try the PB&J with ham.
Mark - You know what would make it perfect? If you had one of those little grill things, like a little George Foreman, to grill the bread. That would be top notch.
Kim - Who knows, you may get a hundred George Foreman's sent to you after this interview. You've been kind of busy here lately ... writing a book and getting ready to go on tour and a new CD sorta kindof ...
Mark - Uh huh. I was so excited yesterday. I found out that the records up for album of the year.
Kim - Alright! Congratulations! It's an awesome album.
Mark - That makes me feel good. Thank you. The first single is number one for seven weeks and is up for song of the year. I'm not going to complain about it.
Kim - "You Are a Child of Mine" has been in my Top 10 for some time now.
Mark - Awesome! Thank you. Whoo-hoo! (laughs) That's awesome. I love that.
Kim - Tell me about the book. I know it's going to be the stories behind the songs and I've heard that it includes "He's My Son", "Remember Me" and "You Are a Child of Mine". What other songs can we look forward to hearing the stories behind?
Mark - I picked about five or six from each record so almost half of each record has the stories behind the songs. What I'm also looking forward to is that there is a running narrative with it. From the day that I packed everything in the back of my car and left Kansas State University after I graduated and drove to Nashville to make it in the music business ... all of the crazy stories about what happened to me my first five or six years in Nashville. The first place I lived, the first neighbors ... it tells a lot of the background that went into writing these songs as well.
Kim - That's cool. Do you have a street date yet?
Mark - No, not yet. I was hoping that it would be finished here in just the next little bit but I'm having to write a youth Sunday song for our youth group which is taking all of my time currently, so the book is on hold for a little while.
Kim - Well I know that you started a tour on the 27th. On the days that you don't have shows or when you're on the bus what do you do to occupy and entertain yourself?
Mark - There's always something going on. Whenever you get that many artists in one small area there's something fun that's going to happen. We go to movies or write songs. Usually when we have a day off I like to come home but if I can't come home I try to find something that's going on in that town that's fun to get into.
Kim - You did a New Year's Resolution for me and you talked about how you have gotten to a point where you have stopped trying to be what you think people want you to be. I read another interview that you did not too long ago for "Worship Leader" Magazine. You said that you have found your self-worth based on what God thinks about you rather than what other people think about you. You said that if you had to write a bio line for yourself in two sentences that you would say "I always used to want validation from other people and to make other people like me but one of the big differences this year is that I've learned to accept God's validation". It seems like that is also the anchor theme to "It's Been a Long Time". That is a real pivotal point in your own walk and maturity level that you've reached. How did that come about?
