JULY2010

Well this month has been super busy but lots of fun!

*July 2-4th~My mom and step-dad came down for the weekend. They haven't been here since Jaxson was 3mths old, so it was a good visit. The kids were so excited to see maw-maw & pawpaw. We had a cookout and it was soooo nice to be able to get the family together. I don't think we have gotten together like that in a long time!

Mom, Jaxson, Kara, Ethan, Paw-paw, & Brianna

Part of the Starman FamilyPart 2 of the Starman familyMe and Mom

4th of July~Jeremy had the week off, so after my mom and step-dad left, we headed to the lake and spent a few days there. That was nice and relaxing. We haven't been able to go up there like that in over 6yrs and it was great to spend time with Nona and Paw-paw. We had a great time...swimming, boat riding, tubing, and just hanging out!

Jaxson loved driving the boat with Uncle Mike!

Kenzie, Brianna, Ethan, Madalyn, & KaraKara

July 18th~We celebrated my niece, Maddie's 1st birthday.

July 25th~We celebrated my nephew, Caden's 4th birthday.He loved his buzz outfit.

We have had two Ramp conferences this months. They have been glorious as always. They just keep getting better and better. It never gets old watching these kids and adults coming to the Lord and walking away free from all types of bongage such as pornography, cutting, homosexuality, drugs, alcohol, and whatever else you can think of. The water baptisms this summer have been so awesome! I love standing in the HOT SUN watching these people go into that water and coming out completely different. You can just see it in their faces! Nothing like hearing the sound of a 7 or 8 yr old little boy, on his dads back say "Dad I don't need my glasses anymore, I can see, I can see!" (this is just one of the hundreds of stories that have happened) I have never cried so much. God is so awesome and He is STILL in the healing business!

There was about 1000 people.
We will finish up this month with Kara's 10th birthday. I cant believe she is 10 yrs old.
They grow up too fast.
We start school Aug 9th. Brianna will be a 7th grader;Kara will be a 5th grader; Ethan will be in 1st grade. Jeremy will be going to school also.

God is so good. I fall more and more in love with Him everyday. I love being a child of God and I am so thankful the Love He has for me! He loves me when I am unlovable.

Hope you all have had a good summer! More pics to come from Kara's birthday. Also lots in this mind of mine and once I can get it all in order, I will post it. Love all and God Bless You!!

Prayer Request Update

GOD IS AWESOME!!!!

AWESOME NEWS!!!!! Grayson Eli Whitlock got to go home yesterday(6.28.2010)!!!! He went home at a little over 5lbs and 17inches long & will be 3mths old on July 1st. He is very healthy and a beautiful little boy! Stephen and Tracy are very happy to be home with their little boy that God has sent them! Thank you all for praying with me for this family! Please continue to pray for them as they go home and get into a normal routine of daily life! Thanks again!

**Summer**

Summer is on its way. Just wanted to update with some new pictures. We are going to have a busy busy summer with Kids Ramp next week and 4 Ramp Gathering from then until August. It will glorious watching thousands of people, young and old, getting back to the basics with the Lord and having the chains of bondage broken. I am sure this summer will produce many pictures!!! If you are this way, come see us!

Yep, thats Ethan with a MoHawk! He has been wanting his hair cut like this for a while and with it being summer, I decided to go ahead and let him have it. He looks so cute it!!Kara finally let me take some cute pictures of her!PEACE OUT :D

"I need you"

“Momma,” in the small yet loud voice, Jaxson cried out for me. As I rounded the corner to his room, he said, “I need you.” He had woken up and just needed that comfort that I was there to love on him and lay beside him. To give him comfort that everything was ok and to just put my arms around him. As I was lying there, God begin to show me that this is who He is. He is our comfort in the darkness and when we are scared and not sure what to do or where to go and cant clearly see our way, all we have to do is call out for Him, “Daddy! I need you!” and there He will be, right beside us, to hold us, and give us the peace and comfort we need to make it through whatever it is we are battling with. Although I know this about Him, sometimes He likes to remind me that He loves me and cares for me more than I give Him credit for sometimes. Don’t get me wrong, I know He loves me but sometimes I just feel like I a very small part in the equation considering all the other important things that are going on in this world today. In this book I am reading, Radical, David Platt talks about how God is at the top of the mountain and we are at the bottom and our goal is to strive after Him but that God is God who doesn’t mind coming down off the mountain to come to us when we need Him. I love having that comfort in knowing my God loves me so much.

~Heidi

All you have to do is call out to Him and He will be right there to comfort you! Will you call for Him today?

Shake me God!!

Everyday I ponder about where am I and what am I doing? Too many times I get stuck in the wheel of doing the everyday things over and over and forget to stop and realize what God is up to and that I am apart of that. Not just here at the Ramp but on this earth. Anyone who calls themselves a “Christian” is being called to a deeper place with God everyday. Does our everyday walk and life reflect a true Child of God? Everyday we are supposed to seek Him more than the day before. We are called to be disciples first, then Christians. What did the disciples do? They left everything to follow after Jesus. They gave up everything to follow after something that they knew would change their lives. You may say well that was then and this is 2010. But really…the bible says that He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow…Heb. 13:8. That means that what He called the people of the bible to live, talk, walk, and breath is same for us today. I just want to be shaken of everything but God. Wow what a statement. “don’t say that because oh the storms coming now.” Well if it means that God has all of me and that Holy Spirit is in complete control and there is no more of me, then SHAKE ME GOD, SHAKE ME!!!! Me hasn’t gotten me very far. I know that God can do so much more with me. I am about to start reading this book, Radical, by David Platt. And all I know is that I want to be Radical for Jesus. If that makes me jump, shout, speak with “funny noises,“ make decisions that don’t seem right, then I don’t care!!! I just want Him and all that I can have of Him! I want to be sooo full of God and Holy Spirit that when you look at me, all you can see is Him!!! He is my someone whom its worth it all to loose everything for!

Just my thoughts for now :D

~Heidi

Is Jesus someone worth giving it all up for or has He been made into your American Dream?

Now onto 1st, 5th, and 7th...Wow how time flys!!!

Well we have offically finished our first school year at Hamilton Elementary and Hamilton Middle School. I now have two in middle school, one in 1st grade, and one at home. They are growing up so fast! Ethan did awesome in Kindergarten...He mastered every skill and is so smart...now if we can just get past the stage of him being a smarty pants lol. The girls both did good. Brianna is excited to be a 7th grader and Kara is excited(somewhat, she's not much for change) for middle school. Its hard to believe that we have been in Hamilton for almost 1 whole year. I am a very proud mommy and wife. Along with super blessed!!! (no pics of Kara bc she will not let me take one, shes not camera happy right now...lol)

CLASS OF 2010 KINDERGARTEN GRADUATE

GETTING HIS DIPLOMA

NO LONGER A 6TH GRADER!!!

JAXSON~JUST A BIG BOY!!Jeremiah 29: 11-13 (NLT)
"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me."

Last weekend in April!!! Wow God is amazing!!

(from the weekend of April 23-25th)
I have just realized that this weekend has a lot of meaning. Two years ago, April Ramp 08, was our first trip to the Ramp. We came with our youth group from BSOP. It was incredible. For the first time in a long time, I felt the freedom to worship. Needless to say, we were wrecked when we left, both Jeremy and I, and the youth group. (At this meeting, Jeremy began to feel the pull to Hamilton. But I didn’t.) We attended the Kids Ramp 08 with our kids and then also the Summer Ramp. Last year, this same weekend, Jeremy, the kids, and I came up for the first time on a Sunday night. It was the Sunday night after April Ramp 09. During the service, I began to feel the tug to Hamilton. On our way home from that service, Jeremy and I realized that God was calling us here. Three months later, we came! So much has happened in a year. I have learned a lot and am still learning.

What Have I learned that in a year? A lot can happen in a year, 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days… One year ago, if you had told me that we as family were about to go though a layoff, a major move, and incredible experiences…I just would have laughed. A year ago, I believed we would be at US Steel for the rest of our lives, live in Morris, AL til we died, and work with the youth at BSOP forever. (The only part of that that I dreaded was the US Steel part.) Feb of 2009, Jeremy was laid off for 2 weeks and then back to work. Ok, this wont last long. Cool! March, we were laid off…whole month, then came April, May, June, July. Really didn’t expect all that. We went from making great money to next to nothing. What was God up to, we begin to ask in April. At the end of April, we made a trip to the Ramp for a Sunday night service. Damon preached an awesome word. That night on the way home, I told Jeremy I was feeling the same as he had been for over a year to move there. We began deep prayer and searching for what God really wanted us to do. The next three months from then would be trying and difficult. What would our family think, would we find a house or even a job, would our kids be ok, was this truly what we needed to do? Every time we came to Hamilton, the Lord reassured us that we were making the right move. I began to lean on God and to trust Him like never before. I began to realize for the first time in all my saved years, that He could and would have complete control and I would have NO worries. He’s God and with Him all things are possible. I learned to let go and let God. He holds this whole world in His hands and despite my questions and things I don’t know or understand, He knows what He is doing!!

In a year, I have seen a change in my kids. I have watched my daughter go to a new level with the Lord. Brianna is so in love with God. She gives Him her all. She has come to know a freedom in her worship. She likes to get up at 5am to read her Bible. And has recently started a bible study at school!!! I have watched Kara grow in knowing who God is to her. I have seen her come out of her shell when it comes to God. Just a few weeks ago, I watched her get on her knees and seek God during worship. Last week, she went up the front and worshiped. Not like her at all, she’s not a “everyone look at me kind of girl.” Even at 5 yrs old (now 6), I watched Ethan grow in the Lord. He loves worship and now gets to play his guitar on the stage. The ministry team here, along with Damon and Mrs. Karen have become who they want to model themselves after. Each day, I see them grow more and more than they ever have. I watch Jaxson as he becomes completely captivated by God. When worship begins, he focuses, he sings, he raises his hands. The songs he sings at home are those that bring glory to the Lord. Being here at the Ramp is more than a Sunday school lesson or a youth group for my kids. Its real life to them. It has become their Normal! The people they look up to now aren’t Miley Cyrus, Icarly, or Spiderman, although they still like them. They have a new focus. Their 1st focus is the Lord! They look up to those who lay down their lives daily to live for the Lord. My girls aren’t focused on boys and having a boyfriend. Because they know that God has someone special for them. They still like boys but they just know that there are things more important. If this move does nothing else than cause my children to love God more and seek after Him more, then it was and is so worth it. I am raising up little John the Baptist. They don’t want to play church or even fake it til they make it. We as a family have past the “normal Christian” attitude that a lot of people have.

But this experience with God has been so much more than just for kids. I myself have grown so much in the Lord. I have gotten an increased hunger for His word. I read it now and its not like Chinese. I think about God all the time. I know He will always take care of us. I have seen Him come through so many times since we have been here. He is just so amazing. I have seen God strip things away from my family that we thought were important. I have seen the enemy try to attack us and LOOSE!!! I have watched my husband grow and let God take him to new levels. Being in God’s will is so much more important that trying to keep up with those around you. It has taught us that to truly seek Him means getting out of the box. Although getting out of the box isn’t comfortable, its well worth it. God doesn’t work in the box, he doesn’t heal in the box, he doesn’t dream in the box and why should we. I don’t want to be a box thinking Christian because the God I live my everyday life for is so much bigger than that. He is GOD ALL BY HIMSELF!!! Even when I don’t understand everything that happens, or can even see what in the world is going to happen, or how it will all work out, I know who He is and that He is in control. And that’s trust I know that will never be broken, misused or forgotten.

We look forward to the new levels that God is going to take our family as well as each of us individually. The Glory of the Lord is so worth this all. Even when others can’t see it or feel like our actions are nothing but mistakes, I look around at my family and see what God has done, is doing, and I am excited for what is next…and I am so thankful just to be where He has called us.