Hello everyone, from all of us at Heartcry!  

The winter is past and springtime is here! It is amazing to watch how rapidly the pages of this year, 2022, appear to be turning. We must keep alert and watching for the opportunities that appear in the midst of all the uncertainties that are swirling around us.   We hope you had a HAPPY FEBRUARY, and complete this month feeling loved and appreciated. February was an unusual but satisfying month for us here at Heartcry. Much of the month was a surprise and many things that happened were unscripted but still profitable. Helen was able to travel to Norway for a week and teach in the YWAM discipleship school on the gifts and person of the Holy Spirit after a last-minute cancellation in their programme. She had a remarkable time and  we were able to shift our schedule here in the UK to accommodate her being away. 

Helen writes: It was a real joy to be with students from 13 nations all hungry to learn and eager to partner with God in the nations.  Many of them were not from church backgrounds where they had learned about the person and work of the Holy Spirit so it was a revelation to them to learn about this amazing person who has been given as our Helper, Advocate, Comforter and Equipper.  As we practised listening to the voice of God together, they were so thrilled at how they heard Holy Spirit speak to them about the nations they were going on missions to later in the spring. Rather than be overwhelmed by the enemy’s strategy in those nations, they began to see God’s redemptive plan and realise that they would have the privilege of carrying the presence of God into those places. Their simple hunger and willingness to step out on an adventure was refreshing and challenging. In this season when so much feels new, will we also be childlike in our trust and desire to learn and explore with God?

This is a time of shift, adaptation and flexibility! Unfortunately, Helen and I both tested positive for COVID at the end of the month and so we had to shift and change yet again! Both of us had it mildly – headaches, coughs and tiredness but nothing too concerning. But we are now out of isolation and ready to go once again. Again and again these words unscripted and uncharted keep coming back to me as we plan and discern how we should use our time. Interestingly, Gordon and I were walking over the fields with our dog one early morning and talking about the surprises we have experienced in our ministry and we began sharing about our times in the Faroe Islands and how we loved the people there and their hunger for God. Imagine our shock when later that same day Johan emailed us asking if we would consider coming to the Faroes and speaking at their Easter Convention! Unscripted and unplanned once again but we know that this is in God’s plan. So we will travel to the Faroes for Easter and so enjoy being part of this time with many precious people who serve Jesus and love missions. 

I believe this is a time when we need to watch for the sudden doors that open to us while not fighting the doors that shut too. Even in the time of enforced rest due to Covid God had a plan. At first it was just sleep! I could not read or concentrate much and, having had shingles twice in the last year, I could feel my body needed rest but, until forced to stay at home, it did not seem urgent. However, once I tested positive, I have had a week of bed and rest and I can feel that my stamina for life is better. God has a plan and He will open and shut doors so we need to learn to yield and be flexible in these new ways. 

This last month has also been a month of extraordinary winds here in the UK. If you listen to our monthly message, FRESH BREAD, this month (6 March) I share on what I hear God is saying at this time. Helen shared last month on the SPIRIT of TRUTH being in our midst. This March I am sharing THE WIND BLOWS! I feel strongly that God is continuing to ask His Church to demolish every empire attitude and become Jesus’ Kingdom people. We are watching in Europe the new clash of empires with the Eagle (USA), Lion (UK), Bear (Russia) and Dragon (China) all vying for attention and power. We need to be ready to pray. The shared social media pictures of the Ukrainian church kneeling on the snow to pray and ask God for help are deeply moving.  Will we also kneel and pray with them? We are living in a time when His Spirit will blow and expose the enemy’s plans and structures but also this same wind will awaken a new lingering hunger for more of God in His people. This is a time to seek HIM and ask for more of His presence and power. 

As we step into March, we are again mainly in the UK but beginning to now plan to travel to other nations too. We hope to go to Moldova and see our friends who have continued to pioneer and share Jesus during these last tough years and now with the Russian activity on their borders. We will also visit Vienna, Austria, USA and Faroes in the next months. So please do follow our schedule and we hope to be able to give you all a hug soon!

Ministry Dates For March 2022

6 Fresh Bread Message – Heartcry social media platforms (Rachel)
6 Legacy Church, Walsall, UK (Rachel)
11 London Prayer night (venue tbc) (Rachel)
12-13 Betel Birmingham, UK (Rachel & Gordon and Helen)
13 Fleet Baptist Church, UK (Helen)
14 Coventry Elim worship team night, UK (Rachel & Helen)
16 Premier Radio online (Helen)
18-19 Gateway Conference, Portsmouth, UK (Rachel & Helen)
24 Isle of White (Rachel & Gordon and Helen)
29-31 Moldova visit (Rachel & Gordon and Helen) 

Several of you have asked when our next Legacy Day in Oxford will be.  We have booked the venue for Saturday 17 September 2022 so do save the date and we will let you know when bookings open in due course. In the meantime, don’t forget that my brand new book, Spiritual Architects: the gift of prophets to the Church today, is now available in the UK in paperback and the e-book version is available if you live overseas…visit www.heartcryforchange.com/shop for more info.  If you’d like to bulk order copies for your church, home group or friends, then do get in touch with us on office@heartcry.co.uk so that we can give you a better shipping rate for 10 or more copies purchased.

Thank you, dear friends, so much for your love and support!
Rachel & Gordon and Helen.