What an incredible month October has been. I would probably describe it as INTENSE! It has been wonderful and challenging all at the same time. We have worked hard, travelled extensively, been in many meetings with leaders, friends and churches and had unexpected administrative challenges. However, throughout this month I have preached and been so aware of our LIMITLESS GOD – the God who does beyond our understanding and capacity. So, even though it has been intense and we have been so aware of a general swirling, confusing atmosphere, we have survived and accomplished so many things that we thought would defeat us!

This month one scripture in particular has been so real to me – Daniel 7:25. I have read it in so many translations and basically a summary of these translations says: The enemy will speak words against the Most High (God) and wear down the saints with constant harassment as the enemy intends to change the times and laws given into the people’s hands for this time…BUT the court of the Most High will sit in judgement…and the enemy’s dominion will be taken away. I have had such a sense as I have listened to people share, and watched our own lives be challenged, that this is a time of wrestling with an enemy who wants us to yield our spiritual territory and move away from our ground of breakthrough. He is doing everything to distract, harass and wear us down so that we relinquish the promises that God has given us for this season. This battle and wrestling is about today’s promises coming forth and being made manifest now.

So October has been a month of distractions, harassments and just random “life stuff” that has needed to be navigated to stand and win. Firstly, our bank of 30 years has decided to close our Heartcry account as our charity aims and projects no longer fit within their new parameters and ideals for their newly defined business and community accounts. They have offered us an alternative account within their banking system but say they need to close our old account and we then need to re-activate all our account’s monthly payments, standing orders etc! This has been an administrative nightmare but, with help and advice, we are finding a new way to function and so please be aware that standing order details and ALL our banking details will change in the next  month. So PLEASE CHECK with the office before sending ministry gifts or donations! We will update the website once the new details have been finalised and confirmed. Thank you for bearing with us.

In addition to just the busyness of Heartcry life, there have been other stresses and challenges too. Poor Helen has had VERY aggravated tendons/ligaments in her right foot which have been extremely painful. With so much of her work requiring her to stand and speak and also so much walking in airports, hotels and conference centres this has been difficult. But Helen never complains and has been amazing but she is in a lot of pain. We have prayed, fasted and asked God for help but she is still struggling. In the last week of October Helen was part of a team praying in Germany, both in Berlin and Hamburg. When she left her foot was giving her many issues but she was brave and went anyway. Also on the Hickson family front there have been challenges too. Our kids have had COVID and not been well. My mum fell while out walking on a Sunday afternoon and severely damaged her face. This required Gordon and/or I to spend several days at hospital appointments and long waits at the A&E. Mum has made a remarkable recovery, and nothing was broken, but her face has exhibited every colour of the rainbow as the bruising has come out! She too has been incredibly brave. The pain must have been hard to endure.

But enough of the challenges….there have been many wonderful Jesus moments too! We have just completed another accounting year for Heartcry Trust and submitted our Heartcry Charity annual report to the UK Charity Commission. Here is an extract from that report for you to read:

“This year has seen a return to a full schedule of travel and the resumption of in person speaking and resourcing of conferences, training events, leadership mentoring programmes and social outreach projects. Rachel Hickson and Helen Azer have travelled extensively on behalf of the Trust delivering training and engaging supporters with updates on the Trust’s projects, notably the relief work in Moldova and Ukraine. In person visits have taken place in 40 cities across the UK and multiple cities in 8 other nations including USA (across 13 states), Norway, Canada, Republic of Ireland, Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia. Heartcry Trust has also continued to offer online teaching and training material for use through the Trust’s social media platforms, notably Facebook and YouTube. These resources have been provided free of charge in line with Heartcry’s charitable purposes and have attracted donations into the Trust from those who have wanted to partner with the Trust to further its public benefit at this time. Rachel Hickson and Helen Azer have also continued to offer leadership mentoring, training and seminars via zoom at the request of churches and other organisations.”

So this report gives you an idea of the travel and the scope and influence that we have been privileged to have this last year into our communities and the nations. October has been no different – this month we preached in Oxford, Solihull, the GEAR Network of leaders from URC, Coventry, Watford, Birmingham, Norway and Germany, all in person, but we also spoke to leaders and groups on zoom in Canada, Germany, USA. All over the nations we are sensing the hunger for God and a desire to see Jesus more evidently manifest in our everyday lives.

There have been wonderful testimonies too. Two women from the LEGACY day, who had prayer for healing, both had their back and skeletal pain completely leave, enabling them to sleep and function normally after living with pain and moving with great difficulty. In Birmingham, Kim shared her story of a miracle baby after prayer. She had had an ectopic pregnancy and feared she would never have a child. Now she does!!

Helen and Gordon have just returned from Germany and had a time of prayer in the cities of Berlin and Hamburg. As God continues to allow the nations to be shaken, we have had such a sense that Europe will be re-aligned for His purposes and that Germany is critical in this season. The team prayed for the righteous Kingdom seed that was carried in past generations by men of faith such as Reinhard Bonnke to be stirred again in the land and multiplied across a new generation of revivalists, evangelists and preachers. They also felt that God was calling His church in Germany to awaken from slumber and inertia and pick up its leadership responsibility for the sake of Europe. The team prayed for godly wisdom and revelation for those in authority in both natural and spiritual governmental positions.

Gordon writes: I returned to visit Germany so aware of my German heritage, as my grandmother came from Hamburg. So I found myself identifying and praying as a German rather than a visitor. Also exactly 30 years ago I was part of a team that came together walking from London to Berlin to pray. We were asked to lead the vast German “March for Jesus” and symbolically carried a huge wooden cross through the Brandenburg Gate, This gate has often been a sign of the division in Germany.  It was amazing to sense how things have changed since those days. There is a distinct feeling in both the UK and German churches that our nations must now be covenanted together to write the next chapter of history.

Now we move into November and the end of the year…it is still busy and we will be travelling lots. Here is our schedule:

Ministry Dates November 2023
3-4 Nov Victory Faith, Spokane, WA, USA (Rachel & Helen)
5 Nov Fresh Bread message, Heartcry online platforms (Rachel)
6-9 Nov Global Prophetic Consultation, Dallas, TX, USA (Rachel & Helen)
10 Nov Neuma Church, Spokane, WA, USA (Rachel & Helen)
11-12 Nov Victory Faith, WA, USA (Rachel & Helen)
17-19 Nov Betel, Birmingham, UK (Rachel & Gordon)
19 Nov Hillsong, Oxford, UK (Helen)
25 NOV Convergence Conference, Leicester, UK (Rachel & Helen)
26 Nov Liberty Church, Rotherham, UK (Helen)
26 Nov Hillsong, Oxford, UK (Rachel)
29 Nov – 5 Dec Moldova (Rachel & Gordon)
30 Nov – 3 Dec Slovenia (Helen)

Thank you so much for all our prayers and love. We are so aware that we need prayer cover and His grace and capacity to serve in these challenging but exciting days.
Our love and thanks,
Rachel & Gordon with Helen and the Heartcry family.