Seed of Harvest Ministries is the local, national and international ministry of Bishop Rick Thomas. This ministry delivers freedom to people world-wide with a life-changing revelation of God's principle of seed-time and harvest, through national and international seminars, crusades and Bishop Thomas' personal ministry - including books, study guides, and teachings on CD and DVD. Bishop Thomas' weekly television show, "Stepping Stones to Greatness," reaches into 176 nations, and Abundant Life's services are broadcast live through the Internet.

Bishop Thomas:

Senior Pastor, Bishop Richard Wayne Thomas was born on August 24, 1950, in Goldsboro, North Carolina, the youngest of three sons born to Bishop Woodrow W. and Sister Edith Thomas.

Pastor Rick's new birth in Christ took place in a Deerfield Beach, Florida, apartment, when he was 19 and responded to a call by the audible voice of God. With his life immediately and forever changed, Pastor Rick returned to Southeastern Bible College, Lakeland, Florida, and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree three years later. Pastor Rick has also earned a Master's Degree in Divinity and was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Divinity in 2005.

Following college, Pastor Rick's first ministry position was as youth pastor under Pastor George Miller at Oakland Park Assembly of God Church, Oakland Park, Florida. Then, in June 1978, he joined his father and mother as co-pastor of the church they founded in 1977, Abundant Life Christian Centre. The mission: “Reaching South Florida with Life.”

“We were a small, but growing church then,” said Pastor Rick, “and my jobs were to work with the youth group, the children's ministry, develop the Christian Education curriculum, including adult Bible class, and to help develop the television ministry. It was also my job to scrub the toilets, build walls, and set up chairs.”

In 1979, Pastor Rick married Kathy Burkhard. Pastor Kathy Thomas, gifted with discernment and insight as well as a worshipper's heart for God, was the Minister of Worship and Arts at Abundant Life for 28 years. Now the Administrative Pastor, she is a constant source of encouragement in Pastor Rick's life and an integral part of Abundant Life.

In December 1983, their daughter, Heather Ann, was born; followed by their son, Sean, in September 1986. Today, both children serve full-time at Abundant Life, Heather as a minister following her graduation from Oral Roberts University, and Sean, who is pursuing a degree in communications, in the media ministry.

When he was a junior in college, Pastor Rick participated in his first missions trip to the Bahamas. He has since traveled extensively to minister the Gospel to the nations. In order to do so more effectively, he established Seed of Harvest Ministries, an international ministry, to touch the world one nation at a time. Countries where Pastor Rick has ministered include Taiwan, Hong Kong, and The Phillipines; Thailand, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Laos, Korea and Burma. In 1992, Pastor Rick traveled to Pakistan where he was imprisoned for being a minister of the Gospel. In 2000, he traveled to Romania, and in 2003 to Brussels, Malta, Portugal, and Lisbon. That trip created a conduit to reach the Muslim world with the Gospel.

Then, in 2005, God opened a door for Pastor Rick in Central and South America. Partnering with pastors in Panama, Colombia, and Costa Rica, he is raising up young pastors to bring the message of seedtime and harvest to some of the poorest people on earth.

John 10:10 is the vision scripture of Abundant Life. Jesus said, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” This is the message of God's vision for His children, and the message that has brought many to salvation. Literally thousands of people have been saved when they heard the Good News that God loves them.

Thirty years after Bishop Woodrow and Sister Edith Thomas founded Abundant Life, the message that “God is a good God, He loves you, and He wants to bless you,” resonates around the world. It is carried by missionaries supported by Abundant Life and Seed of Harvest Ministries, by covenant ministers who were mentored by Pastor Rick and sent out to start new works, through television and internet broadcasts, and the written word. Pastor Rick has published three books--two of which are translated into Spanish, two workbooks, and several mini-books to instill revelation and practical life application of the Word into people's lives.

Abundant Life's shadow and Pastor Rick's message reach into 144 countries, as well as the local and national communities. From Central Florida to Miami, and from Fort Lauderdale to Fort Myers, Pastor Rick has financed and/or been a major stimulus to the founding of over 20 churches. "And yet," said Pastor Rick, “it is still the thing that I saw in my parents that continues to strike a chord deep within my spirit: a love for the people and a desire to help them see themselves as God sees them. I want to see them fulfill purpose and destiny.”

Mentoring and inspiring young pastors to start churches is Pastor Rick's passion. He is blessed to have sons and daughters in the Lord who are men and women of integrity, purpose and vision to carry on the work, knowing that the eternal God blesses them and their work to build the Church and expand the Kingdom.