The fields are ripe, but the laborers are few. Pray to the Lord of the harvest!

Dear Friends and Partners,

When Jesus saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion, because they fainted and were scattered abroad, and were as sheep having no shepherd. What a picture of the world around us today! People are scattered by false philosophies. They are fainting because of oppressive governments and unscrupulous people. They are scattered by the hurts and pains or a life lived in such a dark, cruel world.

“And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.” Matthew 9:35-38, KJV.

As a result of what He saw in His days on the earth, Jesus was moved with compassion to…

• Heal the sick. Mt. 14:14
• Multiply the fish and loaves. Mt. 15:32
• Make the blind to see. Mt. 20:34
• Cleanse the leper. Mk. 1:41
• Raise the dead. Luke 7:13

That same compassion can operate in us … although it is not automatic. As believers in Christ, compassion lives in us, but sometimes it is encapsulated in a cocoon of worldly cares and selfishness. Through prayer, however, we can release compassion to break forth in our lives and spill out. His compassion will cause us to…

• Reach out to a visitor at church who seems lonely and uncomfortable.
• Rise up early in the morning to pray for the needs of a friend.
• Study the Word late at night when we can barely keep our eyes opened. 
• Travel to the other side of the world and eat strange food  and sleep in strange places to reach the lost. 
• Talk to someone about Jesus at the risk of being rejected. 

But sometimes that compassion eludes us. We are consumed with our own problems and pressures. Our hearts are hardened by the evil around us. Or we are just (in our minds) too busy. The sad fact is that many Christians would not even walk across the street to tell someone about Jesus.

Jesus has an answer for the needs of scattered humanity! He knows that if He can just get His people to pray to the Lord of the harvest, things will change, because prayer changes our hearts! Prayer releases the capacity within us to love … to care about the needs of others … to have compassion. Yes, this is what we need today. A revival of prayer! A revival of compassion!

When any of us begin to lose that fire and compassion and we begin to do things for other reasons, our ministry can become an empty shell of religion. We must repent, return to our first love, and allow God to refuel our passion. Prayer and communion with the Lord will restore and reignite us and cause us to do His work with right motives in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Update on Believers School of Ministry in Asia

Our Believers School of Ministry in a nation in Asia via Skype (a video chat service on the internet) is going great! Each Wednesday morning at 9 a.m., Because of the time difference, the believers in the church we are working with in Hyderabad receive the teaching on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. I have really sensed a strong anointing on these classes and we are already seeing results. After each session, the students in India are practicing sharing their testimonies and the Gospel with one another. After class, they are beginning to reach out to others around them and share the Gospel in their daily lives.

So far, we have taught the following classes:

• Discovering New Life
• Sharing Your Faith as a Lifestyle
• Building a Strong Foundation for Faith
• Nurturing New Believers

We have been able to record all the classes and they are available in audio or video on our website. Just click on “Believers School” in the menu and you will see the classes that are available. By the end of the year we will have all 12 lessons from the “Introduction to Ministry” available online. So get online and fuel your passion for ministry.

Healing Service in Mankato, Thursday, Nov. 9

Susan and I would like to invite you to join us for a Healing Service at the AmericInn Hotel and Conference Center, 240 Stadium Rd. Mankato, MN, on Thursday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. The meeting will focus on “Faith for Healing,” including physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. If you are traveling from a distance and need a room, call AmericInn at 507-345-8011, ask for Jennifer Delgado and mention Tom Shanklin Ministries for a special rate. Click here for more details. We hope to see you there!

Prayer Requests

Pray for our ministry schedule for 2018. We want to continue to reach out to our own community and the United States with the message of God’s love through Jesus Christ and we are praying about several invitations to minister abroad. Pray that we will be “in step” with God’s plan for this ministry.

Pray for all our ministry partners and supporting churches, that God’s grace, healing and provision would abound and that each one would flourish spiritually in the courts of our God.

Thank you!

Thank you for all that you do for the Lord Jesus and for your partnership with us. Some day you will see all the fruits of the things that you do as you are moved by compassion by the Spirit of the Living God.

May the Lord richly bless you!

Tom Shanklin

Click here to learn about partnership!