Pakistan Mission - Journey
Pakistan Mission – Trip 27 November – 8 December 2025
We landed on time at 8:30 a.m. in Lahore, a city with a population of 14 million in north-eastern Pakistan.
A seven-member welcoming committee had gathered at the airport, and we were immediately adorned with four (real) rose garlands each and welcomed. The first traditional Pakistani breakfast was spicy, delicious and, of course, eaten with our hands.
- It started right away on the first evening with a prayer and worship meeting. The volume was unbeatable in terms of decibels. Anyone who thinks that persecuted Christians in the Islamic Republic are cautious, inconspicuous or intimidated is thoroughly mistaken. Even from a distance, you could hear where our meetings were taking place, and a poster with our faces and the announcement of the upcoming pastors' meeting was displayed on the wall of the house.
- Our mission began with a youth conference. Around 100 teenagers had gathered, and the theme of Dad's sermon was "Knowing God – and the calling that follows". I was also allowed to give a short input, and excitingly (or, when you are walking with the Holy Spirit, perhaps more logically), my input also focused on the three points: identity, relationship, and destiny. We had not discussed anything beforehand, but this is how the Lord led us.
The young people were very attentive and greatly enriched the day with performances on the theme of the cross and salvation.
The first evangelistic meeting took place that same evening. A large tent was set up for this purpose. We were amazed when we saw all the carpets that covered the floor and the festive cloths that adorned the ceiling. It was fit for a king – and that is exactly who was among us. Dad preached about the prodigal son and shared his testimony. Many people accepted God's invitation that evening and came forward to give their lives to Jesus. We prayed, hugged, laid hands on people, made friends... and took lots of photos :-) It was truly a moving and blessed evening.
- Even beforehand, God had laid it on our hearts to help distribute Bibles. On the second evening of evangelism in the tent, we were able to give many people their very first Bible. What a moving moment. What a privilege. What a blessing. Some kissed them, pressed them to their hearts, and it was deeply touching when you consider that here in the West we often have dozens of Bibles lying around somewhere that are never really opened. There, it is a real treasure, and we pray that these Bibles will bear much fruit. We were also able to give many Bibles to young people.
Following the evangelism events, which we held at four different locations, we were invited to dinner at various families' homes – at 11 p.m., of course. So, usually around 20 of us would flood into someone's flat in the middle of the night, sit down on their double beds, sofas, chairs, etc., and be spoiled with good food. Imagine that in Switzerland – 20 strangers eating curry with their hands in the middle of the night in YOUR bed – simply sensational... and for us: unimaginable! The hospitality and uncomplicated nature of the Pakistanis surprised us again and again, sometimes amused us, but always touched and blessed us.
- On one of the days, we were allowed to visit a Christian school with about 80 children. We were told that children from Christian families either do not get a place at school in the first place, or are so psychologically and physically abused that their parents voluntarily take them out of school. The current problem is that the school is located in rented premises. After a short time, the owners find out that the tenants are Christians and terminate their leases. As a result, the entire school has to move every few months.
Wherever we went, a guard of honour was formed and we were showered with rose petals. This shower of rose petals was so immense that even hours later (e.g. when going to the toilet or changing clothes) we experienced another blessing of roses :-) It was the same at this school. We were actually glad to have sunglasses on our heads, because the exuberant little ones threw the roses at our faces with such enthusiasm that we could later pick them out of our mouths and ears.
The highlight was, of course, that we had sweets with us. But everyone also had a lot of fun singing, dancing and taking photos together. We got to experience the same thing again a few days later – this time at an orphanage. All these children had been brought from a nearby brick factory, where they had to do 'picture-perfect' child labour.
- Pastors' conferences were held at different locations on three consecutive days. God had already laid it on Dad's heart in Switzerland to speak about Israel. He did so every day, based on different Bible passages. The topic was received with very open hearts. We prayed together for Israel and blew the shofar, which always generated a lot of enthusiasm. One pastor came up to Dad and said, “We can never travel to Israel and meet our brothers and sisters there in person. But you are always there, and when I hug you, it is as if I were hugging Israel,” and he threw his arms around him and asked him to take his love with him to Israel next time.
- One pastors' meeting remains particularly memorable for us. We were first welcomed at the home of one of the pastors. He is a very important man in the country, both the 'leader' of a large pastors' association and a member of the government. A totally modest, humble, likeable man. There were already about 20 pastors present, all of whom were introduced one after the other. Afterwards, we drove to the location, where about 200 people had already gathered. The place was in a heavily Muslim area and was guarded by armed security personnel. I wasn't even allowed to go to the toilet on my own, which was right next to the building. Outside, food was being cooked on the fire for all 200 people, which was also an impressive spectacle.
- Whenever we thought, "Now we're going home," we hadn't reckoned with Pakistani hospitality. Several times a day, we were invited to different families' homes to eat, drink tea, bless a newborn baby, lay hands on someone who was ill, celebrate a little boy's birthday (where Dad and I were the only ones who received beautifully wrapped gifts), take a few more photos with someone or eat cake. Of course, we have experienced this in other countries too – but the hospitality and generosity of people who have almost nothing is always deeply moving, impressive and also embarrassing.
- Another big issue was my clothing, by the way. It was made clear to me quite quickly that I was not dressed 'appropriately' in my Western outfits, which were always the same. So, without further ado, I was brought a new Pakistani dress every day – sometimes in pink with lots of glitter, sometimes in petrol blue with gold, sometimes in pink with embroidery... Of course, I also had to wear a headscarf at all meetings.
- Two days before we flew home, a pastor was shot dead shortly after dropping his daughters off at school. A month earlier, he had survived an assassination attempt. Our host told us that aggression towards Christians had increased dramatically since the 'successful' attack became known.
Yes, our time in Pakistan was truly blessed. And full of a wide variety of impressions:
- Guns and yet roses (we repeatedly saw armed people on the streets and were showered with roses every day)
- Poverty and yet generosity
- Persecution and yet public evangelism
- Staged events and yet profound, divine encounters
Many things that seem contradictory to us coexist in Pakistan as a matter of course.
And once again, a divine principle was confirmed: we are blessed in order to be a blessing. It's a case of give and take. Experiencing all this together with my dad was a very special privilege for me.
Thank you, Father! Thank you, Dad! Thank you, Pakistan!
(Hanna Oehri-Woiwode)
