I am traveling Oct 2-19 in Pakistan and Nepal.  Below is my journal.

Pakistan and Nepal Fall, 2026

Lahore, Pakistan October 2-5

This is my first visit to Pakistan.  My thanks to my friend Molly Mostert who worked on me for several years to visit our churches in this great country.  Pakistan is a country of 260 million souls, which makes it the fifth most populous country in the world.  It is 96% Muslim, with 2% Hindu and 1% Christian. Its Muslim population is predominantly Sunni, with small minorities of Shia and Sufi.  The country was created in 1949 with the breakup of the Indian subcontinent when Great Britian gave up rule here. At the time, there was a massive migration of Hindus to India and of Muslims to Pakistan, with around a million deaths in the chaos.  The most common language is Punjabi, with nearly 40% native speakers of the language.  Surprisingly, the official language is Urdu (and also English), but it is only the native language of about 9% of the population.

Lahore is a city of 15 million, making it larger than Los Angeles.  It is in the northeast of the country, close to the Punjab region of India.  The dominant language here is Punjabi, but many also speak Urdu.  My flight here includes a 16-hour segment from Dallas to Doha, Quatar.  Needless to say, I arrive a bit tired.   I am met by Shakeel and Punam Bhatti. They lead the church of 260 members here.  I am staying at their house.  For lunch we have nan (a flat bread, common in Pakistan and India) and lentils, and meet several members of the church.

In the evening we travel to the church building for a class on the Book of Daniel for the church leaders.  There are about fifty leaders in attendance.  It is quite hot here, but I am getting used to it.  I learn some interesting things about doing Christianity in this country. First of all, it is basically impossible for them to convert Muslims.  It is not just illegal, if the person is found out, he or she is likely to be killed, as well as the one who converted them.  The only way for a Muslim to become a Christian is to keep it a secret from their family and all their friends.  In the long run, this is virtually impossible.  Also, the Christians are regularly persecuted here by Muslims.  They must have weapons and armed guards at all meetings.  There have been occasional pogroms against Christians in Pakistan.  Also, Christians are extremely limited in their ability to do public university, to have government jobs as well as many other privileges given to Muslims.  The church here has many difficulties.  Add to that, they are very much cut off from other churches, as their relationship with their natural partners, India, is fully prevented by the government, more for political than for religions reasons.  There is a state of nearly constant war between the two who should be best allies and friends.

Nevertheless, the meeting tonight is so encouraging.  The church is very warm.  They love to fellowship.  When we leave at 11:00 at night, there are still many hanging around and fellowshipping with one another.  I feel so privileged to be with this group.  Before worship, I am treated to a local Punjabi dance, and, of course, amazing food afterward.  The food here is amazing—similar to India, but just a little bit less spicy, which is probably a good thing.