[2025 Ramadan] Day 12 Final weapon of the Gospel, Pakistan!

Pakistan is a country of great natural beauty, with lush green plains stretching from side to side along the Indus River, with northern mountains and azure waters where the Arabian Sea meets the Indian Ocean.

When it gained independence from Britain in 1947, it was founded as a Muslim country, wanting to separate from the Hindu nation of India, but the next 80 years of its history were anything but smooth. Beginning with independence, the country experienced three full-scale wars with India, sparked by a dispute over the sovereignty of Kashmir. After that, the country struggled with wars, fraudulent elections, and repression against the Bengalis, dividing the country into east and west. The pain of the national conflicts that have torn Pakistan apart remains a deep wound in the hearts of the people who live there.

Pakistan, a land of many souls, has long worn the identity of the Islamic religion. The people of Pakistan have lived as slaves to the law, holding on to the hope of heaven.

We look forward to the day of grace, when the vision (2 Corinthians 6:2) of salvation will be fulfilled, when 240 million souls from over 100 nations will be saved by the gospel of Christ.

Pakistan declared itself the world's first Islamic republic in 1956, affirming its religious color and identity at the national level. Since its conversion to Islam in the 7th century, the country has been image as a highly religious country in the world, with religious laws, culture, society, and education. Therefore, during Islamic festivals, the country focuses on fundamental behaviors and frames the Islamic faith in a family, regional, and ethnic framework. Especially at the beginning of Ramadan, the Islamic fasting season, the country shows cohesion at the ethnic and national level, rather than at the individual level. All government offices and public institutions leave work early, and businesses join in to encourage Ramadan fasting. Restaurants also close after sunrise and before sunset, making it almost impossible to eat in a regular restaurant during the day, except in a few prestigious hotels.

Still, the day-to-day common man and Pakistan's poor souls endure the early morning sunrise to dusk waterless hours with physical endurance and a glimmer of hope for heaven. So, while some may be found in back alleys, drinking water while covered, or soothing their hunger with a piece of crumbled biscuit, their communal fasting is collective and enforced, and any deviation cannot be ignored.

During Ramadan, the grueling month of fasting, they live by communal laws, even in a country where economic crisis seems to be the norm.

This year's Ramadan is earlier than usual, which means less heat and less pain, but the communal and spiritual impact of fasting itself is such that everyone living in Pakistan is affected and volunteers to break the fast. At the end of the day's fast (Rozamat), as the sun sets, the streets are lined with alms and free meals provided by the wealthy, and many people fill their stomachs with the satisfaction of having broken the day's fast. Through these things, the rich accumulate virtue toward salvation, and the poor accumulate relief from the act of fasting.

Both the rich and the poor truly want to reach heaven, so they seek this path through the Torah, and fast as if to control the desires of the flesh. We want the longing for heaven, faith, and salvation in the hearts of Muslims in Pakistan to be directed to Jesus, the one true way.

<Story of brother A >

Brother A, who has believed in Jesus for many years, has been forced to fast in public and at home where many of his brothers and relatives are present. While his faith is clear, it is difficult to ignore the communal observance of the law. In the midst of this situation, Brother A wants to keep his faith despite the difficulties and confess his faith in Jesus to his family and friends. Right now, Pakistan is being transformed by the gospel. God has opened the way to the hidden peoples of Pakistan, and they are coming forward with the gospel.

Amen! May all the souls of Pakistan confess their poverty of spirit beyond the poverty of the flesh and find the true way of salvation and not the law. May they know that the way of salvation to the true truth is not by works, but by the gospel, and that today is the day of salvation, which You have granted! Grant bold faith in the AAP, that they will now confess before their families and friends that they are Christians, and that they will not shrink back from any fear, but will rise up as witnesses of the gospel to stir up the souls of Pakistan. And may all the churches of Pakistan, through the AAP, proclaim among all nations that this is a time of grace and a day of salvation!

(Today’s Prayer)

1. Let the 100 ethnic groups of Pakistan know that this is the day of salvation, the time for grace. Let them rise up as the final armor of the gospel to fight the last war and serve the nations.

2. Let the believers of the MBB not be intimidated during Ramadan and be bold. Let them confess their freedom in Jesus Christ by faith without compromise.

3. Provide spiritual leadership among all the churches in Pakistan to proclaim the true way of salvation to those who are living in vain, trapped by the laws of religion.