From Slavery to Schooling: Hope Rising in Pakistan’s Brick Kilns
Missionary Ventures’ missionaries focus on growth beyond current school walls
“When I think about the Mustard Seed School in Pakistan, I can’t help but marvel at what God has done through a single step of obedience and a mustard seed of faith.”
MV President Brad Staton is not the only one thinking about how a tiny mustard seed of faith started as one classroom with 43 children has now grown into a thriving, two-story school where 180 students are being educated, discipled, and given hope for a new future. For many students, this September was the first time they ever set foot inside a classroom.
It’s hard to describe what that means in Pakistan’s brick kilns—where generations of families have lived and labored in debt slavery, making bricks by hand from dawn to dusk. For decades, their children’s futures seemed sealed before they were even born. But God is writing a new story.
Missionaries Craig Wheeland and Stephanie Murray led a team to Pakistan in October to visit the school and seek God’s direction for the next steps. They were praying to hear where the next campus might open—but for most of the trip, no answer came. On the very last day, as they visited one of the brick kilns, God spoke in a way that only He can.
Craig climbed to the top of the kiln while Steph stayed below. That’s when she saw three children—among the first students who had attended the school—now living and working at the kiln after their family was sold to a different kiln. Her heart broke, but in that moment, God gave her perspective. “They brought the Word of God with them to the kiln,” she said.
It’s that perspective and hope that continues to see the Mustard Seed School grow, with plans underway to expand classrooms, build a playground, and add a protective wall around the property. Funding is in place for these updates, but we’re praying for God’s perfect timing and for the right local leaders to carry the vision forward.
Those smiling faces at the new kiln were a reminder from God that he has a plan and a place for the next campus. We’re praying that the kiln’s owner will allow the school to start, bringing education and the Gospel to 30–40 children who are still trapped there.
And while we look ahead to growth in Pakistan, we also celebrate the freedom and success of the main campus, with former students and teachers also going on to their own moments of growth, from a teacher now attending university to three original Mustard Seed students who are now free from the brick kiln. Students are also using a new computer lab, a growing library, and construction on the second floor is finished.
The school radiates hope against the backdrop of Pakistan’s brick kilns
Mission in Motion
The Mustard Seed School in Pakistan shows how our Vision at Missionary Ventures comes alive in real ministry. Children once trapped in slavery are being transformed through education, equipped to read Scripture, and empowered to carry hope into their families and communities.
- Vision Realized: Local believers are boldly engaging in bringing God’s Kingdom to every culture, context, and corner of the earth.
- Stewardship: MV missionaries and the local leaders are focused on careful management of resources: a school built modestly, upgraded classrooms, a computer lab, and a library funded through prayer and partnership. With funding secured for the next campus, focusing on clear prayer needs and a responsible use of donations is key to healthy growth.
- Stability: Ongoing commitment to ministry partners in Pakistan through consistent and expanding local leadership, growing infrastructure for schools, sewing programs, and more. The success of students is not only celebrated but also teachers who are moving on to new and increased opportunities. Plans for a second campus are backed by an existing proven model.
- Values Lived Out: Collaboration with local leaders, flexibility in challenging contexts, and unity in diversity all shine through this ministry.
where children have known only one future: long days of backbreaking labor, trapped in a cycle of poverty and debt. But today, that story is changing—because of God’s provision and the faithfulness of His people.
“God has blessed this effort tremendously. It is a place where poor kids caught in slavery have an opportunity to get an education otherwise only available to rich kids,” shared MV missionary Craig Wheeland.
A Mustard Seed of Faith
Craig’s heart for Pakistan began on a trip to deliver motorcycles to local pastors. There, he witnessed the harsh reality of brick-kiln slavery for the first time. “I couldn’t sleep at night,” Craig recalls. “I couldn’t lay my head down without seeing the eyes of those children.”
Against all odds, and with only a mustard seed of faith, the vision for a school was born. Many said it would never work—that children wouldn’t be allowed to attend, that they couldn’t learn, that it was impossible. But God had other plans. Just six months after opening, students who once spent their days making bricks were solving math problems, reading, and writing. Some who couldn’t even hold a pencil are now learning faster than anyone imagined.
Breaking Chains and Building Futures
The dream goes beyond basic education. The school seeks to equip children to read their Bibles, share their faith, and one day step into vocational training that will allow them to break free from generational poverty.
Girls, in particular, are flourishing. In a culture where opportunities are rare, one young girl from the orphanage is now attending nursing school because someone stepped in to sponsor her. Programs in sewing, trades, and vocational skills are being developed to provide even more pathways to freedom.
Craig reminds everyone about our calls from God, “My goal is to make little disciples who can share their faith. And if along the way we break the chains of slavery—awesome.”
A Vision We Share
This story is a clear picture of our shared vision: believers in Christ boldly engaged in bringing God’s Kingdom to every culture, context, and corner of the earth.
It reflects our mission to multiply the Body of Christ worldwide by transforming, equipping, and sending local believers. Teachers and pastors in Pakistan—who know the culture and language—are being equipped to disciple the next generation.
It also demonstrates what we focus on here at MV:
- Christ-Centered: Every lesson is anchored in the love of Christ and the truth of Scripture.
- Collaboration: International partners and local leaders are serving together for Kingdom impact.
- Flexibility: Ministry adapts in bold, creative ways—even within the challenges of the brick-kiln context.
- Unified in Diversity: From a missionary’s vision to local discipleship, God is using many gifts for one Kingdom purpose.
Your Part in the Story
Every prayer, every gift, every act of generosity is part of this incredible journey of transformation. Because of your support, children once destined for a lifetime of slavery are discovering freedom, dignity, and the love of Christ.
Leaving a Legacy
The Mustard Seed School in Pakistan is more than a building—it’s a legacy.
- Generational Impact: Children once trapped in slavery are gaining education, skills, and faith that will transform their families for years to come.
- Local Leadership: Teachers and pastors who know the language and culture are equipped to carry the mission forward long after one missionary leaves.
- Sustainable Hope: With vocational training and discipleship, students are breaking free from poverty and building futures rooted in Christ.
- Kingdom Outcomes: Lives are being transformed by disciples of Jesus who are boldly on mission to expand God’s Kingdom—even in the brick kilns of Pakistan.
This is the heart of Legacy—ensuring that ministries don’t end with one missionary, but continue to flourish for generations.
Your prayers and support are writing a story of freedom that will outlast us all.
Get Involved
Pray
- For the children at Mustard Seed School to grow in wisdom and faith.
- For teachers and leaders serving in difficult conditions.
- For more doors, and schools, to open across Pakistan’s 20,000 brick kilns.
Give
- Become a new Core Mission partners supporting MV’s work in Pakistan and across the globe
- Sponsor a child or student to continue their education.
- Support vocational programs like sewing and nursing school.
Share
- Tell others about what God is doing in Pakistan.
- Invite your church or small group to pray and partner with Missionary Ventures.
Missionary Ventures is praying to reach thousands more children across Pakistan’s 20,000 brick kilns with the life-changing gift of education. To do that, we’re trusting God to raise up new Core Mission partners—friends like you who will stand with us to see His Kingdom come in some of the hardest places on earth.
Together, we are breaking chains, building futures, and raising up a generation of disciples in Pakistan.
Will you join us?
Because when we plant a mustard seed of faith, God moves mountains. And He’s not done yet.
