Her Dream: To be a Pastor
As a woman serving in the Vietnamese church, Dien (33) has big dreams: she wants to be a pastor.
Dien, in traditional Hmong attire, offers communion to male pastors during a conference.
Dao Thi Dien was five years old when her parents sold everything they owned in the northwestern Vietnamese mountains. This was in 1997, when the family fled their home because of religious persecution. The bus ride brought them 2000 km to the Central Highlands of Vietnam, where they would build a new life.
Dien personally accepted Jesus when she was ten years old, after watching the movie “The Life of Jesus”. After reading John 3:16, she decided to serve God. At 13 years old, Dien was baptized. She now lives with her husband and three children, in a village in Dak Nong province.
“The church needs women as pastors”
Dien directs women’s gatherings at the church, with worship and teaching. On the international women’s day, March 8, she gathers women to a cooking competition and drama, Bible quiz, and picnic. The church has more than 800 members and is currently in the end stage of building a new church that can fit everyone who wants to come.
Churches among the indigenous Hmong people are predominantly led by men. But the faith community Vietnam Good News Mission, a partner of Stefanus Alliance International, has so far ordained five female pastors and 20 preachers.
“I would like to be a pastor. The church needs women as pastors. But to take higher education I first have to learn Vietnamese,” Dien explains.
She adds, “today, Hmong women often labor in the fields to support the men while they attend Bible school. I look forward to my husband one day being able to support me, so that I can get an education. But we have three small children to care for and don’t have enough money for me to travel to Ho Chi Minh City for studies. But one day, I hope it can happen.”
More than 260 new believers in 2025
In 2025, 262 new people came to faith through Hmong Ministry, the church community Dien and her family belong to. With funding from Stefanus Alliance, they work among the Hmong people in Vietnam and Laos, among other places. 108 people were baptized last year and three new churches were planted. Pastor Benjamin and his partners had 28 gatherings for faith formation and Bible study, with 467 participants in total. Hmong Ministry also operates Hmong Bible School in Udon Thany in Thailand. In 2025 the school had 55 students in total, of whom 21 were new students.
Written by Johannes Morken.
Photo: Dien and her husband Hai on a beach by the South China Sea.