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Dear Friends,

Summer is here and opportunities abound during these warmer months in Asia's highlands for ministry in hard-to-reach places! Pray for open doors and Holy Spirit-softened hearts among the unreached Muslim, Tibetan, and Chinese peoples (nationalities) who surround us.

A Simple "Thank You" Isn't Enough

We want to thank you for praying for us and our ministry. If you are friends with us on Facebook, then you probably know that our son Gabriel had an emergency appendectomy two weeks ago at a local hospital here in NW China. It was a scary few days, but the Lord worked everything out and Gabriel is just about back to normal! We are so grateful that so many of you are praying for us regularly!

We also want to specifically thank those of you who sacrificially support our ministry. We do not take you for granted! We rejoice with you, just as Paul rejoiced because of the Philippians' generosity, not so much for the gifts themselves, but for what it shows of your love for Christ and the credit that abounds to YOUR heavenly account (Philippians 4:17), as His Name is made known in all the world!

Now here are some praise reports from the spring, followed by some prayer requests for what's just ahead...

Blanketing the Hills with Hope

In March, and once again in May, we hosted two teams whose primary goal was to saturate dozens (hundreds?) of unreached Muslim, Tibetan, and Chinese villages wih God's Word. The March team fought through multiple snowstorms, a few too-curious police officers, and other obstacles to reach dozens of new towns and villages. The May team, even while dealing with a variety of illnesses and other delays, was able to blanket more than 50 new locations with untold thousands of scripture booklets! We have been blessed with some amazing teams. How true are the words:

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news."

Isa. 52:7a (ESV)

Pray for these precious Scripture seeds to bear fruit and for the teams planning to come later this year to be knitted together and fully provided for!

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Moving House is Never Much Fun...

Unfortunately, one of the things we have done the most during our 10+ years in China is also one that we enjoy the least! We've lost count (or, choose not to remember!) how many times we've moved from one house (read: apartment) to another. Our latest move happened (technically, its still happening... but we're almost done!) in the last month or so. Our old lease was for 3 years and we had hoped to continue renting a little bit longer, but the landlord wanted to sell instead. So we are moving into a slightly larger apartment in a different area of town with another 3 year lease. All in all, its a good thing and we thank God for providing the new apartment!

Pray for my back, which was injured a bit while moving. And praise God for our May team, without whom we could not have completed the big move!

Vietnam Missionary Retreat

One of the highlights of the Spring was the four days of prayer and fellowship we spent with our amazing Asia missionary family in Hanoi, Vietnam! I could write pages and pages describing the amazing people we are associated with here in Asia, serving among some of the least-reached peoples on earth. Those serving in Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Japan all covet your prayers!

Please pray specifically for Hiro, from Japan, who is still recovering (after 2+ months!) from a broken jaw he suffered in a fall the week of the retreat!

South American teammates returning to China

Jimmy and Gladys, along with their daughter Milly (Milagros or "Miracles"), headed home to Peru just after Christmas in 2015 after serving 3 years in China (2013-2015). They knew they wanted to return to China, but didn't know when, as they were expecting their second child, Aaron, who was born August 11, 2016. Now their return is immanent. Tickets have been purchased. Chinese language school applications have been approved. All that they are lacking right now is their actual student visas, which are being applied for in Lima, Peru as I write.

Pray that the visas are issued without issue or delay so that our dear friends and teammates can return to the field of their calling!

And I also want to continue to mention Karen Herrera, an amazing young lady from Caracas, Venezuela, who has felt called to China since she was a child. The political and economic situation in Venezuela is terrible right now, but we are praying that the doors would open so that Karen can join our team in China some day soon! Some support has already been pledged to her... if you feel led to contribute, please see the "FYI" section at the bottom of the e-mail.

Praise God for answering our prayers for more laborers. Our greatest need right now is more monthly support for these workers!

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More ways you can pray...

First, since we are in the middle of the Muslim month of fasting, called Ramadan, please pray for the GOSPEL OF GRACE to conquer the hearts of Muslims around the world, and for them to turn from their false god allah to serve the one and only Prince of Peace!

For a daily guide on praying for Muslims during Ramadan (or any time), please visit this page: https://www.pray30days.org/

Also, to see what the final day of Ramadan looks like in our region of China, please watch this video, aptly titled "Pray": https://vimeo.com/67081571

Second, please pray for the many visitors we will receive this summer, both old friend and new! Two of our best friends on earth, Miguel and Claud, serving in the Dom. Republic and Africa respectively, will be here in just 10 days! Others are coming in July and August. Pray for sweet fellowship and open doors to minister!

Third, please pray for our family and the personal ministries that we are involved in on a daily and weekly basis. Included in this would be homeschooling our kids, helping at a foster home, visiting a rural old folks home, occasional teaching responsibilities, meeting with forgotten believers in remote villages, and fellowshipping with a small Chinese church in a large Muslim city!

In Christ,

Ben West & Family

FYI (1): We are more active on Facebook than e-mail, so if you would like to see more regular (short) updates, see more pictures, or chat with us easily via FB Messenger, please find and "Friend" us @: www.facebook.com/china.myadventures

FYI (2): if you feel led to support any of our Latino Missions Team, including future missionary Karen, please send donations to this missionary project account.
 

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