Flying from the middle of Siberia back to Moscow, I was moving with the sun and arrived at Domodedovo Airport the same early morning time at which I took off from Novokuznetsk. That gave me just enough time for a quick shower at my friends’ apartment and off I went to the XXIX Educational Conference held in the huge auditorium right under the largest cathedral in the whole city – if not in the whole country – Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Which, of course, was almost empty this year because of quarantine restrictions. The presentations were broadcast to many hundreds of church communities and thousands of viewers all over Russia.
This was probably the most exposure I have been given so far, although they only gave me twelve minutes to present our ministry and material. “Luckily” (wink, wink) I was the very last speaker. After I finished my presentation, I offered the audience my booklets, flyers, and business cards. They all rushed down the isles for them. The presiding archbishop was a little shocked, but then even he recognized that he wished everybody would be just as excited about their ministry and as “incendiary” about it as they were about Oleg Vladislavovich. I am confident that as a result of this, my future teaching schedules will be filled very easily and with a variety of audiences from all parts of Russia and other Russian-speaking countries and communities.
Teaching a class of about twelve people in St. Filaret Institute on the next day was not at all about numbers. It was definitely about quality. Most of the students in my classroom that night probably exceeded me in education and spiritual maturity, and some were only a few years of age younger. They were not there for what I had to teach them. What interested my students was hearing about my experience of addressing such a variety of audiences all over the country, and reaching such difficult communities as Russian academia and educators. I hope I did not disappoint them by saying I have no idea how and why I am allowed to do this, and by way of explanation simply pointed upwards and listed my prayerful supporters – the Lord seem to favor their prayers by opening those doors of opportunity for our ministry.
An overnight train running south from Moscow brought me to my next stop – the city of Belgorod where I taught my seminary classes back in March and “accidentally” connected with two university professors from Philosophy and Law departments. Both of them wanted me to come back in May, to speak at their respective conferences. “Accidentally” those events were happening one day apart from each other. A local practicing Psychologist whom I also “accidentally” befriended in March, put together a group of his colleagues for an evening session. It was after securing a guest room in the seminary dormitory that I looked them all up on the map. I discovered that all four locations are “accidentally” within walking distance (5 minutes!) of each other. All these “accidents” happened in a city of 400,000 population.
I am on the train again, going back north, which will pass Moscow around midnight and will bring me to my next destination – city of Tver. I am looking forward to meeting with the local Evangelical church and participating in their city-wide outreach event. The train arrives at Tver at 5:06 am, and only stops there for two minutes. I had better be ready to hop off the train if I don’t want to find myself in the train’s final destination – St. Petersburg. Some other time, perhaps.
