Transitioning from a week of family vacation in Northern Italy to ministry in Russia went smoothly. I didn’t even have to change my attire as the first few days in Moscow met me with the same nice weather and big-city dress code.

As usual, most of my events in September are held in churches, social gatherings, and media outlets. Schools, universities, and seminaries are still finalizing their schedules and will start inviting me again later in the school year. I did, however, teach two classes yesterday at Kolomna Theological Seminary where my courses have already become a regular part of the curriculum in Missions and Apologetics. An online class at Belgorod Seminary on the Arguments of the Existence of God in the afternoon made my day very full.

My first three days in and around Moscow allowed for some rest after the long flight via Amsterdam and Istanbul, and crossing eight time zones. As occasionally happens with my Russian ministry partners, they “suddenly remembered” that one of my presentations fell on the same date they had already reserved for another event. Mine was automatically canceled, which I only learned upon arrival at Sheremetyevo airport.

My May trips have to fit between the “mayskie prazdniki” (days-off, from May 1 through May 9) when most of the people are working in their gardens or dachas (cabins), and the schools’ finals when my student audience are totally incapable of receiving any new information. This year, I had to also wait for after the Holy Week when my Orthodox church audiences are still too tired from celebrating Pascha. I will be leaving for three weeks of ministry in Russia and Belarus tomorrow afternoon, and will start by teaching a class at Moscow Baptist Theological Seminary, twelve hours after arriving to my Moscow living quarters. I will, however, not be staying there for more than one night at a time as most of my ministry will be happening elsewhere: one week – in Southern Siberia; the next week – in Belarus; and the rest of the trip – between Bryansk and Moscow regions.

I cannot believe it has already been ten days since my last blog entry – so full they were with events and travel!

First, I flew over to the city of Izhevsk where I taught twice almost a decade ago to the local teachers’ community and at a church summer camp. This time the invitation came from one of those campers who wanted the “Gospel with Evidence” to be proclaimed to a wider circle of her family, friends, and to the general public. The Orthodox Diocese did their part by providing an excellent venue for the events – three presentations on Saturday and two more on Sunday. Passing a Museum of Kalashnikov and a huge ammunition plant on our way to that place every morning added a certain thrill to the whole project.