No time for jetlag! I started my first FaithSearch Discovery presentation only four hours after landing in Moscow. Needless to say, I was dead tired afterwards, and immediately fell asleep in the car that drove me to my place of rest. I still feel sorry for the driver who was trying to keep me awake by his stories and inquiries – I was only able to nod in agreement.

Most of my days in Moscow on the first week consisted of a couple-of-hours-long train ride to Kolomna, Dmirov, Chekhov, or some other town within a 100 km radius of the city;  a three-to-four-hour-long presentation; and then train ride back. The fall colors were streaming in front of my window from left to right, and then from right to left. My hosts would usually meet me at the station, take me to a café for lunch, and then bring me to the “House of Culture” or a conference hall right before the presentation. They showed their hospitality by trying to put me on the earliest train back to Moscow straight from the event. The assumption was always that there is not much to see in their small town and that I would rather spend the evening in Moscow. Only once was I able to arrive to their place (Dmitrov) early and to enjoy walking the old streets and to do some sightseeing on my own before they plugged me into their program.

So far my audiences in Moscow have been mostly seminarians, clergy, and lay leaders. Thanks to the Moscow Region (oblast) Orthodox Church networking, I was speaking at their deanery conferences almost every day.

I am in St. Petersburg now and my days are mostly devoted to training school teachers as I am catching them on their fall school break. In both cities, the weather has been very unusual for this time of year – sunny and warm! The windows in my classrooms are usually open wide and I’ve just made a notice that instead of the crows and pigeons of Moscow, I see and hear seagulls under the skies of St. Petersburg. Three more days in St. Pete and I off for Murmansk with its Arctic climate and natural habitat. What kind of birds do they have over there?

I am typing this while changing flights at JFK International Airport and still adding more events to my travel calendar. I should have probably stopped accepting invitations a long time ago, but how can I say no to the Lord opening the door for His truth to be proclaimed in yet another school, university, church, or (just half an hour ago!) a prison?! At least, I will not be traveling that much – only three big cities are on my map: Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Murmansk.

That last one is new territory for our ministry and needs some special prayers – not only for its location way above the Arctic Circle but also for being one of Russia’s Navy bases which is rarely visited by a foreigner, especially, in this rather cold political climate between our two countries. I hope, however, to be able to build on the memories of the WWII when Murmansk was the Russian seaport receiving most of the allies’ convoys of food, arms, and ammunition for the front lines.

May the Lord provide me with all of that: physical energy, spiritual weapons, and intellectual ammunition to fight my battle. Please pray for my ear infection to heal quickly, and for my lower back not to give me any trouble on the road. May He sharpen the minds and soften the hearts of those teachers, students, clergy, and lay-leaders who will come to my presentations and lectures to receive and to accept His message of love and the evidence for His truth. Pray also for my family back in MN, TX, and UT while I am away.

…I continued praying as I ran between the terminals and made it to the registration desk in forty-five minutes—only to hear that they cannot allow me on board because the luggage latch has already been closed and my suitcase was too heavy to qualify for a carry-on. My plane was still at the gate and still boarding but apparently I did not look like somebody they would be willing to bend their rules for. One last prayer and… I am re-booked to the flight that leaves twenty-four hours later. There is no agreement between carriers and once you bought a ticket you are stuck with that one company’s flight schedule. Oh, my dear teachers in Sargatka, I am so sorry but I cannot make it to your conference and the Omsk diocese will have to find somebody in Omsk early in the morning to travel 100 kilometers north to cover for me! [Read more…]

Six days all over the Southern Urals have been busy and truly blessed. Each day either started or ended with a two-to-three-hour bus trip to another city or small town where I usually presented two times—one in a church and one in a secular setting.

Geographically the Ural Mountains serve as a border between Asia and Europe and I crossed that line multiple times. I wish their buses would make at least a short stop at the border mark for travelers to make a photo with one foot in one continent and the other in another. It seemed like I was the only one on board who really cared. [Read more…]

In and around Moscow – clear skies, lots of sunshine, and not one drop of rain. Even in my cell in the St. Nicholas Convent where I stayed for the first week there was plenty of light and warmth. They fed me with pirozhki from their own bakery: with potato, lentil, fish, and—my favorite—pumpkin with lemons. I paid them back with my presentations in the seminary. What a deal! I cannot thank them enough for their hospitality and for caring for me, especially after a thirteen-hours-long travel plus eight hours of time zone difference. [Read more…]