Every trip is different. Some of the, however, are “differenter” than all of them. At least four times today I have heard or read that these are unprecedented times. I would agree. Conducting one of my four yearly teaching trips to Russia right now should qualify it for being the “differentest” one–so far.

All of my presentations for this trip have now canceled or switched to online starting on this Friday. I am doing my last presentation at Volokolamsk Diocese missions conference tonight and going straight to the airport from there in the morning.

By grace of God so far, only three out of thirty-one events on my schedule have been either canceled or reset to the online/webinar format due to the coronavirus quarantine. Interestingly, the people in Kuzbass where I was teaching during my first week were not as concerned about it as Moscovites are. All my trainings in Kemerovo and in Novokuznetsk went as scheduled and the audiences were always full and engaged in the topic we were discussing – the historic foundations of Christian faith.

A Facebook friend just posted: “It is not a good time to be on the airplane today.” Well, I am doing exactly that – leaving for MSP this afternoon and then flying over to Moscow on my next three weeks of ministry all over Russia.