May 2, New Life Church, Nizhnevartovsk, Siberia:
Monday noon: I have just boarded my Barcelona flight for Moscow. Already the adventure has begun, ha. Getting to this point has been relatively smooth, with the only angst being that it took forever for my checked bag to arrive at the Barcelona carousel. But now I’m checked in with Aeroflot and on board, headed for Moscow.
But here’s the thing. I have two one-way flights with Aeroflot, one to Moscow, and the other from Moscow to Nizhnevartovsk. And because I bought two one-way flights instead of a single ticket, they refused to check my back to Nizhnevartovsk. Instead, I will have to exit Security, collect my bag in Moscow, go to the Domestic check-in at the airport, and check in all over again for the flight to Nizhnevartovsk. It’s not a big deal for me, it’s just a time-consuming hassle. And for them to check it all the way through to Nizhnevartovsk is the push of a computer button. But no. Aeroflot seems intent on upholding its international reputation, ha. Thankfully, I have a long layover in Moscow so will be under no time pressure. I’m telling you, getting from Santander Spain to Nizhnevartovsk Russia is no small feat.
Tuesday 3:00 pm: Greetings from Nizhnevartovsk, I have arrived safely. Managed to sleep for around 4 hours after arrival, then off to lunch with the pastor. Now I’ll grab another nap before tonight’s meeting. It’s a bit odd to arrive in a city at 4 a.m. and it be daylight. The mornings are interesting, you have daylight for several hours before the sun actually comes up. There are still piles of snow on the ground. There’s a river in this city that freezes over solid in the winter. When it begins to melt this time of year, apparently it makes loud cracking noises in the melting process. I’d like to hear that, I’ve never heard such a thing, apparently it’s very loud.
Wednesday 8:45 a.m.: We had a marvelous meeting last night. The house was full, great spirit in worship (worship was led by Philip Renner, son of Rick Renner; Philip has recently moved to Tulsa and serves at a church there called Millennial Church), and the Lord graced the message with a strong anointing. On the secret place. What a delight to reconnect with this pastor and church after 17 years!
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