Greetings from Murmansk

We're here. We're safe. We're tired. Other than not sleeping much at all in the last 30 hours, and our snag at the airport in St. Louis, our flight was blessedly uneventful. Praise the LORD! When we landed in St. Petersburg and were met by Natasha from the agency to shuttle us to the domestic airport, she told us that St. Petersburg was one of the few regions in Russia who has issued a moratorium on US adoptions until the bilateral agreement is ratified. As of this moment, there is no such moratorium in Murmansk, but things can change quickly. Our appeal was heard this morning and Tatiana was present. She said the proceedings were overseen by three judges and took a total of 10 minutes. It was denied as the municipalities had not been prepared with the information the judge and prosecutor had been requesting in our previous hearings. According to Tatiana, the judges did not seem particularly antagonistic toward us, and for that, we are grateful. Right now, we are exhausted and anxious about court tomorrow. But, as Tatiana reminded our weary brains, we can't do a thing about court tomorrow right now, but we CAN take a hot shower, get a good night sleep and face tomorrow's challenges when tomorrow gets here. I know you are already praying and, until I heard about the moratorium, I had complete peace that we would get a positive answer on this trip. I blame the anxiety on weariness and will gladly accept the invitation to rest. Here's what I DO know: God is good and He is mighty to save. To everything there is a season and a time for everything under the heaven. No weapon forged against us can stay the Almighty's power. He is able to do exceedingly more than what we can imagine. And maybe, just maybe, he is setting the stage so that He can reveal His glory in a way that leaves no question in our minds that truly, truly, "If God be for us, who can be against us"! Pray for our rest tonight and that God's power will be revealed in that courtroom tomorrow. Love to you all-Goodnight.