Is the Fever Gone Yet?

As I write this latest blog entry, I am recovering from five days of the most intense fevers that I have had in my life, complete with lots of paranoia and even hallucinations, and of course, some good old fashioned nausea too. 

And yet I can say that as crazy as these last few days have been, these last few months have been even crazier. Why, you may ask? Well they have been some very busy months. It has not been uncommon for me to work more than 60 hours some weeks, and spend hours in a day driving or sitting in traffic. 

But these have been not only busy months, but also action, stress, happiness and drama packed months too.

It has been a season that has brought with an important message... even if I am not entirely clear exactly how to explain it yet.

So what have I been doing these last few months? Well, a lot. Actually a lot more than I could write here, but to make it easier to digest, I have broken it up into sections.

Gone Fishing!

OK I know what you are going to say, “WHAT! You have been spending your time FISHING?”

Well no, not really. Hehe. But I have been working a lot with fish, helping to start and run a tilapia farm here in El Salvador with Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa .

I can’t really tell you where or with whom the dream first started, and it wouldn’t really be fair to do so anyways, as the dream has passed through the hearts and hands of many men of God before being born here in El Salvador with Calvary Chapel, but the dream and vision for the project is basically this one:

To build and operate a tilapia farm on site as a church run business, with the goal of financially supporting the ministry, providing jobs and job training for poorer church members, and of course, evangelism opportunities in the business community.

Initial construction for the project first started long before I arrived, in one of the rural church plants in Chalatenango, as a joint effort between Calvary Chapel San Salvador as well as Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, among others. The project sat waiting for a while, until in March of this year a team from Costa Mesa came down, and alongside of them, we finished up the construction of the project, and ‘planted’ 5,000 baby fish. Then team left, and I was left in charge to run it. J

It was only then, as I began to run the project on a daily basis, that both Pastor Carlos (the Senior Pastor of CC San Salvador), and I, began to see the many difficulties associated with raising up baby fish to adulthood, as well as some of the short comings with our system.

Since then I have been spending most of my days working on the project, building relationships with people in the industry both here and oversees, and educating myself about how to build, re-build, run, and repair a fish farm, as well as all kinds of information about fish biology, growth, and breeding, not to mention marketing and profitability.

The biggest challenge by far (apart from the 2 hour drive that separates me from the fish, and the fish from many of the supplies that they need) has been the rebuilding and repairing of the project with both limited funds and resources. It has many times been a daily ‘experiment’ of how to repair, tweak, or sometimes even rebuild the project, all the while with 5,000 little-fishy lives hanging in the balance.

It has been a long journey for sure, and while it is far from over (fish reach maturity or ‘selling wieght’ at about 7-8 months) it has taught me much about patience, and trust in God. I have 4,700 or so remaining witnesses.

Many of you may also be surprised to know that since the beginning of my missionary journey almost 4 years ago I have been actively praying about learning and being involved in these very kind of church run business opportunities (I see these as excellent tools for church planting in poorer areas)- something which neither Pastor Carlos, nor CC Costa Mesa knew about when they asked me to be a part of this project. I feel like, then, that this has been a sort of ‘free training school’ for me, and am very blessed to see how God has answered this prayer, and will continue to answer it.

Fishers of Men

Running the fish farm has not been my only activity throughout these months, and only a part of my activity in Chalatenango, where we have one of our rural church plants. When Pastor Carlos asked me to begin working with the fish, he also asked me to help the planting pastor, Pastor Manuel as his assistant in whatever way he needed. Until now this has mainly meant teaching at the Saturday night service, where we have been slowly going through Matthew, as well as helping with some small things around the church, though Pastor Manuel has had some new ideas for ministry opportunities which we will be looking to try out in the very near future.

One of the most rewarding things about teaching in this church plant (apart from the quite obvious spiritual benefit that it is to me as I study up to teach every week) is the blessing of being able to spend time on the weekends with the same people that I am working with on the fish farm during the week. It has been a joy to me to be able to get to know their families, pray with them through their struggles, and share with them in their joys, and as is always the case, I have learned much from their lives and testimonies. We are not just learning how to become ‘fishermen’ together, but also, and much more importantly, how to become “fishers of men” together.

The Immigration Game

Have you ever felt winning is hopeless, and that all the dice are against you? That’s how I feel most of the time when I play “Monopoly” with my die-hard monopoly friends (Vince and Tiffany, this means you), and also how I have been feeling as I have been walking through my long residency process in El Salvador.

I first submitted my application, with my original paperwork and all the requested files in October of 2011. In a month or two, I thought, I would have my residency easy-peasy. Or so I was told. But it has been anything but easy. More than 4 letters, 15 visits to immigration, dozens of phone calls, countless hours of work both here and in the US (thank you Daniel and Callie for your help) and nine months later, and now, just last week my residency was confirmed, and I still haven’t received in writing!

It has been a long ride for sure, but God has been faithful throughout, all of which has served just to remind me why and for whom I am here in the first place (wink wink, it’s for Him).

Now I just have to get ready to renew my residency in October for another year. Ha!

The Near End of a Journey

These last few months have also been very busy and stressful ones for Rebeca, as she looks to finish her current academic journey and receive her Master’s Degree in Meso-American Archeology. She has been studying for almost six years at the Technological University of El Salvador, and is now in the process of using everything that she has learned to formulate and write her thesis. It has been difficult work for her without a doubt - the investigation alone has involved dozens of trips for her both to active ‘dig sites’, as well as a nation-wide search for un-cataloged materials in both libraries and colleges, some of which have been out of print for nearly a century. She has literally been racing against the clock to complete her thesis before the year ends, with the goal in mind of graduating, and jointly planning our wedding after wards (more details on that in the weeks to follow - just "stay posted" hahaha get it, stay posted, blog posts haha).

It would be disingenuous not to note how all of this stress and busyness in both of our lives has affected our relationship, though thankfully as God ministers to us through it, it has served us both as a wakeup call as a rally point more than anything else.

My own prayers for Rebeca in this time of her life have been for her divine gifts of patience, peace, and perseverance, as she seeks to honor God, her family, and her own six year investment by ‘finishing strong’. 

In deep love and admiration for her it only seems right to ask all you for your prayers for her as well.

My Proposed Trip Home

The last things I want to leave you all with are my plans for a proposed trip home. As many of you know, it has been nearly one year since I have seen you all, and you are all becoming sorely missed. I can do no better than to quote Paul in stating my desire to visit you all. As he so perfectly and succinctly wrote in his letter to the Roman Christians: “I long to see you so that I may leave you with some spiritual gift so that you may be strengthened, that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith… and that I might have some fruit among you.” Romans 1:11-13

I had desired to come earlier this year, in January, with the intention of participating in the CC Mission’s Conference, and visiting home as well, but the LORD had shown me that He had much for me to do during that time here in El Salvador. I have since then been praying about coming back this August or September. This would be perfect as I will also need to renew my residency here in October, which could be facilitated by a visit home to bring back the required documents. This would also give me the opportunity to raise some more support and relieve the burden of support from those of you whom have fallen under hard times. Lastly, I also desire to continue to build connections with some of the other churches in our area, both to share with them what God is doing here and in my life, and give them the same opportunities to be involved in the work.

I want to you ask you all then, for your prayers and intercession so that I might be able to make this trip. I currently have 300$ saved, but will need to raise an additional $700-$900 (depending on how cheap my tickets come out) to cover my airfare, and pre-pay my expenses here in El Salvador while I am gone (rent, utilities, etc.).

If you feel led to contribute to these expenses, you can write an email to me (jedlicka1227@gmail.com), or to Lynn Anderson (lynnanderson4jesus@gmail.com), or simply click this link and give the money through Calvary Chapel Santa Cruz (please be sure to write “Theo-missions”in the “notes” section).

In Closing

So now you have read about what some may consider to be the fever of busyness that I have been wrapped up in, and you may be asking yourself "What hasn't he been doing?". Sleeping in, among other things. But in all fairness I see this busy season of life that I am in as exactly that, a season. Will I still be working 60 hour work weeks in a month from now? I'm not sure. All I know is that the LORD has allowed this season in my life (and in Rebeca's life at the same time too, ironically) for the time being, and I intend to serve and honor Him the best I can in it, and hopefully, learn that will benefit me in the years to come.

And when my chance comes to sleep in, I will take advantage of it :)

I am not quite exactly sure what the lesson is yet, although right now as I get ready to finish this blog entry and go to bed, I think it is something like "Seize the moment, and make it count".

Blessings from El Salvador,

Theo