Montana

I'm in Montana for my first area which is the farthest area in the mission which is pretty crazy. It's super crazy out here. This is the booniest place I've ever been to. Everyone is so spread out and has a truck and loves hunting. 

I have 2 companions training me which is pretty fun one of them is a year out and the other is going home next transfer so I'm getting some good training. 

We're serving in Troy and Libby. Libby has a small ward and Troy has a very small branch. This guy Moroni had us over for dinner for my first member meal and it was insane! He had tons of homemade chicken wings and they were absolutely delicious. The best part was we got the extras😎

The work is going well-- we've met some pretty crazy people and some pretty awesome people. The branch president lives in the middle of nowhere and built his own like personal sized lumber mill and was skinning some logs when we got there which was pretty cool to see. 

Missionaries haven't been in our area in a while so all the members are so grateful and just happy to see us. Oh and the views here are absolutely incredible I'll give you a sneak peak here at the end. I haven't gotten to getting some great pictures yet but I have a couple. 

This week I've been learning that it's not that hard to walk up and talk to people. Sometimes they'll say I'm not interested but most of the time they'll talk to you. What I'm learning to do is to casually bring up Jesus Christ in those quick interactions. 

But overall it's been a great area I'm just still trying to figure out the best way to learn how to do missionary work. 

Love you guys, I'd love to hear from you all!

- Elder Dahl

Videos:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/FDmyUjteMEQPWXdh9

Heading to Spokane!

Hey guys I'm on a train right now heading to the airport.🙂 I've worked my hardest at the MTC and have noticed lots of improvement which is always exciting to see. I've met so many cool people and have loved learning from my teachers. 

I don't have a huge amount of time and I don't have my notes, but I'll give you a quick spiritual thought:

We had a devotional by Elder Nash of the seventy who is like executive director of the missionary efforts for the church or something like that which was super cool!

My favorite part of his message was when he talked about our identity. I've always known I'm a child of God, but I guess I never realized to the full extent what that meant. And like many things in the gospel I'm learning, it's not something that can be understood by logically thinking about it through some formula. The gospel is only truly understood through the Spirit who testifies of truth. And when you receive a witness that you are a child of God, and your mind is enlightened to what that really means,  you will understand your true potential as an heir to God. And that will change your life. People say, "Remember who you are," but you can't do that until you know who you are. 

Anyways, I'm stoked to get to Washington and meet my new companion!

I'd love to hear how you guys are doing. 

And hopefully my mom shares some pictures with you guys. 

Small and Simple Things

Hey guys! 

I have loved this week. I'm starting to feel very comfortable teaching and testifying from the heart instead of relying on the exact words Preach My Gospel has. This has improved the presence of the Spirit as I am able to share my personal experiences with those I'm teaching. 

Yesterday we taught an actor at the MTC and it went so well. My companion and I did a great job of connecting with the guy, and we taught to his needs and helped him feel Heavenly Father's love for him. We were scored pretty well, which was exciting. I'm realizing it's only one more week until I'll be in Spokane teaching real people instead of taking classes. I'm feeling so excited and ready. 

Something that has been hard for me is realizing that not everybody holds the same sacredness for the calling and many are not obeying the rules and are taking this experience very lightly. It's hard for me because I've been preparing so long for this and have been really trying to obey every rule because I know each one comes from God and that we will be blessed when we follow them even if we don't understand the reasons. What I've realized is that blessings are not conditioned on other's faithfulness but your own. My friend shared something with me. He said, "Don't let others dictate your relationship with God. Your circumstances will fail you, your friends will fail you, your family might even fail you. But God will never fail you, he can't. So don't give up on him and never let anyone take that relationship from you." 

Every night, the floor of our building gets together for a spiritual thought and a prayer. Yesterday, I was asked to give that thought, and I shared a little bit about small and simple things. I talked about how every good choice is an exercise of faith and that we are blessed every time with small and simple miracles, and over time marvelous works.

The small good things we choose each day are also acts of repentance because all repentance means is turning towards God and away from Satan. And these acts are what define our will and our character. These small acts don't only affect the personal change I will experience as a missionary but also affect who each of you will become on earth and eventually the character you will present before Jesus Christ and your Heavenly Father after this life. So I asked the missionaries what I am asking you all. Please don't become complacent or lazy in the most important effort in eternity-- your relationship with your Heavenly Father. Strive to not let Satan control even the smallest of choices in your life. As you do this, you will be blessed far beyond what you will see. But don't let it stop there. As you take this challenge, pray to see how you are being blessed, and I promise your eyes will be open to the manifestations of the Lord's love to you. 

I love hearing from you all and appreciate your prayers!

- Elder Dahl

Videos:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/58WYCchNez9NHVzU8

https://photos.app.goo.gl/YLbYTNXqVC1qfQ6m7

https://photos.app.goo.gl/1CPYAXBrub8h1q5m7