Be Still and Know That I Am God

This week was awesome! We had zone conference down in Bloomington which was about three hours from us so we had a fun little road trip down there. It was so nice to visit with the other missionaries and to hear from President and his wife. Now that conference is out I wanted to share a quote by Brother Lewis (my mission president is convinced that he has accepted the gospel).

 "I don’t want … your time … [or] your money … [or] your work [as much as] I [just] want You. [That tree you are pruning.] I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want … the whole [thing] down. [And that tooth.] I don’t want to drill [it], or crown it, or [fill] it. [I want] to have it out. [In fact, I want you to] hand over [to me your] whole natural self. … [And] I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my … will shall become [your will]. 

As disciples of Jesus Christ we choose to take His name upon us. This is something often repeated and I think we don't recognize how significant it is. When we take His name we are committing to do just as C.S. Lewis describes, and give our whole soul over to him. One of the struggles of the ward we're serving in is unity, it's very political and somewhat polarized. In studying unity, I have learned that it doesn't matter who you were or what you did before you came unto Christ. In making that decision you have become a new creature and begun a process that will allow the Lord to shape you into who He (and by extension you) wants you to become. It doesn't matter if you're a Jew and your companion is a Samaritan, or if your companion was faithful and you were a tax collector. I have learned that any time you ask for strength in becoming more like Christ he is so willing to use the enabling power of the atonement to bless your life. I'm grateful for all the great teachers I've had in my life especially my parents. I have a lot of time to think out here and I don't express my gratitude enough. I love being a missionary and getting to be a small part of how God reaches out to his children. The Book of Mormon is the word of God. The Church is true, and Jesus really did pay for our sins so that we could become like God. I am so grateful for Him and for the knowledge of the truth. 

I love you guys! 

- Elder Dahl

Also I broke my pinky so keep me in your prayers!