It Must Needs Be

This week was good! We had winter storm Olive come through town but it was mostly underwhelming. We got about 8 inches of snow, but we had to hole up for two days. It was pretty difficult to do missionary work, but technology is a blessing. Grateful for the gym in our apartment. We had some great lessons this week. We're teaching a student at Minnesota State here named Shawn. He calls himself an atheist, but he's really agnostic. We had a great lesson about faith, really diving deep into Alma 32. 

26 Now, as I said concerning faith—that it was not a perfect knowledge—even so it is with my words. Ye cannot know of their surety at first, unto perfection, any more than faith is a perfect knowledge.

27 But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.

Faith is an experiment; it is the principle that motivates us to act. We helped him see that he exercises faith all the time, that going to work is an act of faith. That choosing to attend a university is an act of faith, and that being willing to meet with us requires faith. He desires to believe whatever is true, and he will give place for a portion of our words. 

Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.

We taught how reading the Book of Mormon is the best way to test if our message is a good seed. We testified that we had both experienced the Book of Mormon enlarging our souls and enlightening our minds and beginning to be delicious to us. We discussed how the Spirit often feels just like that. I feel it most in pure flowing intelligence that enlightens and enlarges. We discussed how the fruit doesn't come until the plant has sprouted and reached maturity. That conversion is often a long process. It's been that way for me. But I've been surprised at how the gospel has become delicious to me. It wasn't always that way, but on my mission I've been humbled by the gift of knowledge I've been given. I'm so grateful for ward members who serve tirelessly, who look to magnify their callings, and for youth who are willing to rise to new challenges and opportunities. I'm in awe of all the miracles the Church produces every day. Faith in Jesus Christ is the first principle of the gospel, and I believe that that means you choose to live your life in a way that would be no different than if you had a perfect knowledge of Him. I think that's attainable-- I've seen so many people with that unyielding faith. It's been a marvelous strength to me. These individuals' faith produces miracles constantly. I want to always have faith like that-- to be focused on living the Savior's way. I love Him and come to know Him better each day. I love you guys! 

-Elder Dahl

Rough Stone Rolling

Transfers this week brought me to Mankato, with another really nice apartment, nicer in my opinion because of the gym and underground parking. We ward share with another companionship of elders who live in much more humble circumstances, but I guess it's just like the parable of the talents ;). I'm just kidding, they're great elders. One of them is actually committed to play BYU football in 2024, so I've been giving him fitness tips on how to achieve peak performance while on the mission. My companion's name is Elder Noreen and he came out with me, so it's been a blast. He's a pretty talented pianist, so he's been teaching me a little. He's from Dayton, Idaho and used to milk cows for like 6 bucks an hour. Then they got machines to do it, so he was out of a job. Robots really are taking over the world. I finished the old teachings of the prophets manual for Joseph Smith this week. One of the best chapters is at the end, where it shares the testimonies of his contemporaries. Here are a few,

 

“Such was our confidence in [Joseph Smith] as a Prophet, that when he said, ‘Thus saith the Lord,’ we were confident it would be as he said; and the more we tried it, the more confidence we had, for we never found his word to fail in a single instance.”

- Alexander McRae

President Joseph Smith was in person tall and well built, strong and active; of a light complexion, light hair, blue eyes, very little beard, and of an expression peculiar to himself. … His countenance was ever mild, affable, beaming with intelligence and benevolence; mingled with a look of interest and an unconscious smile, or cheerfulness, and entirely free from all restraint or affectation of gravity; and there was something connected with the serene and steady penetrating glance of his eye, as if he would penetrate the deepest abyss of the human heart, gaze into eternity, penetrate the heavens, and comprehend all worlds. He possessed a noble boldness and independence of character; his manner was easy and familiar; his rebuke terrible as the lion; his benevolence unbounded as the ocean; his intelligence universal.”

- Parley P. Pratt

"The love the saints had for him was inexpressible. They would willingly have laid down their lives for him. If he was to talk, every task would be laid aside that they might listen to his words. He was not an ordinary man. Saints and sinners alike felt and recognized a power and influence which he carried with him. It was impossible to meet him and not be impressed by the strength of his personality and influence.”

- Mary Lambert

Pretty powerful stuff. I've studied Joseph probably more than anything else on my mission. I know he's a prophet. If you don't know yet, I would invite you to figure it out ;). it's a wonderful ride. I'm happy, healthy, and grateful to be a missionary. I miss all of you a lot though! Love you guys!

 
-Elder Dahl

The Burden of Agency

This week was good, kinda slow as the transfer wraps up. I've been studying agency this week. There's a great talk by Elder Christofferson where he discusses how agency requires objective truth to have any function: 

To those who believe anything or everything could be true, the declaration of objective, fixed, and universal truth feels like coercion—“I shouldn’t be forced to believe something is true that I don’t like.” But that does not change reality. Resenting the law of gravity won’t keep a person from falling if he steps off a cliff. The same is true for eternal law and justice. Freedom comes not from resisting it but from applying it. That is fundamental to God’s own power. If it were not for the reality of fixed and immutable truths, the gift of agency would be meaningless since we would never be able to foresee and intend the consequences of our actions. As Lehi expressed it: “If ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not there is no God. And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon; wherefore, all things must have vanished away.”

He says that because we have agency, and because immutable laws exist, we are "able to foresee and intend the consequences of our actions."

That's the gift of agency. So when we don't intend a consequence, we have given up our agency. Agency is the ultimate leveler-- those that master it get everything they want. Those that don't, become subject to the whims of those that do. Interestingly, within the restored church of Jesus Christ we are taught to use our agency to lift those who have limited theirs. We fast and we serve and we lift the brokenhearted. 

"[B]ehold, ye are free; ye are permitted to act for yourselves; for behold, God hath given unto you a knowledge and he hath made you free" (Helaman 14:30.)

Freedom is a pretty scary thing. It requires accountability. It means we cannot claim external interference. It's up to us. I've taught a lot of people on my mission who believe that things are up to their spouse or their employer or God. They say things like, "if I'm supposed to join your church, God will make it happen."

They believe that God is a benevolent captor not a loving freedom-giving Heavenly Father. I think I've felt this way at times. My life has changed as I've heeded the prophet's advice to "find out who God is and how he works." As daunting of the task mortality is, I've come to realize that I wouldn't have it any other way. His plan is perfect, and he is divine. I love Him and you guys! 

-Elder Dahl

The Desire to Believe

We had zone conference this week. The second one of the transfer in order to get them back on schedule. It was really fun to see everyone and learn from President and Sister Richardson. They are awesome and help me become better. I'm so grateful for their long suffering. Being a mission president is probably the hardest calling in the Church. We learned a lot about how discipleship is changing us to fit God's kingdom and not changing the Church to fit us. That takes a lot of humility and self-awareness. I've been trying to make sure my teaching is structured in that same way-- that I'm giving people the tools they need to become enlarged and not trying to lower the requirements that God has for them. I've been pretty reflective lately. I have a bunch of flashbacks to moments on my mission and they feel like they happened forever ago. 

I've been studying the destination recently. What will the next life be like? What are we aiming to become in that life and in this? Beginning with the end in mind and all that. I've gained so much appreciation for those people that are striving-- that get up again and again even when they have every reason not to. I want to be more like that. I think heaven will be everything we hope for and a lot more. The scriptures say that those who inhabit heaven are those who "shall overcome all things." Interesting future tense-- not those who have overcome all things in mortality but those who, when their capacity is enlarged, will. It seems to me that all that you need to overcome something is the desire to do so and time and resources. As we extend into eternity, presumably our time and resources will be infinite. So all we personally need is the desire. Alma illustrates this:

But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.

It seems that a desire to believe ultimately manifests in belief. What a gift then that God has given us the desire to grow and improve. All we have to do is not quench it. We have to desire to be perfect even as He is. To live as he lives and do as He does. Hence why we are told we will be judged by the desires of our hearts. My favorite scripture reads:

I ought not to harrow up in my desires the firm decree of a just God, for I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto men, yea, decreeth unto them decrees which are unalterable, according to their wills, whether they be unto salvation or unto destruction.

You're going to get what you want! Just make sure you know what you should want. ;)

Love you guys! 

The Quickened Spirit

The holidays are so much fun, it's nice to be able to celebrate a little bit. We bought a bunch of appetizers for new years so we've been eating pretty unhealthy into the new year. It's pretty surreal to think that my mission is ending. Transfers feel short and time goes by so fast. I've been trying to map out what more I want to accomplish before I go home. I've had such wonderful experiences here, and I'm so grateful that I chose to serve a mission. 

I'm excited to study the New Testament this year!

"Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you" (John 6:53.)

This is just one example of how bold and radical Christ's teachings were. In the sermon on the mount, Christ mostly teaches a satisfying return to the purpose of the law, a massively popular shift from pharasaical interpretations. Then as his audience grows, he introduces teachings that led his disciples to say, "This is an hard saying; who can hear it?" 

He tells the people that have long held the belief that they are chosen and held in favor by the one true God that no one is saved but through him. This is earthshaking! These teachings became so hard that from "that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him" (John 6:66.)

This phenomena is not isolated-- Joseph Smith mirrors this same pattern, as well as president Nelson today. We all can accept truths as divine as long as they resonate with what we already think, but followers of Christ are made in the act of accepting what is sometimes hard to swallow. Anyways, follow the prophet, even when it's hard. He has the words of eternal life for our day. Love you guys! 

Live!

Sorry for the lack of emails, the holidays are so busy! And with the winter, the night comes earlier and earlier so I get pretty tired by the time 9oclock hits. I'm doing well, trying to increase my understanding of and capacity to feel joy. Our friends are doing well, continuing to learn and repent, it's amazing to watch their growth!  We had a wonderful Christmas zone conference. We worshiped, shared, and served together. President talked about how obeying when you can't see the end from the beginning is integral to living a consecrated life. We had a wonderful nativity and lots of remembering the Savior. I felt pretty overcome with a rush of gratitude for my mission leaders. Unlike me, they weren't expecting to serve a mission two years ago. They were called to leave their nets in a much more dramatic way, and they have been so inspiring to me. I listened to this talk by Elder Gay:

I will never forget the time my wife and I were interviewed by a senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles about my willingness to serve as a mission president. My wife and I had many things going on in our lives. At the time of our interview we were involved in some very challenging family dynamics, we were engaged in large humanitarian efforts across the world that required a lot of our attention and resources, and I was a senior managing partner of a global investment business, not to mention all the Church callings we were working on. I thought we were already doing as much as we could possibly do. As we sat there that day with this beloved Apostle and reflected on all that we had going on, we both politely said that this was probably not the best time for us to serve a mission. Without hesitation, this member of the Twelve turned to my wife and said, “Lynette, you are going to make a great missionary and companion to your husband.” He then turned to me and said, “You know, you really don’t get it. The Lord is calling you to save your life. You are either going to live your life by covenant or by convenience. There is never a convenient time to serve. This is a matter of faith. You either believe the Lord will bless your life with the blessings you need as you do His priorities or you don’t.”

I think too often I have decided to live the gospel out of convenience. I love the phrase, "the Lord is calling you to save your life!" I know that as we draw near to God, we live, and the nearer we get the more abundantly we live. I'm so grateful for my family and my parents and my Savior! 

Love, 

Elder Dahl

Supposing They Know of Themselves

This week was pretty slow, no car has been pretty rough. We've been braving the cold weather more and more just to get out of the apartment. Lots of time to study which is wonderful. I wonder how Jesus spent his youth. Evidently he had great knowledge of the scriptures, presumably from an additive diligent study at some point. I've kind of been struggling recently with really finding things that blow my mind. At the beginning of my mission, I just remember having so many spiritual experiences and impressions during personal study. I really felt like I was acquiring spiritual knowledge, but now it seems less frequent. I wonder about those that study the scriptures their entire lives, how they keep learning things that excite them. President Richardson studies the Greek and Hebrew so maybe that's how he keeps it fresh. I'm so grateful for my mission president-- he knows so much! I can't imagine having the depth of knowledge he has. I've been thinking a lot about this scripture: 

O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish.

It mentions three of the faults of our mortal state. First our vanity, our pride and ego. Our desire to be right and to be great and to have dominion. Our arrogance. Then our frailties, our weaknesses and afflictions, our finite capacities. Finally our foolishness, our tendency to just do things we know are wrong or incongruent with our goals and desires. Our inconsistencies and ignorance. 

The scripture then tells us that when we learn something, we think we are wise. That the acquisition of knowledge has a very dangerous side effect, that it often leads us to distrust others' commentary on that subject. In this information age, I've seen this mostly in the subscribe culture. I have had a question prompted by an experience or idea, and I have faith that receiving more knowledge will be worth the effort and positively impact my life. So I seek, out of the best books I can find, or highest ranked Google searches, or most-viewed YouTube videos. And then as I consume content, eventually one of these people gives me what I'm seeking, causes a paradigm shift and really tangibly impacts my life. That moment is massive. All of a sudden, I align my way of thinking with this external authority, because he or she has demonstrated immense value to me. So I stop seeking, stop listening to anyone who contradicts my chosen source. My subscriptions may expand, but only by those I become exposed to by my initial source. Those who follow similar trains of thought. Then, whenever I hear someone talking about the subject, I discover if they also subscribe to my same school of thought. If not, then they must still be ignorant and have settled for a lesser source. Luckily, in my wisdom, I can educate them. I can help them see the light and give them the brilliant epiphany that I and my experts experienced.

This process is too common. Because it creeps into our spiritual lives far too often. We no longer seek to know a God as He is, but we mold Him into a God we would like him to be-- often a cosmic vending machine or an all loving bystander who makes no demands. It's funny how knowing these tendencies doesn't make these problems go away. 

Try to learn, but don't become too wise!!

I love you guys!

-Elder Dahl