Recent Letter

Here is Jason's most recent letter! He's doing awesome! His letter speaks for itself :)

June 24, 2013

Hola Familia!!

I just want to start out by saying that Satan is a d-bag haha!! But we won!! We have been fighting for a family to get baptized and on Saturday and Sunday they were finally baptized and confirmed. This entire week this family has being having so many problems. They were fighting, lost their job, were sick, and so many other things it was ridiculous. We finally got things settled down and when Saturday came one of the daughters was in a motorcycle accident. We called every member in our branch and sent them over to their house to get her calmed down and they got her leg all patched up. The baptismal service finally came around and it was great. It took a lot of planning but once it got started everything ran smoothly. We had 10 baptisms in the Zone! 2 of which were surprises. One lady I interviewed on Thursday. Her husband and son are members. I showed her the pictures of Megan’s wedding and talked about the temple. It was a really spiritual experience. I told her not to tell her husband that she was going to get baptised. On saturday we told her husband that somebody wanted him to baptized them but didn’t tell him who. When he was there standing in the water and his wife came out all dressed in white. Tears could not be held back it was such a great experience. I’ll attach the pic of the family we baptized, the lady and her husband, and all of the missionaries with the investigators and the 1st counselor of the mission presidency with his wife. I baptized the mom and one of the daughters of our family. As the mom came into the water she started to cry. It was a really spiritual experience. The good news is that everyone was confirmed too! Haha.  Sometimes when you have so many people getting baptized it’s hard to keep track : ).   

I love you guys so much! Thanks for always being there for me :)

Con mucho amor!!

Elder Dahlin

Mother's Day

We got to Skype with Jason on Mother's Day! It was SO good to see his face. His smile is still as big as ever :). It was much easier to talk to him this time than it was on Christmas. He was much more homesick on Christmas, and there were a lot more tears when we signed off then. This time I felt so much peace talking to him--we all did. He loves his mission, and he loves serving those around him. He's just ready to get out there and do more work! I love the Spirit about him, and I love seeing the Lord work through him.

A few weeks ago, Elder Bednar visited his mission. He said it was an amazing experience. He said Elder Bednar is even cooler in person. Here's a picture of his mission with Elder Bednar. See if you can find Jason!

 Okay, I'll tell you...

Here are some of Jason's recent letters!

April 1, 2013

Hola familia!!!

How are you guys doing?!! I’m doing good. I’m really excited for this month. 1st because its General Conference again. My second one in the mission! 2 down 2 to go haha. 2nd is because we should have some baptisms the 13th and 20^th.  We have found a lot of great people that are ready to enter into this covenant with our Father in Heaven. I’m so grateful to invite others to come unto Christ. Keep praying for these people! 3rd is because ELDER BEDNAR IS COMING TO CALI THE 27TH and 28TH :D We have a conference with him and his wife and other special trainings!! I can’t even wait. That will be 3 Apostles that I have shaken hands with. I don’t know if I will wash my hand after this one haha. Things are going a lot better in this area. I feel like the Lord is teaching me patience and to trust in him. We are on His time table, not ours. I’m grateful to be here teaching the gospel; there isn’t a better job on earth. It’s the hardest job on earth and sometimes it sucks, but I love it hahaha. Things with my companion are good. He’s learning a lot and gaining more confidence talking with the people, I mean he’s got me for a trainer ;) I love you guys so much! I missed not being home for Easter because here it’s just a normal day. No special programs, Easter baskets, nothing! I miss you guys so much let me know how things are!!

Les quiero mucho!!
Elder Dahlin

April 15, 2013

Hola Familia!!!

How are you guys doing! We had 2 baptisms this weekend finally! We baptized an older couple after 2 weeks of teaching them. It was a great experience they are great people. The idea is that in 1 year they head off for the temple to get sealed! Now we are out of investigators haha Other than that this week was pretty normal. This morning we went to the Zoo in Cali which was pretty cool. We are trying to work more and more with the members to find references and get them to stay strong in the church. We found a family of 3 that are all inactive but all 3 play volleyball on teams around Cali so we are going to be playing alot haha My comp is good. Lets just say I get to the house real tired every night. Ive been thinking alot about you guys this week its been tough. Sometimes its hard to be here far away. The mish is tough I learn that more and more everyday. I know why im here though and I know that the lord is keeping you guys safe. All we can do is hope that the time goes by fast haha

I love you guys so much

Elder Dahlin

April 29, 2013

Hola familia!!!

 

Whats up!!! How was the week? This week was pretty normal. It rained a lot here with some pretty brutal lightning storms, we lost power twice. Theres also a problem with the water system so we haven’t had running water in the house for 2 days.....it sucks haha. I had to eat 2 gross things. One lady plopped a fish head on my plate with a big smile. That sucked. Then another family gave us chicken feet. Picture putting chicken toes in your mouth, biting down, and spitting out the toenails...gross haha.  We had 2 baptisms last weekend finally! We baptized an older couple after 2 weeks of teaching them. It was a great experience, they are wonderful people. The plan is that in 1 year they head off for the temple to get sealed!  We found a family of 3 that are all inactive but all 3 play volleyball on teams around Cali so we are going to be playing a lot haha. My comp is good. Let’s just say we get to the house real tired every night.  We are hoping that this week we can light a fire under the members and get them to do some missionary work. Saturday was amazing. All the missionaries got together for a 3 hour meeting with Elder Bednar!! It was soooooo good. He is awesome. He is so different in person. He looks a little older in pesron too. The best part was he talked in English and had a translator haha. He talked with us, not at us, which was the best part. We had the chance to ask questions, he asked us questions, and the spirit was so strong the whole time. He talked to us about how we need to stop being objects and become agents. We took pictures with him and shook his hand! Yesterday we had a conference with Elder Craig C Christensen of the Seventy which was awesome too.  I’m learning so much every day and it’s amazing how the Lord can change our hearts. I’m not going to let the little things get to me, I’m here to do what I need to do and what the Lord has planned for me to do. Every day is hard in its own way but I feel good being here.  Great weekend haha! I hope all is going well for you guys. I love you so much!

Les quiero mucho

Elder Dahlin

 

May 6, 2013

Hola familia!!

Whats up?! How is everything going? How was this last week? Things here in Jamundi are going better. We don’t have very many investigators but the ones we do I think are ready to progress. We had an investigator come to church for the 1st time yesterday and its amazing how the Lord works because she didn’t want to leave the church, she felt so good. She asked “what is going to happen when I tell the pastor of the other church that I go to that I dont want to come back”? haha. We are starting to work more with the members too, we pray with them that names of friends will come to mind and we go and contact them right then. We have had some good experiences with them. The bishop finally knows my name!! haha I’ve made alot of ground with him. He and one of the stake presidency counselors that is in our ward both say that I’m the first missionary that they have seen ready to work. Whats up??!! haha We are planning alot of good things for the rest of this month and in June. I also made a work plan for the district that now is being used by 3 other zones too! There’s still alot of work to be done but we are working hard. Other than that not to much is going on. Today (P-Day) we are just gonna kick back and sleep. I hope all is well and I can’t wait to talk with you guys on Sunday!!! I love you soooooo much!!

Con mucho amor

Elder Dahlin


May 20, 2013

Hola Familia!!

How are you guys?! This was a crazy week haha First things I got transfered. I’m going to be a Zone Leader in an area outside of Cali (north). Theres 16 missionaries, 4 of which are fresh out of the MTC. I’m also going to be a District Leader because in our district there’s sister missionaries. I’m pretty excited! haha Our mission broke the 200 mark, we now have 210 missionaries. We had a baptism this week which was awesome. Her name is Lina. She’s a single mom and her daughter is going to get baptized next month after she turns 8. She came to the church 2 weeks ago with the idea of staying only 1 hour and then going to her church but after sacrament meeting she didn’t want to leave. It’s amazing how the Lord touches the hearts of people. She’s a great lady with a strong testimony. She can recognize the spirit really quickly which has helped her tremendously. This whole week other people from her old church were telling her don’t go to that church, they’re full of lies, it’s of the devil and a whole bunch of other things. Her response was “I’ve finally found the Lord’s church. I’ve prayed, and he’s responded.” :D haha The last crazy experience was in Cali I had to do a baptismal interview. Turns out the guy  I interviewed is an ex-gang leader......There is a question, question 4, that makes sure that you haven’t done anything really bad in your life. At the time I didn’t know and when he told me that he had killed, alot, and had done a whole bunch of other stuff, My heart sunk. Tears came to my eyes because at that moment the spirit filled the room. The atonement is for everyone. Christ didn’t only suffer for certain people. It is such a powerful thing to know that through him we can be clean. I’ve  seen it in my life and I’m so greatful to be able to teach people about it. He won’t be able to be baptized at this time but he’s not gonna give up. Thats all I’ve got for you this week haha I love you guys soooo much!!! Let me know how things are  going!

Con mucho amor!

Elder Dahlin 

He's doing great! Keep writing him! Go to the "Address" tab above to see ways you can write him.

Love, Megan 

More Pictures!

Elder Dahlin e-mailed us some pictures today! It's always great to see where he is and to see his smiling face. In this last transfer he was made District Leader and will be training his new companion. He's really excited about the opportunity! 

Here are the pictures with an explanation that he gave of each one.

 Jason's first day in Cali at Cristo Rey.

 First baptism in Villa De Lago with Elder Zombrano. The girl's name is Kimberly Suarez.

 This mother and her 2 kids were Jason's 2nd, 3rd, and 4th baptisms. The mom is Sandra Orozco, the daughter is Camilla, and the son is Juan Sebastian.

They hiked this volcano in Popayan called Purace.

Holding the Colombian flag from about 14,500 feet on the volcano.

 Another shot of the volcano.

Jason said these three kids are his favorite! The little girl is Britney, the shorter boy is Anderson, and the taller boy is Dago.

In the house of an investigator.

They were almost robbed in this area, and right after they left, a murder happened. Now these cops are there all the time. Jason said that they are their protectors.

This girl, Jessica, is the cousin of the three he baptized in Popayan.

Sunset in Popayan.

He's eating what's called a Cholado. It has all the fruits of Colombia in it. Jamundi is known for these.

He's doing great. Keep writing him, and if you love him, send him a package :)

Love,

Megan

An Update

Hey everyone! I have been terrible at updating Elder Dahlin's blog. He is currently in Jamundi. He says he really likes it there. It's really hot, and apparently he is getting some decent sunburns. A sweet lady Jason met in Popayan sends me frequent messages about him and keeps me updated. I surely love and appreciate the families down there that take care of Jason.

Here are some pictures she sent me:

Doesn't he look great?! I love seeing his big smile!

Here are some of his recent e-mails:

January 21, 2013

Hola familia!!!

How are you guys doing!! I got transferred to Jamundi! It’s a city right outside of Cali. Its super-hot here.....There are 4 missionaries here and we live in a really nice apartment. Its super big, has an oven, 3 bathrooms and it’s so much better than what I was living in in Popayan. It was really hard to say goodbye to everyone in Popayan. You get to know the people really well and they were like my family. Tuesday we went and said goodbye and took pics and it was good. I took a bus at 5am Wednesday to Cali and then we took a taxi to Jamundi. Elder Laws from my MTC group is with me. This is the last transfer for our companions so they don’t do much. They are always sleeping and wanting to go back to the house. My companion, Elder Vilchez is from Peru, he was my district leader in Popayan for a transfer. He’s a cool guy, he’s just super traunque(that’s what they say when someone is thinking about going home and not their mission). The ward here is good about 120 people go every Sunday. The members don’t like us very much I don’t know what happened so we have to change that. We don’t have very many investigators right now. There’s a lot of work to do!  But all is well there are a lot of members here who speak English which is nice.

The 49ers are going to the Super bowl and the Patriots arent :D!! haha This week was good. We had one day where we talked to about 5 different Jehovas Witnesses. It was nuts. They have crazy beliefs that I don’t understand. They wouldn’t let us pray because they say that not all prayers are heard by god...and they believe that when we die, that’s all she wrote...We were talking about the organization of the church about the prophet and the 12 and they said hey we have something really similar, and I said Hey I didn’t know you guys had a prophet and 12 apostles and they got up and left haha. We don’t have many investigators and not much support from the ward so it looks like we are going to have to start knockin doors which sucks but hopefully we wont get too many doors slammed in our faces. Crazy story last night we were sitting on a bench in a big park, there were alot of people around, and all of the sudden a guy comes up to us, says hi, reaches under the bench and pulls out a gun, puts it in his pants and continues on his way........My comp thought we were dead he was freakin out. But don’t worry we are A ok haha. Its super hot here I have to start using sunscreen cause im super burnt. Im getting a nice missionary tan though! Health wise I’m good, eating good, you guys would be impressed with what I eat now haha. I love you guys sooo very much!!! let me know how things are!

Con mucho amor!
Elder dahlin

January 28, 2013

Hola familia!!!

How are you guys doing!! Things are going ok here in Colombia. The ward isn’t too supportive of us neither is the Bishop which is tough. We are going to focus on strengthening those relationships this week. We don’t have any investigators. One kid was all ready for the baptism this last Saturday but his dad wouldn’t let him. The Jehovas Witnesses were follwoing us around one day and we lost 2 more investigators to them and another lady is having problems with her husband so she doesn’t want to make a decission right now. My companion refuses to knock doors so we almost always come home early and we leave late in the mornings. He doesnt want to be here anymore. It’s tough becuase he is a good Elder but being with another missionary from your same group is making it worse. Its super hot here its really tropical weather which would be nice if we werent in white shirts and ties. I’ve been sick since friday with a fever but I’m not going to give my comp the pleasure of staying home so the work goes on. Spanish is getting better each day. Its still a struggle but now its just a matter of listening to find out what I still need to learn. I love and miss you guys soo much!!

Con amor

Elder Dahlin

February 4, 2013

Hola Familia!!!!

How are you guys doing!! This week was alright, not too much happened. I have been pretty sick lately. Tuesday and Wednesday I barely had a voice but now I’m getting better. We started doing English classes this week and they are going pretty good. 20-30 people came this week and hopefully we can get more to come. We go over the basics of English and just hit vocabulary so they can learn some words. The classes get crazy at times because everyone is asking different questions or wants to know something different. It’s been raining alot this week which has been nice. Jamundi is really a nice city, I like it here. The ward is still a struggle.  I feel like the members are going to overthrow the bishop haha. He still doesn’t like us, and from what the members say he doesn’t like them either. We have been trying to set an appointment with him for the past 2 weeks and he gave us 20 min next Sunday in between conference sessions.........But we are still trying. My comp is slowing down more and more. He looks for any reason to leave late or come back to the house early. I feel like we aren’t doing anything during the week we didnt find any new investigators this week and taught 4 lessons....Not good. There is alot of potential here hopefully this month and in march things will get going. Other than that all is well. Our investigators are progressing slow and steady they all have different problems that we are workin through. Noone in Colombia is married haha But thats why we are here, to help! I love you guys soooo much! Thank you for everything :)

Ps If someone sent me a big thing of jiff peanut butter I would love you forever haha

Con mucho amor!
Elder Dahlin 

 ______________________________________________

Doesn't he sound great?! We love our Elder Dahlin and couldn't be more proud of him! Keep e-mailing him, and if you're feeling really giving, send him a nice package with peanut butter, beef jerky, and Skittles :)

Love,

Megan

Popayan, Colombia

Hello friends and family! It has been forever since I've updated Jason's blog!

He has been out in the field for about two and a half months and is doing really well! The thing he consistently says he's struggling with is is Spanish. Those who know Jason know he is a superstar student. He excels at everything he does. So the fact that he isn't fluent in Spanish yet really gets to him. The thing is, is Jason could very well be fluent! He's just too hard on himself. I think once he conquers Spanish in the way he would like to, he will feel so much better about himself and the work he is doing. He's been transferred a couple of times, once half-way through his transfer with his trainer, and once at the normal transfer date. He is currently in Popayan, Colombia. It is right here:

 I've only seen pictures on Google of Popayan, but it looks absolutely beautiful. Jason says there are really pretty mountains and the buildings are really cool. He says the food is actually pretty good. They eat a lot of chicken, rice, beans, and soup. I'm happy he's actually eating!

Here are his last two emails:

November 5, 2012

Hola Familia!!!

How is everyone doing? How are things going at home whats new? So this week was a little crazy. I have 3 stories to tell. First someone tried to rob me of my watch. He tried to take it off my wrist which didnt work. Then he asked for it but we just brushed passed him and at this point people started to notice and he left. Second story was that I saw an armed robbery right outside of the church. A couple was driving on a motorcycle, in colombia atleast 5 people can fit in a motorcycle its crazy, and 3 other motos with 6 robbers on them pulled up and cut them off. They threw the couple off and pointed a gun at them. One of the robbers hopped on and they all left. Right outside the church at 7 at night...The lady was crying and terrified so we helped them into the church. The police never showed up which is typical here I guess. The last is that we hiked a volcano today! 15,000 feet up....haha we had to walk a road for about 2 hours to reach the mountain. then we had another 2 hours to get to the top. The weather turned bad and the temperature dropped below 0 at about 14000 feet and the wind was blowing like crazy and it was raining. We were in 3 different groups. We were the last. The first was at the top and we called them to see where they were. They anwsered the phone yelling saying that they had just been robbed and that they were in trouble. So we turned around to get help. We had heard that the volcano was dangerous at times. We came to find out that it was a lie and they were just joking. The zone leaders took that really hard because they were responsible for the group. Everything turned out to be ok and now everyone is sick haha...This week we were supposed to have 3 baptisms but they got pushed to next saturday. we didnt have many lessons because we were focusing on the baptisms so we have alot of work to do here. The food is good. Its usually soup, a plate of rice beans a piece of meat and salad. Missions are tough thats for sure but I love it. I love and miss you guys so much let me know how things are!!

Con amor
Elder Dahlin

November 12, 2012

Hola familia!!!!

 

How are you doing!! How was the week whats new? We have freaking Obama for another 4 years that sucks. Everyone here loves him and I hate it haha I was on divisions with another North American when we found out and we about cried. This week was good, we had a couple cools things happen. The church donated 298 pairs of glasses and 40 wheelchairs to the elderly here in Popayan and it was awesome to be a part of it. The people were so humble and so happy to see us. We are trying to get it in the Liahona so look for us! We met the mayor of the city and a bunch of other leaders it was cool. Then we had a special reunion with Pres Prince. We learned how to teach lesson 1 in 5 min which is crazy haha and we learned more about how to work with members. Help the missionaries they need it haha Then we had 3 baptisms on saturday which were amazing. Planning one is so hard there are so many things that you have to do but it always works out. The confirmations were really powerful too. I have the best job ever haha Things with my comp are good. When you are with someone always it sucks but we work it out. The food is good im getting fat. I eat everything though suprise suprise. Ive never eaten more rice in my life haha each dish has a pound of it. It rains alot everything gets wet. I have a dentist appointment this week which is good. All is well on my end how are you guys!! I love and miss you sooooo much!! Tell Brother Housely that I got his letter also!!

Con amor

Elder Dahlin

He sounds great, huh? Sometimes I get really upset thinking that Jason is in any kind of danger, but I know that he is in the Lord's hands, and I trust in Him. Jason will be a trainer in his next transfer which will be a really good experience for him!

Well, keep e-mailing him and writing him! He loves it. Message me if you need his e-mail or mailing address.

Love,

Megan

This is Jason's mission president, President Prince.

One of Twelve Americans

Hey all!

Jason is in Colombia! He got there last Tuesday. He's loving the MTC in Colombia. He will be there for a few more weeks. There are a total of 12 Americans in the Colombia MTC; there are 69 "natives" as Jason calls them. They aren't allowed to play soccer because too many people get hurt. They can play volleyball though, and Jason is still dominating kids. This is Jason's first time out of the country, so he is adapting to how people drive in other countries. He says that people pay no attention to stop signs/lights and just drive nuts. So if anyone knows Jason, they know he is the pickiest eater. One of the most surprising things he said in his last email is that he loves the food down there. Whaaaat?! That's relieving to hear.. now we know he won't starve. We'll see how he feels about the food once he gets out of the MTC. Jason was made District Leader! That is so exciting! He's really excited about the opportunity. We're so impressed with that guy; he's such an inspiration.

Jason sent home his sim card with a bunch of pictures from the Provo MTC. Here are a few!

Well, Jason leaves the MTC September 3rd and begins his mission in Cali. Dear Elder isn't really worth it at this point because it gets there about as fast as normal letter gets there. His P-days are on Wednesday for the rest of the time he's in the MTC, so e-mail is the best option. 

Message me here for his e-mail address and mailing address!

The MTC

Elder Dahlin is doing amazing. Here are some updates on Jason's first 3 weeks.

The first letter we got from him was rough. We assume he wrote it in less than 24 hours of him reporting to the MTC. It had the tone of "what have I gotten myself into." We were all pretty heartbroken to hear how homesick Jason was. What wasn't in the letter was any hint of him wanting to come home. He only wanted to push through his doubts and continue to learn. It was hard to know that Jason was really struggling, but there was so much comfort knowing that he was going to be okay and overcome the doubts he was having.

The second letter was a night and day different from the first. He had settled into his surroundings and began to truly embrace what he has committed to do. We were so comforted knowing that he was being comforted and was really feeling the Spirit and embracing what he's learning about the Gospel. It was funny, because he was complaining that he hadn't learned Spanish yet (this was two letters in). He just wants to learn so much and has such drive to understand Spanish.

Over the last 3 weeks, I have seen such a change in my brother. I can't get through a letter without crying because I feel the Spirit so strongly when I read what he has to say. Jason is having amazing Spiritual experiences in the MTC and has been humbled by the Spirit. He's embracing the Gospel and has grown so much. I'm so inspired by him.

If anyone knows Jason's journey to getting on a mission, you can understand why the little details are so important to our family. Sometimes I think, "is this really my brother writing these things?!" I'm so impressed by him. Every little detail, no matter how simple, is the biggest thing to our family. We miss him so much, but wouldn't want him anywhere else right now.

The scripture Jason chose for his mission is from Alma 26:12 in the Book of Mormon:

Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

He's such an inspiration. I love that kid so much.

Elder Dahlin was supposed to leave for the Colombia MTC last Tuesday, but their visas got messed up, so he will be in the Provo MTC for a few weeks longer.

Keep sending him love! dearelder.com is the best because the MTC does same day delivery  to the missionaries if you send the letter by 12 noon mountain time.

Click on the "Write a Letter" tab at the top

In the drop-down box, click on "Provo MTC" and then "Write a Missionary"

Enter your information and Jason's

Message me here if you still don't have his information.

Love you guys!