WEEK FOUR!!!

So amazing experience of the week: GOD DOES ANSWER PRAYERS!!!!!

A girl in my district had laryngitis and I had/have a cold, and we spend like 13 hours a day in a classroom with our district. After the other girl got better, the next day 2 people came in super duper sick. One went to the infirmery and found out he had faryngitis... So it was pretty bad.... A few days prior we had a devotional about saying super specific prayers and they will more likely be answered if you have the faith. Well I decided to try it. I prayed that by 1145 that morning that both of them would feel substantially better and that their throats would stop hurting. 1145 came and nothing happened, and the one with faryngitis went home.... So I prayed again and asked that by dinner time they would be better. 10 minutes before dinner time the guy with faryngitis and his companion came into the classroom proclaiming that he was 100% better and felt perfectly fine, then I found out that the other girls throat stopped hurting just before lunch (1145). It was a little miracle that came about through fervent prayer.

Ether 12:6 is right - ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith. I couldve given up after nothing happened the first time, but when I continued in faith I received an answer to my prayers. It was incredible!! He was supposed to be sick for at least 5 days according the doctor, and the other girl that was sick was the companion to the one with laryngitis the week before, so she probably had laryngitis too, but the Lord answered my prayers and they both were only sick for half a day. 

I know that prayer is so powerful and that if you pray with faith that all will be well. You will receive an answer, on the Lords timing of course, but that is even better because He knows what you need better than you do!! I am so grateful for this faith promoting experience. I love my Lord and Savior so much with all my heart!! 

Love,

Hermana Martineau

BTW on Christmas morning I will call at 9 am my time, so 8am your time. I will call Dads phone because you might be at work, so tell Dad to be ready to answer at 8 am Christmas morning. I am so sorry, I had no choice of when to call.. We are all calling at that time. And we will have 30 minutes, and no it isnt a Skype :)

I love you so so much Mom and Dad!!! <3 Thanks for all you do for me :)

Hermana Martineau

​Me, Hna Wilde, and my teeny tiny teacher Hno Palma :)

Our little wall-tree to make it kind of feel like Christmas :)

The Mexico City Temple    

WEEK THREE!!!

Oh Mom, it is so good to hear from you again too!! And yes if I was home I would be making a snowman!! I am glad your foot it doing better and I hope it continues to get better and better!! Thank you so much for the prayers, and many are being sent you way too ;) Give the kitties a big hug for me!! I hope that you all are doing well and traveling safely. Yes I got your package, and OH MY GOODNESS those brownies are the best things I have ever eaten in my life!!!! Thank you so much for that, I really appreciate it :) I am saving the sodas for our district Christmas party! I have no idea what will happen on Christmas day, but on Christmas eve we are doing a music devotional where we all just play music, sing, and listen to each other play and sing! I am so excited!!! I dont know if I will call on Thursday or Friday or when, but when I do I will call your phone, so have it charged!! And I only get 30 minutes so it will be super duper short... But that's ok :) And Dad, awesome job with giving away a BOM!!! I am so proud of you, you are such a great example to me!!!

So Sunday was like the greatest day EVER!!!! I started out the day with getting pooped on the head by a bird, and then about 30 seconds later I got pooped on my hand by a different bird in a different tree!! They were out to get me, so me and Hermana Wilde ran to our casa!!! It was CRAZY!!! Then we had the AMAZING opportunity to watch a broadcast of the Tijuana Temple Dedication!! I was absolutely magnificent and the spirit was so strong!! At the close of the dedication we sang ''The Spirit of God'' and the Spirit was so strong the curtains covering the windows at the top of the gym blew like crazy and the sunlight flooded into the gym. It was BEAUTIFUL!!! The curtains stayed blown out the entire time we sang and up until we left, but when we went outside it wasnt even windy... It was the coolest experience ever!! Then we had some amazing devotionals that just motivated me to perservere longer. I am so grateful I am here preparing to do the Lord's work. It is such a wonderful feeling knowing that I am going to go out and help other come to Christ. What better thing could I do with my life!? Nothing!!! It has been great!! There are a lot of downs, but the ups more than make up for the downs!!!

My Spanish is improving quite a bit, but I am NO WHERE NEAR fluent, and they want us to be fluent by next week...... Not happening!! But I am doing my best and I am improving a lot!! This week at TRC (where we teach real people, not just our teachers pretending to be investigators) I can understand what they're saying and mostly come up with a semi-intelligent response :) It has been hard but very fun and worth it :)

It is weird to think that as of yesterday half of my CCM stay is over!! Time has just FLOWN by!!!! The first week felt like 2 months, but the last 2 and a half weeks have felt like one week!! Time is starting to go by so fast!! It is insanity!!! It is also really weird because some new people came the last 2 weeks and they have been asking us for help!! That is super weird because it feels like just yesterday I was the one walking around having no idea what was going on or what to expect!!!

Well sorry this letter is short, time, once again, has gone super fast and I spent too much time reading that I didnt get to respond!! The short one hour I have to email is the only time I get to see what you say to me because we cant print emails or anything so time is very limited. It is sad, but Im glad I get to read about how things are going at home. I love you so so much everyone and I am so grateful for all that you do for me!!! I have been so blessed with the best family and friends in the world!! I love you so much Mom, Dad, Hailey, Rhett, Ryan, Nicole, and David!!!!! I hope that all is well for you guys too!! I love you!!!

Philippeans 4:13

<3 siempre, Hermana Martineau

PS you should send me letters for free throughout the week at http://www.mtcmexicocarepackage.com/free-letter.html

Love you!!!

WEEK TWO!!!

Meagan Martineau	12:38 PM (9 hours ago)
to me

¡HOLA!

This week has been so much better that the last week!! We have a fairly regular schedule now of language classes, personal study time, companion study, gym, etc. It has been quite the adventure!!

Im going to make this quick cuz I dont have much more time, but we have been teaching a lot more and more frequently. Our ´´investigator´´ Fabian is now our teacher, Hmo Gallegos and a new ´´investigator´´ Emanuel, and our other teacher Hmo Palma is an ´´investigator´´ Marcelino. It is really scary teaching our teachers but we have been getting a lot better. yesterday we had our first TRC. TRC is where you teach REAL investigators or less actives. We taught a less active JuanCarlos. He was very nice and seemed pretty receptive to our message. It was scary, but went well. And my Spanish is getting quite a bit better. And yes all these lessons we teach are in Spanish!! Its really hard when I dont know what to say, but its good. Its been fun learning a new language, despite the difficulties. Oh and my teacher Hmo Gallegos (aka Fabian, aka Emanuel) called me a strawberry yesterday and then flicked his hands like a super girly-girl. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN???? It was super funny though :) And our classes are all just with my district 11B. They are great people and I learn a lot from them. There are just 10 of us so its small, but I like it that way. We are doing a Secret Santa thing for Christmas. I drew Elder Ludlow's name. SHHHH dont tell!!!! Its been a lot of fun. PS you know youre a missionary when the highlight of your week is a devotional, sitting in awkward uncomfortable chairs in your Sunday dress. Haha! Its been good. 

I hope you all are doing well and I love you all!! God is wonderful, never forget that!!

Love, 

Hermana Martineau :)

Hermana Wilde and I :) 

-almost- all of my study supplies!! There are some notebooks that didnt make it in the picture!!​

WEEK ONE!!!

Meagan Martineau	Dec 3 (7 days ago)
to me

MOM!!!!!

I love you SO much!! Thank you for sharing all that with me, that is exactly what I was hoping to hear from you!!

I am doing well, and I do like it here :) We got here at the CCM at around 6:30 Mexico time. We had dinner, then some brief orientation stuff. My companion is Hermana Wilde and she is absolutely FABULOUS!!! She is such a sweetheart and we have A LOT in common!! She is from Idaho Falls, Idaho and she is going to the California Arcadia mission. I also have the BEST district EVER!!! They are all so nice and very funny and friendly. I am so blessed to be where I am and with the people that I'm with. In my district there is a trio of Hermanas, Hma. Field (yes that's the Hma. Field that you asked about, and yes we are good friends), Hma Farnes, and Hma Boss, then there is a trio of Elders, Elder Peterson, Pace, and Snell (who is also going to California Bakersfield Spanish speaking), and a companionship of Elders, Elder Ludlow and Larson. So there are 10 of us in our district and they are all such a blast!! We have become good friends really quickly. They all have such strong testimonies and are confident in sharing them. They are great people!!

My teachers are also very wonderful!! Hma. Alverado, Hma. Perez, and Hmo. Palma. They are all Mexican, born and raised. They know English (not very well though) but they speak to us mostly in Spanish or Spanglish. We are in a new ''pilot program'' (the first ones in it) where it is ''solo español'' from day 1.

The first week was pretty crazy and stressful because we had so many orientations and classes and everything that it was really hard for us to have time to do anything. It was pretty stressful and really really hard, especially since half the time I had no idea what was going on!! Since Sunday though we have gotten into a regular schedule where we have breakfast at 715, personal study from 745-845, language learning till 10, some sort of gospel learning class (all taught by our 3 amazing teachers and in Spanish (yes we learn Spanish in Spanish)) until 1045, then person study until 1115, lunch, daily companionship planning, additional study time, a Spanish learning class on the computer with a program called TALL (technology assisted language learning), then personal language study, gym time, dinner, and then we prepare and teach our investigator for the rest of the night. It is really hard being in this pilot program and a lot more work than the regular programs, but it has been very worth it. I have learned so much!!! I can confidently say prayers in Spanish and bare a simple testimony in Spanish. It is really really difficult, but being taught in Spanish, responding in Spanish and teaching in Spanish is helping a lot!! Teaching. Yes, teaching!! We had to teach our first lesson IN SPANISH on our 2nd day here!!!! We had to teach our first ''investigator'' on Nov. 27. They aren't real investigators, they are teachers here that act like an investigator. Our investigator Fabian is really nice, but he is difficult first investigator to teach!! He ''cheated on his wife and can't control his feelings when he is home alone.'' It is very difficult deciding what to teach him to help him, and the first 3 lessons were pretty rough. Our 4th lesson with him was yesterday and we were so so close to committing him to baptism, but he agreed to come to church with us on Sunday. We teach him again tonight and we are going to teach him about the commandments, including the law of chastity, which is scary but I know that that is what he needs to hear.

Everyone here is so nice and very helpful. It gets very frustrating at times not understanding, but it is going a lot better now.

This week has been one of the HARDEST weeks of my life so far. There have been so many discouragements and Satan has been pressing on me hard to go home. I have cried more this week than I probably ever have in my life. Though it has been so hard, it has also been super duper rewarding. We have had some amazing devotionals and amazing district testimony meetings where the Spirit was so strong you could almost physically touch it!! I have learned so much about the Savior and I have seen God's hand in my life so much this last week. I truly know that God is real. He is there for us and He cares about us. I truly know now more than ever that He knows who we are and what we need.

Sorry if this email is very jumbled. We only have 1 hour and it's hard to collect my thoughts when I'm trying to type as fast as I can. I hope you have a great week and that the kitties keep sitting with you!!! Tell them hi for me!!

I just want you to know that I love you so very much. Your example has helped me so much and continues to help me so so much! Thank you for always sharing your testimony with me and keeping me in line. I love you so much!!

PS forward this to whoever.

PPS I love you

Love always,

Hermana Martineau

My house for the next 6 weeks!

My little closet with all of my belongings (half of my clothes were in the wash that's why its not very full)
​

Hermana Martineau's First Email After Arriving at the Mexico CCM (Mexico MTC)

Hermana Martineau's First Email After Arriving at the Mexico CCM (Mexico MTC)

Meagan Martineau <meagan.martineau@myldsmail.net>	Nov 25
to me

Your Missionary's mailing addres is:

[Hermana Martineau]

[January 4, 2016] [11B]

Carretera Tenayuca-Chalmita #828

Colonia Zona Escolar, Gustavo A. Madero

07230 Mexico, Distrito Federal

Mexico

The estimated departure date for your missionary is [Departure Date]. The use of the

above address on all correspondence will greatly faciliate delivery to your missionary

at the MTC. Please don't send packages.

I arrived safely at the MTC, or CCM in Spanish. It is very warm here and it is currently pouring cats and dogs! But I already have made a lot of friends. I dont have my assigned companion yet or seen where I will be sleeping or anything! It is definitely an adventure! I am doing well and hope to continue doing well! Thank you for all your prayers! I can definitely feel the blessings! 

My P day will be Thursday while I am here, but I'm not sure if I'll get one tomorrow. I love you all!! Please forward this to whoever you need to. I love you!!

Hermana Martineau