Joyeux Noel!

Hey Everyone!

Christmas in Portland was awesome and a lot happened this week.

Christmas Conference was last Tuesday and it was a relatively relaxed conference and was a lot of fun. I got a picture with Santa that might(?) be on the mission Facebook page

We met a lot of crazy people this week and got Bible bashed a couple times as well. On a happy note, we taught a man named Theo about the restoration and during the first lesson he said he would get baptized! He even told us that although he had been Christian for a long time, it always frustrated him because it still seemed like something was missing. It is always a joy when people are searching for truth and finally find it.

Christmas Eve we tried teaching a few people in the morning and then went to a member's home for dinner. They were awesome and even made us ties and gave us stockings with treats in them. Portland is the place to be!!!(Besides the weather and crazy people)

Christmas day was wonderful. We went to a member's house for breakfast and helped their kids set up a mini roller coaster in the living room. We then helped cook and hang out with some African refugees at a brunch that was put on by the senior missionaries. We finally got to talk to our families over Skype and I was pleased to see that they still seem to be hanging on without me. Christmas dinner was at another member's home and we ate a Swedish dish that was basically a few different cheeses that we would grill individually and serve on top of bread or potatoes along with grilled meats and vegetables. They also gave us Nerf guns and suggested we come over and have a Nerf war with them sometime.

I'm so grateful to be on a mission and this Christmas was awesome!

Merry Christmas,

Elder Martin

Merry Christmas!

Bonjour tous le monde!

This week has been great. Nothing particularly new to report, but we found a few new people to teach which was awesome. Especially when we find them at night. It gets dark super early here so people really don't want to talk when it gets to be past 8 or so. So when we found 3 people after 8 in the last couple days it was pretty motivating.

We went caroling with the Sisters again this week, but out in Freeport and not inside a mall. This time we didn't get kicked out! Plenty of people seemed to appreciate the caroling and there were a few who seemed annoyed with it but I though it went quite well.

I spoke in sacrament meeting yesterday on the topic of grace. I had to make sure I did a good job, because President Blair was in the audience. That put a little more pressure on me, but the good type of pressure. We also had interviews for my first time in the field. It was a very good experience and I learned a lot. President Blair has been in the mission for almost 3 years so he definitely knows what he's doing and had a lot of great advice.

I really appreciate the kind words and support from everyone back home. You all are an awesome support group!

Merry Christmas! and remember what the true spirit of Christmas is.

Elder Martin

Loving Portland!

Sorry for not emailing last week, we were just very busy. The last two weeks have been full of fun events, such as a temple trip, follow-up training, my first companionship exchange, and getting kicked out of the mall.

We volunteer at the soup kitchen every Thursday and they had some leftover bread from last week so we went and gave it out to the homeless. A lot of them seem to really love Jesus, just came under some unfortunate circumstances and can't really do much for themselves now. One homeless man that was quite drunk sang me a couple songs about Jesus before going and cussing out another homeless guy.

We also got to go down to Vermont for follow-up training, and on our way stopped by the Joseph Smith Memorial where he was born. It was cool to see the birthplace of Joeseph Smith and think about what came to pass from such humble beginnings. President Blair spoke a lot about fully committing ourselves to the mission and "burning our ships." I hope I can be diligent in applying the things he taught us. It was also interesting to see how all the other new missionaries I flew in with are doing.

We decided to go Christmas caroling at the mall with some of the other missionaries. We wore Christmas lights and hats. It was fun for about 20 minutes, until security showed up. I think it may have been because the singing wasn't that great, but they said we weren't allowed to carol at that particular mall without permission, which makes sense I guess if you're Scrooge.

We finally got to go to the temple last week! It was awesome to bring a couple of recent converts to teach them about temple covenants and be part of their first experience with it. It was quite refreshing because we're not allowed to make many temple trips because the drive is so long.

I also went on my first companionship exchange. The other companionship is a trio, and a couple of them have a hard time getting along and it was probably good for them to get a break. I was stuck with a very prideful missionary (who has only been out for a couple months) and basically had to lay down the law a little bit. The reason they hadn't gotten along was because he was quite prideful and controlling, and not great with people. I got to see it firsthand as we were planning in the morning and he refused to take the third companion's ideas into account and seemed to think only his mattered. So I pulled him into the other room and taught him somewhat about how to get along with other people and basically that he's not as important as he thought he was. He seemed to have a hard to with that and even got worse after until I was a bit harder on him later on in the day and he softened up. It was a good experience to see what it's like to be with a hard companion and also how exchanges are going to be in the future.

Unfortunately we have had a lot of our appointments with people we're teaching fall through and that's been discouraging. However there are a couple people who seem to be progressing well and coming to know of the truth in the Book of Mormon and the Church.

Until next week,

Elder Martin.

1st Snowstorm and Refugees

Bonjour Everybody!

So this week included my last couple days in the MTC which were nice because we got to hear The Lux Choir sing on Sunday and then Elder Neil L Anderson speak to us on Tuesday night. I woke up at 2:30 Wednesday morning and basically was in airports on an a plane all day. Unfortunately for our second flight the engine on the first plane wasn't working so we sat in the plane for like an hour and a half before they told us we would have to take a different flight.

The first day in Manchester was the coldest it's been all winter, and then I was assigned to proselyte in Portland, Maine where they had their first snowstorm all year the next night. I get along very well with my new companion and he's excited to actually go do missionary work because his last few companions were very lazy and didn't get much done.

The first night in our area we were challenged by the Mission President to find at least one new person to teach,so we decided to go street contacting. We were crossing the street when my companion noticed a woman cleaning leaves out of her flower garden so we ran over to help. We asked if she needed any help with her leaves. She said no but I started picking them up anyway and talking to her about the Book of Mormon. Her name is Lindsey and we found out she had a Catholic background and believed in Christ but didn't go to church anymore. She said she would be interested in learning more about the Gospel, so we're expecting to meet up with her next week.

Most of the people my companion and I teach are refugees from Africa that had to flee because of a corrupt government. Most of them are from the Republic of Congo and a lot of them had to leave some of their family behind in hiding and are still working on finding a way for them to travel to the US. They all have crazy stories about how they were able to escape and come to America. One had even had his feet boiled in oil for protesting the government. The French they speak is an entirely different dialect that still takes some getting used to to understand. Some of the Congolese prefer to speak in English because they're trying to get better at the language, and I honestly have a harder time understanding their English than their French sometimes. All of the Africans are super nice and even though they usually don't have a lot, they want to feed you and help how they can. On Sunday we had to teach a lesson in Sunday School about the gathering of Israel, but in French. I felt kind of useless because I didn't have that much to say but my comprehension is getting better.

Love from the field, Elder Martin

Feel free to email me at jace.martin@myldsmail.net

Week 2 Transfer 1 Happy Thanksgiving!

Bonjour everybody!

Week 2 has been great so far. We've been teaching a lot of people and finding many as well, but most importantly it was Thanksgiving. Three different families had signed up to feed us on Thursday night but none of them knew we had other dinners also and we didn't see any good reason to tell them. So they were all delicious, but they kept expecting us to go get more plates of food because we're "growing boys" so I was so stuffed at the end of the day. My companion is a diabetic so he just used that as an excuse because he knew he was going to have to make room so I had about 6 plates of food for dinner and he had a lot less. It's great to be a missionary in Portland because at least we know we won't starve. We also shared a short thanksgiving message with one of our inactive members and by they end of it she was crying and said she would invite one of her friends to church with her! We unfortunately didn't see either of them on Sunday but it was still cool.

     Wednesday we went store finding and found three new people to teach in about 30 minutes. It's super easy to talk to the Congolese people because they're so friendly so all we did was put cassava and cornflower in our cart (to make fufu) and they would start talking to us. When they find out we speak french it's a done deal and they basically invite us over to their house. The hardest part is getting people to follow through on appointments. So many times we knocked on doors and nobody was home when they said they would be. We had a dinner appointment earlier this week and we called when we were at the door so we could be let in, and they told us they'd be home in 5 minutes but it ended up being more like 30. When we are able to teach the lessons they usually go very well. Isaac, who we've been teaching for 3 weeks said he wants to be baptized soon!

     During the warmer months the missionaries volunteer at one of the lighthouse stores, so Saturday was our last time there and they let us go up to the top of the lighthouse. I'll send some pictures of the beautiful coast. If you're curious about it, it's called the Portland Headlight. It's been around since the 1700's and George Washington actually commissioned it.

     Saturday night we had dinner with the other Portland Elders and there was a deal on fresh lobster so I got to try my first lobster in Maine which was awesome.

     It's been an amazing week and I was reminded once again of the importance of daily scripture reading. I've been enjoying having an hour every day to devote to personal study and I can testify that the Book of Mormon is true and will change your life if you let it. Reading before starting your day sets the tone and helps you to have the Spirit with you the rest of the day as long as you're choosing the right.

A Lundi prochain,

Elder Martin

Week 1 Transfer 1

Bonjour Everybody!

So this week included my last couple days in the MTC which were nice because we got to hear The Lux Choir sing on Sunday and then Elder Neil L Anderson speak to us on Tuesday night. I woke up at 2:30 Wednesday morning and basically was in airports on an a plane all day. Unfortunately for our second flight the engine on the first plane wasn't working so we sat in the plane for like an hour and a half before they told us we would have to take a different flight.

The first day in Manchester was the coldest it's been all winter, and then I was assigned to proselyte in Portland, Maine where they had their first snowstorm all year the next night. I get along very well with my new companion and he's excited to actually go do missionary work because his last few companions were very lazy and didn't get much done.

The first night in our area we were challenged by the Mission President to find at least one new person to teach,so we decided to go street contacting. We were crossing the street when my companion noticed a woman cleaning leaves out of her flower garden so we ran over to help. We asked if she needed any help with her leaves. She said no but I started picking them up anyway and talking to her about the Book of Mormon. Her name is Lindsey and we found out she had a Catholic background and believed in Christ but didn't go to church anymore. She said she would be interested in learning more about the Gospel, so we're expecting to meet up with her next week.

Most of the people my companion and I teach are refugees from Africa that had to flee because of a corrupt government. Most of them are from the Republic of Congo and a lot of them had to leave some of their family behind in hiding and are still working on finding a way for them to travel to the US. They all have crazy stories about how they were able to escape and come to America. One had even had his feet boiled in oil for protesting the government. The French they speak is an entirely different dialect that still takes some getting used to to understand. Some of the Congolese prefer to speak in English because they're trying to get better at the language, and I honestly have a harder time understanding their English than their French sometimes. All of the Africans are super nice and even though they usually don't have a lot, they want to feed you and help how they can. On Sunday we had to teach a lesson in Sunday School about the gathering of Israel, but in French. I felt kind of useless because I didn't have that much to say but my comprehension is getting better.

Love from the field, Elder Martin

Feel free to email me at jace.martin@myldsmail.net

Week 4 MTC

Salut mes amis!

I got my travel plan and I leave on Wednesday, so this is my last P-Day in the MTC. This means I get out to the mission field a week earlier than expected, which is great because I can't wait!

This past month has gone by very quickly. When I got to the MTC I was expecting to just be bored out of my mind and just have to stick it out until I get to the "real world." But I've learned that as I diligently study and pay attention in lessons it becomes much more enjoyable and I get much more out of it. One thing that I've improved a lot on is reading my scriptures. The more I try to study and ponder the scriptures, the better I can understand them and I've begun to look forward to reading now everyday.

We watched "Missions Are Forever" by Elder Holland on Sunday night. He emphasized making the most of the mission and doing it for the Lord and people in the area that we're serving. He said that if we're not planning to devote every minute of every day to spreading the gospel and doing the work of the Lord, to "just stay home" instead. We are called as missionaries to leave behind worldy concerns and to focus on inviting others to come unto Christ, and that going on a mission just to say you served a mission is the wrong mindset.

We also saw a portion of a talk from Elder Bednar in which he spoke about finding new people to teach. He shared a story about two young missionaries that came to his house on a Saturday morning and basically just hung out with them for an hour. They didn't share a spiritual message, and probably had much better ways they should have been spending their Saturday morning, such as finding new people to teach or sharing messages. As they were leaving they asked if there was anyone that Elder Bednar and his wife could refer to them to teach. Elder Bednar told them kindly, but assertively that he wouldn't refer anyone to missionaries like them, but he would give referrals to missionaries that took their calling seriously. This means opening with a prayer, sharing a brief, but spiritual message using scriptures, ending with a prayer and asking if there is anything else they can help with before asking politely if there is anyone they might be entrusted to teach.

About 3 weeks after that Saturday, those same missionaries knocked on their door again. They opened with a prayer, shared a brief spiritual message using the Book of Mormon, and closed with a prayer and by asking what else they could help with. After they politely asked if there was anyone the family knew of that they could teach, Elder Bednar told them that he would absolutely let them teach some of his friends.

I think it is important to remember why we are called on a mission. It is not a vacation, but a mission to invite children of God to come unto Christ and be brought to the knowledge of the Gospel. I am of the belief that a proper mission will be challenging, but can be even more enjoyable than a vacation.

Another highlight from the week is that I have still been speaking french in my sleep. It gets continually easier to speak and understand french every day. I can't wait to get out to the mission field and actually use it!

Feel free to email me at jace.martin@myldsmail.net

Elder Martin

Week 3 MTC

Bonjour!

It's been 23 days at the MTC now and everything is pretty much the same as my last email for the most part. But I have had some new experiences.

French is still coming along. Sunday night my companion said he woke up to me sleeptalking in french. On Wednesday we decided to try and do an "English fast" and refrain from using English at all. It worked ok at first until we realized we have a lot to learn and can't communicate about everything we want to quite yet.

On Sunday we had to teach the lesson for both Sunday School and Priesthood Quorum. This happened because our well meaning zone leaders (who had asked us to do the second lesson after we already had one) said we could do the same lesson for both periods, so we agreed. We then found out later that they were assigned topics and we would have to teach two separate 40 minute lessons, so we got to work. They both ended up going very well and I'm glad it happened that way because now we won't have to teach another lesson in church while we're here.

Halloween is pretty uneventful at the MTC. There weren't any decorations except for the ones put up by Elders in their our residences, and we still had to wear a white shirt and tie (no dressing up). I was able to kind of get around those rules by wearing another white shirt underneath, with a drawing of a jack o lantern taped to it that showed through the shirt I had on top. I'll attach pictures below.

Happy Halloween!

Elder Martin

Week 2 MTC

Bonjour!

It's been 16 days since I arrived at the MTC and I'm really starting to get used to the schedule and missionary life. My companion and I always show up right when the doors open for every meal so we never have to wait in line. If we show up with everyone else at our district the line can literally be 20 minutes for a single chicken breast with noodles. We have developed pretty successful study habits and can teach lessons entirely in French now.

I have gotten used to wearing a white shirt and tie everywhere I go now, as well as following the schedule for the most part while still being time efficient. We have devotionals every Sunday and Tuesday, and Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke at our Tuesday night devotional, which was really cool. One quote that stuck out to me was when he said he had never seen an unhappy obedient missionary, but he had seen some that were unhappy because they were lazy and not using their time or themselves to their full capacity. His wife also said something profound: "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience." Just some food for thought.

We also were able to watch a talk by Elder Bednar about Christlike attributes. He really stressed the idea of being patient and humble, and to turn outward to others instead of caring only about yourself and your own pride. He shared a very touching story about a single mother that had just lost her only daughter to a car accident. When this single mother found out that her daughter was the only one of the three girls in the car that had sustained fatal injuries, her first thought was to call the mothers of the other two to let them know their daughters were okay. I don't think many of us have the emotional or spiritual capacity to be as selfless as she was, but we should always strive for it.

On Wednesday my district got the opportunity to host the new missionaries. This means we basically welcome them to the MTC when they get dropped off and show them where their room is and where to go to class. It was nice to be someone for the anxious new guys to lean on, but I also had some fun spreading rumors about initiation ceremonies and things like that to the ones that weren't crying yet. (We don't have any sort of initiation ceremonies at the MTC).

Also we have to roleplay a lesson in French with our teacher every couple days. We are supposed to base it on the person's needs, but one night all he would tell us was that he had a great day and got to see his girlfriend (whom our district is rooting for him to marry). So we started teaching the lesson and invited him to read a scripture about sharing love with your spouse and children, and he couldn't hold it together for the rest of the lesson. Whoops.

Feel free to email me @jace.martin@myldsmail.net

Love from the MTC,

Elder Martin

Week 1 MTC

Bonjour, friends and family!

Today is my 9th day in the MTC and if I'm honest with myself, the first couple days were really hard but it has gotten a lot better. We get up at 6:30 am every day and our last class ends at about 9:30 at night. Sometimes it's exhausting to sit through 3 hours of french speaking, but since I've gotten here I've come to enjoy learning french, and it gets easier every day. As we learn more about the language it becomes less frustrating and more enjoyable to speak, and I've probably learned more in a week than I did in a year of school. The Gift of Tongues is real.

I am missing the music and friends at home, but we can feel the spirit all the time at the MTC. One interesting thing I’ve noticed is there seems to be no system of social hierarchy or cliques. There is no such thing as social status except for a church calling or assignment. I think everyone just realizes we are all valuable children of God.

My companion is pretty quiet and probably not someone I would normally hang out with but as I've gotten to know him I have come to realize I lucked out. He's very easygoing  and smart, and most surprisingly is actually a professional hunting guide from Alaska. He gets paid big bucks to navigate people through the mountains and aid them in hunting dall sheep. He's even been on TV for it before.

The food here is decent, depending on the day, and with sitting in classes all day long I think I've gained a few pounds. The classes were pretty boring, but I eventually got used to it, and now look forward to them sometimes.

On every P-day we go to the temple in the morning and it's very refreshing and sets a positive tone for the rest of the week. Most free time is meant to be spent studying, and if we don't we'll fall behind, but when we can we go play basketball and my companion and I are beasts. He's 6'4 so we can pretty much dominate everyone else on the court.

On another note, the MTC has been pretty humbling. There are a lot of people here that know the scriptures front and back, and plenty of people that already have been speaking french for years. It takes quite a bit of effort to keep up with them, and helps to remind me that we all have different strengths and all of them are valuable.

Love you all!

Elder Martin

-PS feel free to email me at jace.martin@myldsmail.net