Monday, February 28, 2011

Oh Happy Day!!

Well, we made it through yet another transfer! This Wednesday I will officially be in my 7th. Crazy. Transfer Conference was this morning, and Sister Woo and I are staying together for another transfer!!! YAY!!! We were really hoping for that. We have switched from the North 1 Zone to the South 1 Zone, and we still have to move all our stuff to another room upstairs. So that will take up all of our p-day today. But hey, our p-day has been moved from Monday to Friday, so that means 2 p-days this week! I'll have time to write more letters on Friday. :)

This past week has been wonderful, of course! Tuesday we got to do some service at the Food Bank! I was inside this huge box full of canned food, handing all the cans to everyone so they could sort them and box them up. It felt so refreshing to do service. We haven't done it in a while. On Wednesday, Temple Square was literally a melting pot. We were able to bear our testimonies and preach the gospel to people from all over the world, including: Scotland, Finland, Belgium, Lebanon, China, Korea, Canada, Nigeria, Chile, Costa Rica, England, Greece, Spain, Norway, and Sweden! Wow.... we may be the smallest mission in the world by acres, but we're really the largest mission in the world. The world is our mission! We're teaching investigators over the phone from that many countries too! It's incredible.

We met 2 women in the South visitors center last week. One (Sue), was a woman who had been excommunicated from the church, but decided to change her life and got re-baptized. She is now the Relief Society President in her ward. She brought a friend along with her to Temple Square (Angela) who had no family, no home, and basically no hope. But when she met Sue, her life made a complete 180. She started investigating in the church, got baptized, and is now living with Sue and her family, since she had no home before. Angie and Sue both have incredible testimonies of the Atonement of Jesus Christ which really shows in their countenances. They are some of the happiest people that I have ever met. I've said it before, and I'll say it time and time again: The gospel is so true! :)

So many things this week have happened to strengthen my testimony and remind me of how fortunate I am to have the gospel in my life. I've seen so many of the Lord's tender mercies. His hand is in all things. I know He is there and that he loves us so much! What greater knowledge can you have? I was talking with a man from Holland the other day. He was a scientist and an engineer. Everything to him needs to be proven logically and physically. He has no belief in God or even a higher being, and therefore no belief in anything else (like Adam and Eve or prophets in the Bible, etc). There was nothing that I could have said that would've proven it to him, except for bearing my testimony of God and his divinity and reality. I felt the presence of the Spirit surround me, and I knew that I was only a part of this great work- of bearing testimony to those who haven't heard it yet. Millions of people all over the world are declaring it, and it will soon "go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done."

I love this work. I love my Savior. I know it's true, and I know He lives. I'm so grateful for the experiences that God has given me, almost daily, to further that knowledge.

I love you sweet family and I look forward to hearing from you again.

All my love,

Sister Rochelle Frogget

Monday, February 21, 2011

Hot chocolate on a snowy day


How are all of you doing?? Is it getting warmer over there? We just got some snow this week. It was funny because one day I was in short sleeves, and the next I was wearing a coat, scarf, and boots. Utah weather is so bi-polar! (so is Nevada weather lol)

Well, last Tuesday, Sister Woo and I were in a contact, and I saw some Spanish people in the distance. I could tell they wanted to talk to someone, but no Spanish sisters were around. That day I really didn't feel like speaking Spanish. It takes a lot of energy on my part, and I just didn't feel like doing it! So we started heading out of the building to go to the Tabernacle. (I know- it's terrible that I avoided them. I let my fear get the best of me). But God knew better, and He knew I could do it. So one of the sisters chased me down as I was walking out the door and asked if I could take a Spanish tour. I hesitantly said yes. Thank goodness I did! It was an amazing tour, with an amazing family from Peru! I don't know why I let fear take over. The mother of the family is a member of the church. But her children are not- including her son, Luis, who is currently 17 years old, and living on his own in Arizona. He is catholic and interestingly enough hasn't heard much about the church. We could see the light in his eyes as we walked temple grounds and told him about the restoration of the gospel. He felt it. He knew it. And he wanted to learn more. The mother of course allowed us to send missionaries to his home, as well as her own home for her 2 daughters to get baptized. Luis is now our new investigator over the phone, and we've been having some good lessons with him!

I took another Spanish tour with two ladies that were mission companions many years ago in Ecuador. They were amazing examples for me. We showed them the presentation called God's plan for his family, and they loved it. They ended up giving us 14 people from Ecuador to call!!!! Wow, I now have a lot of work to do in the Referral Center! (considering there are about 60 people on my list now... mostly Spanish! Wish me luck!)

Planning miracle (yet another one lol)! We planned to find 2 men by the South visitors center, take them to the Tabernacle, and then the Conference Center. Sure enough, we found them and took them to the exact places! What's funny is that we didn't even realize it had happened until hours later! These men were on business- SUCH nice guys! We were able to just be ourselves and show our love for the gospel, and they could see it. And as always, the Conference Center is just so powerful! You look at that huge auditorium and can't help but think, "The gospel is so true!" :)

Just a couple days ago, I saw 2 young guys (about my age) talking with a senior couple who serve here on Temple Square. The guys looked like members! Well, a few hours later, I met them in the other visitors center and came to find out that they weren't! They came in looking very lost. I asked if I could help, and they said that they were so confused because the couple they had just talked to had explained all kinds of deep doctrine (like the 3 kingdoms of glory, etc), and they had no clue what was going on. I kinda laughed and tried to start at the basics. They were such awesome guys- Tyrel and Brad, from Alberta Canada. We ended up talking for quite some time about the basic principles of the gospel, including the Book of Mormon. Tyrel has a lot of LDS friends who are serving missions, and he asked me, "Why do you do it? What makes you want to be on a mission? You know you're not getting paid, right?" (lol). I was able to testify from my heart the reason why I'm here on a mission. I expressed my love for the work and for the gospel. I assured him that he could feel a sense of peace, direction, and true happiness from it. They both ended up realizing that they wanted a Book of Mormon for themselves. I read Moroni's promise to them and assured them they could feel that it truly is the word of God if they prayed in faith. They promised me they'd do it. I just love people! And the gospel! I'm so glad to be out here proclaiming the truth to those who haven't heard it!!!

Instead of having companionship study on Saturday, we all gathered together as a zone to have "zone study." It was incredible. We sat together in a conference room and talked about why each one of us decided to serve a mission. Some of these sisters have incredible stories, and have been through so much before they came. I admire so many who have made huge sacrifices to be here, and to serve the Lord. Pretty soon I realized that I needed to share my story. I have wanted to serve a mission ever since I was in primary, singing, "I hope they call me on a mission." It's just something I've planned for my whole life almost. I remember when I was 10 or 11, the Reno Temple was just starting to be built. As they were constructing the foundation of the temple, each primary child in the area was given a rock. On our rocks, we each wrote two promises to God. I remember the promises that I made with my Heavenly Father: "1. I will go on a mission. 2. I will get married in the temple." That rock now lays in the foundation of the Reno Nevada Temple. The journey from that day in primary to this point was a little rockier than I had anticipated (those of you who know me well know exactly what I'm talking about), but I knew this is what I needed to do. And now I am here, serving God as a representative of Jesus Christ, just as I had promised. Think of the promises you might have made in the premortal life- when we were all in God's presence. What did you promise him? Are you accomplishing what you said you would? Are you living up to the divine potential within you?

Well, those are just a few of the highlights that I've witnessed here on Temple Square. Miracles happen hourly. I love it.
You are all my shining stars. I love you more than hot chocolate on a snowy day!! :)

xoxoxox

Sister Rochelle Frogget

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

How are you doing? I hope it's a great valentine's day for you :) I LOVE Valentine's Day! Especially being on a mission! I have thought a lot about the love that the Savior has for each one of us. I read about that during my personal scripture study this morning. I wrote about it in my journal- how I can do better in showing my love for the Savior by being the best person and missionary that I can be, and to engrave His image in my countenance. I have a lot of work to do, but I'm praying for His help! Luckily I have all of you to look to as examples! And, of course, the Savior himself.

So funny story- I got a letter from Elder Williams who was serving over there in Gardnerville last transfer. He said that he was in the middle of a lesson with one of their investigators, when some of the Temple Square missionaries called! So I thought I'd clue you in on how the whole process works. Her son (who's in our ward in g-ville) came to Temple Square and talked to sisters here. He referred his mom, and the sisters called her. After talking with them, she realized that she wanted to have missionaries come teach her more. So the sisters sent her information to the elders and continued calling her, to share more over the phone, until they got there. That is what we call a new investigator. When the investigator keeps commitments, they're called progressing investigators. We continue to teach our progressing investigators until the missionaries get there. When the sister missionaries called her, the Elders were already over at her house! That is what we call an IRC (investigator referral confirmed)! We love those. :) Anyway, be sure to fellowship her! :)

Tuesday was an AMAZING day. We went to an incredibly uplifting and strengthening zone conference, which got us all pumped up to be better missionaries! THEN, we got back to the square, into the motors, and got an AWESOME email from Christina!!!! The missionaries finally reached her!!!!! And she's getting baptized on MARCH 5th!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :) :) Man, we were so happy when we found that out. Christina is incredible. She already shines the light of Christ. It was actually kind of sad to call her that night because since the missionaries reached her, we no longer give her any more lessons. We're going to call her tomorrow though, to see how church went yesterday, and how the lessons are coming along! The joy of missionary work is greater than I could ever express!! I wish you all could be out here with me to experience this! :)

That same day, we talked to a wonderful lady named Sharon, who is living in 2 places at once- Kansas City, and GARDNERVILLE, NV!!!! What a coincidence that my companion and I were able to talk with her over the phone! :) She had been reading a book by Glenn Beck, who mentioned how the Book of Mormon has brought him such peace and strength in his life. She has been looking all over in Kansas for one, but can't find it! She said she was flying to Nevada that weekend and she wanted to go to church and everything! Initially, I gave her the phone number for the Bishop Jackson and told her where the Mahogany building was located. But then I realized that she could just go with YOU, mom!! So I gave her your cell number. But unfortunately we haven't been able to get a hold of her. We still don't know if she went to church or not... Guess we'll try calling again tomorrow! :( Pray for her! And fellowship her the best you can- follow the Spirit! And give her the Book of Mormon!! :)

Another one of our investigators lives in Fallon, Nevada!! The missionaries there have already met with her and everything! I like having a connection with them. I love Nevada :)

So on Thursday, we were walking up to the Christus in the North visitors center, and Sister Woo saw some Asians by the Jerusalem map. She felt like she needed to talk with them. Except she didn't actually tell me that until later! We looked out the window and saw them all the way across temple square. And when I saw them, I knew we had to talk to them too. We walked really fast (since we're not allowed to run lol) across the square, and casually approached them. They're Koreans, just waiting outside the tabernacle for the organ recital. Since it wasn't going to start for another 20 minutes, we decided to take them to the South visitors center to see the temple model. We ended up talking about modern prophets and Thomas S. Monson. They both have families of their own, and loved the clip from General Conference that we showed them. One of them wanted to learn more from the missionaries! It's a good thing we chased them down! :) And a good thing that we both felt the promptings of the spirit!

That same day, we were in the tabernacle, and 2 men from Texas walked in. They were here on business. We talked about the Book of Mormon after getting to know them a little bit. One was very southern baptist and wanted nothing to do with it. They both were about to walk away, and I didn't feel like we had brought the Spirit enough to invite for missionaries, but the thought came to me to offer it anyway. I did, and the other man, Eric, said "Sure, of course! I'll have missionaries over! I want to read the Book of Mormon" If we hadn't asked, we would have never known that he wanted to read it! (Ask and ye shall receive, right? :) That was a little mini-miracle, and a lesson that we should invite everyone. Even if they don't seem interested.

This weekend, the weather has been AMAZING!!! (although I'm not sure how long it will last!) The sun is shining, people are actually on Temple Square, and it's beginning to feel like summer again! We only had 2 hours on the square on Saturday, so we planned to walk through the south visitors center and go to the tabernacle. The amazing thing was- we never made it all the way through the visitors center because there were people EVERYWHERE! It was awesome. Everywhere we turned there were people to talk to. And we had some very spirit-filled discussions... amongst ones that were either very awkward, hateful and bitter, disinterested, or basically anything you could think of. The bad experiences make the good ones that much better! We meet so many different people. I love it.

Wow, it looks like my time is up! I could seriously tell you stories all day. Being a missionary has its difficulties, but the rewards are so much more numerous!

I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's day! I like to make it a day to be happy and love others to the best of my abilities!

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!

Your daughter and friend,
Sister Rochelle Frogget

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

How blessed we are!

My dearest family,
I can't possibly express to you how blessed I am! And how blessed we are! The gospel changes lives. I get to witness it everyday. I was thinking this morning about how great my life is- no homework, no tests, no drama, no worries... just feeling the Spirit and preaching the gospel all day! Our only worry is for the salvation of God's children :)

One day this week, we were walking outside in the freezing cold, and breaking the news to people that all the buildings were closed (due to a special, private tour that was being taken). We saw President Holmes talking with a lady, and when he saw us walking by, he asked us to take her to go see the Conference Center (since it was the only one open). We happily accepted. Cindy, from Texas, came to SLC because her daughter is trying out for So You Think You Can Dance TV show. She was such an amazing lady with high standards and a love for the Lord. She just hadn't ever heard of the restored gospel before! The Spirit was so strong as we took her to the auditorium to see where thousands gather to listen to the prophet speak. Tears came to her eyes as she felt a taste of true happiness that comes from the gospel of Jesus Christ. She wanted a copy of the Book of Mormon, and missionaries to come share more with her! We were happy that President Holmes was inspired enough to talk to the right person at the right time, and Sister Woo and I happened to be there, available to take the tour! :)

The 3rd of February was Chinese New Year!! All the Asians and their companions decided to celebrate. Since we only have a limited time for lunch, we all went to the food court nearby and had Chinese food (Americanized of course, but still delicious) YUM! :) I'm pretty sure I'm Asian at heart lol.

Throughout this week, we have been calling Christina quite frequently, to teach her more lessons. We are almost done with all the lessons now, and she's keeping every commitment that we give her! The only thing that was a problem was that she works on Sundays. So she agreed to join us and pray everyday that her boss would let her have Sundays off. She asked him a week ago, and he said no. We kept praying, and sure enough, we received an email from her saying that he actually needed her to take Sundays off (starting next week) because of schedule changes. She was amazed (as were we!), and it strengthened all of our testimonies of the power of prayer. The Lord is there listening to us. He answers our prayers, as we are sincere, faithful, believing, and willing to submit to his will. We're now praying that she can get a hold of the bishop there in MO (he hasn't been answering the phone all week!!), and that the missionaries will hurry over there so she can be baptized! She even fasted with us yesterday, even though she had work. As we taught her about the law of tithing and the law of the fast, she already mentioned that she wanted to give to the poor, so she went on the website and found all this information about Humanitarian service. She decided to buy supplies and put together humanitarian kits! (this was all on her own!) Her friends at school ask her why she's doing all this stuff. And then she asks them why they aren't doing this stuff! She's such a great missionary already and shares what she learns with her friends. I decided to sign her up to receive the New Era magazines every month. And I might just mail her a Book of Mormon myself, if those missionaries don't get over there soon! She's been reading the Book of Mormon online. She's already finished with Alma!

Last night we met a woman and her 12-year-old daughter (who looks like she's 19, seriously), who joined the church about 3 years ago. The mother (Windy) used to be a stripper in a bar, married to a terrible man, and lived a pretty bad life. She also dealt with drug addictions and high anxiety. The missionaries knocked on their door one day, and for the first time in her life, she felt the anxiety leave her. She finally felt true peace. Three years later, she's now a Relief Society teacher, visiting teacher, and a beautiful young lady who loves the gospel and is so close to the Lord! That, my friends, is why I mentioned at the beginning of this email that the gospel truly changes lives. She and her daughter look like the best of friends (it reminded me of you and me, Mom!) and look so happy! I love this gospel :)

We've also seen a change in our new friend Joe from the UK. He didn't believe in God at all when we first talked to him, but we committed him to read the Book of Mormon, and he's already half way through. He seemed like a completely different person the second time we called him. He feels peace when he reads it. He wants to believe in God; we even had him pray over the phone, and it was such a sweet and sincere prayer. Joe truly wants to know the truth, and he's on the right path!

I know that all of these amazing stories happen, but not because of me. I am merely an instrument in God's hands, helping this work carry forth. Little miracles like this happen multiple times each day! It's so neat to see God's hand in all things! I wish you could all be here with me to witness it!

We've been meeting SO many people lately who don't believe in God and who need signs in order to believe. It's been an interesting experience to share my own feelings and testimony, and then to share scriptures from the Book of Mormon. It has such a strong power to it, which is accompanied by the power of the Holy Ghost, who testifies of its truthfulness. Here's a scripture that I like to use:

"...faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith." ~Ether 12:6.
The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

God will show himself unto you after you desire to have that faith and belief in him. Some people don't have this desire, so a scripture that touches them is this one:

"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." ~Alma 32:27.

We've seen people exercise just a particle of that faith, and it changes lives. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! :)

Love you all to Pluto and back! Talk to you SOON!!

Love,
Sister Rochelle Frogget