A Picture or Two

Our Zone was looking for a spot for a picture for President and Sister Howes.

 This is our journey looking for the perfect spot.

 I spent my time looking up while everyone else was looking for the perfect spot.

 The perfect spot!

Sister Hosea's family in Sydney

My MTC shot of my name tag. Still looking for my Aussie spot!

Howes About You Stay?

Hello family & friends! I hope everyone had a wonderful week!

This week was as amazing as a week could be when you have to say goodbye to your mission President and his wife. 

I have loved every moment that I had with President and Sister Howes. I will cherish them forever! I'm calling them like as soon as I step off the plane when I get home (which is never happening because I'm gonna be a missionary forever) BUT I also know that I was called to both the Howes, AND the Checketts. So I am just enjoying these last couple days of the Howes being my mission parents, and then I will wholeheartedly embrace the Checketts as soon as they arrive. I know they are called of God and that at the end of the day, my loyalty is always to the Savior - no matter who the mission president is.  I'm so lucky to be able to receive knowledge and advice from two mission presidents. I also get to make double the meaningful relationships that will last forever! So yes, right now it incredibly hard to say goodbye. But in the scheme of things, this is a huge blessing.

                              

                                                             (Our Zone with the Howes.)

The rest of this week was really great as well. Sister Hosea and I got pretty sick but we was able to push through it because we had a lot of work to do this week! The Bishop gave us a list of people to visit spread out over our area which covers 11 towns. So it took us the whole week to do it since we are on foot. But it was really great! We are seeing miracles as we focus on our members and work as hard as we can to find new people to teach along the way! 

Weekly Highlights!

-President Howes gave every single missionary in every single zone a priesthood blessing. How sweet is that? Our Zone got ours on Tuesday. I've never met someone so full of light and so in tune with the spirit. He had us give him a list of three or four blessings that we would like to be blessed with. I was amazed as he said things and blessed me with things that I really needed but hadn't asked for. He was a vessel for Heavenly Father to answer my prayers. It was an amazing experience!

-Going out to dinner with the Howes and our Zone. We went to a place called 8 dollar steak and it was hilarious because it was SO sketchy and we just did not fit in there. It had to be sketchy though, because food really is just never that cheap here. But we got giant steaks we had to grill ourselves and lots of hot chips and ate together and talked. It was so fun! Those two are one in a million!

-Meeting Jim! So we got on the train and for the first time ever, Sister Hosea and I had no choice but to split up because there were just no seats. So Sister Hosea went and sat next to a Chinese lady (who she attempted to talk to in Chinese and got hardcore rejected lol), and I sat next to Jim. I was able to talk to him and teach him about the gospel and it was so cool. I have always been nervous to be in a situation where I would have to teach completely solo, but I was able to do it. Anything is possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ!

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(Sis Hosea & I had a self timer photo shoot while our Zone Leaders were setting up for a Zone picture to send to the Howes. This is about as good as it got. #companionshipunity)
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-Alright, I'll finish with my favorite miracle this week! So one of our members in the ward recently lost his mom. He is a very sweet man and he and his wife have still continued to faithfully fulfill their callings even in the midst of this loss. This family kept coming to both Sister Hosea's and my mind all week. We knew we needed to meet with them. Before we could even try to set anything up, they reached out to us and invited us to dinner. We had an awesome dinner with them (I finally got to try pavlova and it did not disappoint!) and then we had the privilege of getting to share a message with them. We shared with them the Because of Him Easter video and then just testified of the Savior. I was able to say "You have been in our thoughts a lot lately. We have been praying for you. We know, that as representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ, you have been in our thoughts because you have been in His." Sister Hosea and I then shared our favorite scriptures about the Savior and testified that we know that He is so aware of them, has felt their exact some feelings, and through Him they can find comfort. We both knew that this family already had testimonies of the Savior, but we felt prompted to share this with them. The spirit was so strong in their home as we extended our testimonies and the love of the Savior. I knew more than ever, that we were there on behalf of the Savior himself. 

I know that Savior loves us so perfectly and unconditionally. I have felt His love so many times throughout my life, but there is something so special about feeling His love flow through you and to others. I'm grateful that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, someone as imperfect as me can be used as an instrument for the Lord. 

I know that the Savior lives. I could not deny that if I wanted to. The spirit has confirmed to me, powerfully and consistently that He rose on the third day and still lives today. I am in awe of who He is. He is the kindest, most patient, unconditionally loving person who ever has or ever will walk the Earth. I know He loves you. I know He cares for you. I know He knows you perfectly. He truly has felt your pains. His arms are always outstretched to you. 

I invite all of you to let Him more fully into your lives. If you already know Him as your Savior, please never take Him for granted. Think of Him daily. Make sure He is the center of your life. 

If you do not, I  invite you to watch the Because of Him video that I talked about in this email (https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2014-00-1420-because-of-him?lang=eng&country=au) and prayerfully seek to know for yourself that He is the Savior of the world.

I love you all!

Have a great week!

Sister Froemming

I am a Month Old!

HELLO EVERYONE! 

I hope you all had an amazing week! I sure did. 

Heavenly Father has given me a lot of opportunities to grow this week! He tested me a lot. Some tests I succeeded, some tests I completely flunked. Being a missionary has stretched me so much. I'm so grateful that I can see myself changing. But it's also so hard not to give into the natural man. I am learning, slowly but surely, how to turn out in Christlike love when every part of me is trying to turn in. 

After a week of stretching experiences, I felt like I could see every flaw I have as a missionary under a black light. I could so clearly see where I want to be as a missionary, but I could also see the long, difficult journey that it will take for me to get there. I felt so weighed down by my weakness. I had repented and recommitted myself every day, I had really tried to lean on the Lord and had asked for help, but I still struggled not to feel inadequate as a missionary. 

I took all of these thoughts and feelings with me to church yesterday. And as I attended sacrament meeting, I felt Heavenly Father embrace me in His arms. Each Hymn we sang brought peace to my heart and tears to my eyes. As I took the sacrament I was able to take a deep breath of sweet relief as I finally felt the weight of my weaknesses roll of my shoulders. I felt joy and encouragement from my Father in Heaven as I recommitted myself to be better this week and to just keep going, relying on the Lord and doing everything I can, repenting when I inevitably fall short. Two returned missionary sisters spoke in sacrament meeting and it was such a tender mercy from the Lord. Their words lifted me up and inspired me. I came away from that meeting understanding that He is refining me. He is making me something better. I realized that I was resisting against these tests and trials, trying to get them over with so I could pass my test and be better already. I know now what I need to do is to embrace these tests with gratitude and long suffering. Allowing Him to truly change my nature and intentions, not just my actions. 

Please apply this experience in your own lives. Embrace Heavenly Father's will for your  life, and you will become so much better than you ever imagined you could be. He knows you, He loves you, He wants you to be happy, He will be there for you. Never forget that He is on your side. Honor your covenants and rely on the Lord fully There you will find true peace through the toughest storms of life. Endure and endure well brothers and sisters! 2 Nephi 31:21. 

OKAY a very quick weekly highlights because I have zero time this week.

-Knocking doors on rainy days. EVERYONE thought we were insane.

(Cactus tree?)

-Meeting Trevor, on the train. He was the craziest man in the world. He hadn't spoken to anyone besides those he works with in 3 months and he said he really needed to talk. So when we said "Hi, how are you?" He just let it alllllll out. I love Trevor! He said some crazy stuff that me and Sister Hosea will probably be quoting for years.

-Building member trust left and right. The Lord is really helping us gain the trust of the members here! Their hearts are being softened toward us and we can feel the excitement of the ward for missionary work growing! SO EXCITING!!!!!

-Celebrating my 1 month of being a missionary is Aussie with Milo and Tim Tams (not like we don't do that all the time already......#missionweight) 

(We're sad because it's winter but it feels like Fall and there's not Halloween.)

-Teaching our members! We have an awesome message that we've been sharing where we share the He Lives video where the prophet and first presidency testify of the Savior. It's so powerful! It's been so cool to share it with our members and see how it touches them and gets them thinking of their testimony. 

-Pumpkin soup at the Langley's. Some of our cute members fed us pumpkin soup when we stopped by to visit them. It was super good so I got the recipe and made it for Sister Hosea and I the next day.

                                    

-The joy that is trying to kill the giant roach in our flat that continues to elude me. He is my Moby Dick.

-Meeting the Bishop! I finally met him! He's so cool! He said and and his daughter (who is Sis Ireland from last week's email) both  made a comment about how it's good to have missionaries who are obedient and working hard! So excited that he's here! I know we are going to continue to see so many miracles in this area! 

I LOVE YOU ALL! You are all in my prayers. Have an amazing week! Love the Lord!

Sister Froemming.

Sister Froemming is Born

Hellllllo family and friends! It was a wonderful week here in Aussie!

Something my trainer told me the first night we planned together was that she thought as soon as she got her badge in the MTC she was "Sister Hosea". When really she was just her normal self pretending to be Sister Hosea. Then when she got to the mission field she thought, "Okay, now I must really be Sister Hosea." But even then, she was still just her normal self with a badge trying to figure out how to be a missionary. But after a while, after hours of studying, smiling through disappointing days, crying of joy because of Heavenly Father's miracles, and learning how to stop thinking about how you feel and starting to be driven by others, that badge stops being an accessory and it starts being a part of your heart (I'm sorry for being so cheesy but I mean it!)

Brothers and Sisters, I am not Kirsten with a badge anymore. Sister Froemming is alive and well. I have felt myself begin to really change into a true disciple of Christ. It's been amazing to watch what Heavenly Father can do with us when we let Him change us. He has helped me to recognize my strengths, He has REALLY helped me to recognize my weaknesses. I have been able to go to Him in prayer, and express my desire to change. I have been able to rely SO much on the enabling power of the Atonement. I have seen miracles, I have shed tears, I have learned how to receive revelation for others and I have felt the Lord guiding me every step of the way. 

Okay, spiel over. 

This week we went on trade offs with the Sister Training Leaders and it was amazing! I was with Sister Pearse and at I was so terrified of her at first, but she is so wonderful. I learned so much from being with her. We also got one of our members, Sister Ireland (who is a spiritual GIANT and such a great member missionary) to come out to teach with us and it was amazing! She was able to soften one of our investigators hearts with her testimony and our investigator finally agreed to read the Book of Mormon. She also got lunch with us and we had a little photo shoot because she wanted to share on FaceBook her great experience with the missionaries. YAY for Social Media missionary work and building trust with the ward members! 

                       

   (Sister Pearse and Sister Ireland)

So this week we also had Preach My Gospel studies with our wonderful Zone Leaders and we talked a lot about working with members. One of our Zone Leaders just straight up said "Emu Plains is not a GQ (golden question, or in other words street contacting) area. It is a member work area." Man, when he said that it hit Sister Hosea and I like a ton of bricks. To be frank, our members just do not trust the missionaries. They are very weary of us because of past disobedience. It has become very clear to us that building that relationship needs to be our main focus. We have received so much revelation and have so many ideas about how we can best help build this relationship with our members. I'm so excited! Our members really are amazing. We just have to show them that they can trust us. We are making progress, but we have a lot of work to do. I'm so excited though! This is going to be such a missionary minded ward. Emu Plains has unlimited potential!

Weekly Highlights!

-Sister Hosea made Lu which is a DELICIOUS Polynesian dish that everybody loves here. It was so good. 

-The miracle of our investigator Tiarne. I will have to tell you about her more next week because I'm running out of time but she's amazing. Please keep her in your prayers. She came to church on Sunday and I don't think I've ever been happier in my life.

-Tim tam slams on hard/cold days

-Accidentally trying to get in into the driver's seat in Sister Ireland's car because I'm #American. 

-Getting told by several people this week: "I can tell you and Sister Hosea are really good friends. So enjoy it while it lasts because it won't always be like that." Haha, very sad!

-Getting to go to the city for arrivals training part 2. I'm just happy whenever I can see the Howes. The spirit was so strong and I learned so much. I am always so spiritually nourished whenever I get to hear them speak. 

(Aussie Train)

-Best miracle this week!

This week I had the privilege of watching Heavenly Father love His children. He was able to work through me several times this week to express that love and I was amazed at how tender and sweet He is. My favorite experience was when we went to visit one of our members, Barry, who is an older man in the church. We went and sat on his porch, talked with him, and shared a powerful lesson teaching him about the Doctrine of Christ. At the end of the lesson, I felt prompted to bear sincere testimony that Heavenly Father loves him. As the words came to my mind, I noticed how simple and powerful they were. I have said "Heavenly Father loves you" so many times already on my mission. But this time in particular, I felt the spirit overwhelmingly confirming to me that what I was saying was true. I didn't say anything special, I didn't say anything new, and I didn't say anything eloquent. But as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ, I knew that God was speaking through me to deliver that message. I was able to be a conduit for God himself to tell His son that He loves him. I will never forget that moment. Although Barry is a very old man, he seemed so childlike to me as I looked at him. I know that Heavenly Father was allowing me to see him as He sees him. I felt how precious that son of God is. Though Barry is at the end of his life, I could feel his power and see his potential in the next life. All week long, as I have looked at people, I have truly seen them as children. It's been a very strange, very beautiful thing. My love for these people increases more and more each day. I think my heart will burst before the 18 months is over. 

(the text is weird because this is an excerpt of what I sent President Howes that I wanted to send to you all too!)

I love you all, remember who you really are. Never forget to talk to your Father in Heaven and be mindful of those around you. They are His children too. Pray for opportunities to share the Gospel and pray to have the courage to act when they come. True joy is found in the service of others.

Love,

Sister Froemming

Kirsten's Address Update

I received a letter from the Mission Presidencies Office with Kirsten's Address:

For Letters:
Australia Sydney North Mission Office

P.O. Box 2723 

Carlingford Court, NSW 2118

Australia

For Packages:

Australia Sydney North Mission Office

756 Pennant Hills Road

Carlingford, NSW 2118

Australia

Greetings from Ammonihah

Hello Everyone! Sorry about not writing last week. I will try to catch you up really quick!

-Hard, emotionally stretching week. I had to really let go of fears and doubts. So glad I had that experience though! I already feel I am becoming more of a consecrated missionary. 

-I spoke in church on Sunday. I prayed so hard before I got up "Heavenly Father please help me to say what I need to say to earn this ward's trust and to bring them closer to thy son, Jesus Christ. Heavenly Father, please also help me to control my voice and not sound shaky and be able to sound confident." He only came through on half of that haha. I was able to say everything the Lord needed me to say and show that I was focused on the work. However, you could totally tell I was nervous. Ah, darn. Oh well! I feel like we're starting to gain the wards trust. We got some dinner appointments after I spoke which was awesome! I've been able to begin to get to know some of the families in the ward. They are AMAZING. Sister Hosea and I have been able to talk to them about missionary work in our ward and show unity in our companionship. It's been really good. Our members are great!

-So many miracles happened! The best one was catching one of our less actives after months of missionaries not being able to find her. 

Okay. So now you're up to speed. THIS WEEK WAS AMAZING!!!!!! 

First off, Elder Kevin Pearson, the Area Seventy for Sydney came and did a mission tour. It was amazing! Fun fact: My lovely companion has an amazing voice. She sings like Beyonce. 

So the Assistants called and said "Sister Hosea, would you be able to sing for Elder Pearson's conference?"

She said "Sure!"

They said: "Can your companion sing?"

I shook my head 'No' and mouthed "NOOOOO" but she completely ignored that and said "Yes, she can!"

So long story short, we sang for Elder Kevin W. Pearson! Those of you who know me well will know it was a miracle that it actually sounded pretty good! 

Elder Pearson's conference was amazing though. We left it so inspired! We are in a tough area. It's mostly rich, older people who think they couldn't be any happier. It has been pretty hard trying to grow our teaching pool in this area. People can be so rude to missionaries here. It's so strange! I am not in the south anymore (people think smiling, saying hello, and waving is super weird here for some reason). BUT, I have learned from that conference that I am not going to give up on people so easily. "No" does not mean "no" to me and my companion anymore haha. If these people only knew, if the veil was thinned for just a moment, they would flock to us. They would fall on their knees and beg to be taught the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ by His personal representatives. So it's become my outlook to not just look for golden investigators, but to try to help these people remember how badly they want this. They all made the decision to come to this Earth, and Sister Hosea and I have everything they don't know they are looking for. So I am not giving up on these rude Aussies in Emu Plains. I love them. It is very obviously unrequited sometimes, but I truly love them. They are my brothers and sisters and I know how much they mean to Heavenly Father. So they mean so much to me, too. 

(Finding in a part of our area called Springwood.)

Weekly highlights!

-Meeting Max. He was at one of the firesides we took one of our recent converts to. He was sitting by himself after the fireside so a lot of missionaries went and talked to him. He had some sort of disability that made it very difficult to understand him. But when the other missionaries starting mingling with other investigators and recent converts I stayed and talked to him (mostly just because I'm awkward and I didn't know how to end the conversation haha) but eventually I started being able to understand him instead of just smiling and nodding. He got so excited when he realized that I was actually understanding him and we had a really great conversation.

-Serving Heidi. She is an old lady from Turkey who is SO cute. At first she didn't know how she felt about me because she hates when new Sisters come but I totally won her over this week. We make each other laugh a lot. I love her!

-Being Sister Hosea's companion is the best because some of her family lives around us and they are amazing! They are SO funny and craz​y nice. I'm so lucky to have Sister Hosea as my mum (trainer)!

-Going to the temple! It was so amazing to be at the temple today. I feel so much spiritual power and gained so much revelation. It was seriously just what my soul needed. I love the temple and I feel beyond blessed to be able to go so quick after getting here. 

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Alright everyone, I'm sorry my emails are still so long. I will work on that. But I just want to say how much I love each and every one of you. Please spend time in prayer with your Heavenly Father. Please remember the covenants you have made. Please look around you and see people for who they truly are. Be bold. Represent Christ in everything you do. Think of Him each day. Remember what He has done for you. Remember why you are here. Do whatever is necessary to be able to live with your families in God's presence again. I can promise you it won't be easy, but you are not alone. Trust in the Lord fully and everything will always work out. 

Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Froemming