Hey there! I’m Cali Black, the writer, scripture-studier, and speaker behind Come Follow Me Study!

In January of 2019, I decided to start the Instagram account @comefollowmestudy in order to share some of my thoughts about the then-new weekly Come, Follow Me curriculum. I’ve always been passionate about finding the real-life applications in the scriptures, and I quickly discovered that other people wanted some help in finding these lessons, too!

Virtually every day since January 2019, I’ve shared personal stories, easy applications, challenges, and advice via my Come Follow Me Study platforms, which have now expanded into my Facebook page, this website (comefollowmestudy.com), and my daily email list (sign up at the bottom of this page!).

I was born and raised in the beautiful Bay Area of California. My childhood included a lot of playing the piano, singing, performing in musicals, and laughing way too much!

I attended BYU for my bachelor’s degree, and graduated in Elementary Education, with a Minor in Music. My four years in Provo, Utah solidified my love for teaching others, and I found my deep passion for choral singing.

I had fun working as a writing tutor for student athletes and began to identify as someone who actually enjoyed writing! Although I have to admit that my favorite job was the summer I worked as an EFY counselor – teaching the gospel to teenagers is awesome. 

I met a handsome guy named Kyle while attending my singles ward at BYU, and we were married in Oakland temple in 2013.

Following our graduations from BYU, Kyle and I packed up and drove south to Arizona, where we still live today! He attended A. T. Still University in order to earn his Doctorate of Physical Therapy, and I found the best job ever teaching 6th grade.

I learned to love 6th graders – that awkward mix of 11-year-olds who are trying to grow up a little too quickly, and yet wanting to please the teacher. I eventually earned my middle school endorsement in English, and discovered my real passion for teaching reading and writing. 

After four years of rocking the middle school scene, Kyle and I welcomed our baby girl Quin into the world. I made the heart-breaking yet peaceful decision to resign from my full-time teaching job. I knew that I still wanted to do something that involved teaching or writing or music, and I trusted Heavenly Father to open the doors that needed to be opened as I moved forward. 

I did some English teaching online, and I started teaching piano lessons. I was finding any possible way to share my strengths and find enjoyment in what I could create.

And that eventually brings us back to January of 2019. Starting Come Follow Me Study has been a beautiful combination of my life experiences: writing, teaching teenagers, speaking, simplifying, bringing stories to life… 

But the most important element is the fact that I get to share my testimony every single day. 

Although my “professional” life story highlights my teaching, writing, and speaking history, it’s a little more difficult to fully describe my love for the scriptures. As soon as I turned 12, I started reading my scriptures every single day. I knew that it was something I was “supposed” to do, and so I did it.

But I always felt like I didn’t really understand them the way that I should! Other people would get up in church and casually talk about the characters in the scriptures with ease. My dad taught seminary and seemed to know literally everything about the scriptures. And I would wonder – when will I know the scriptures like they do?!

My mom set an example to me of serving a mission when she was younger, so I always assumed that I would serve a mission and THAT’S where I would learn the scriptures inside out. But a mission ended up not being in the cards for me (I’ve shared about this in some of my posts before). And so I had a moment where I realized that I was going to have to learn how to study and understand the scriptures all on my own. 

As I turned my focus from “reading” every day to “studying” every day, my life changed. I found myself thinking about the scriptures in a completely different way. I created little lessons based off of the chapter I read that day. I wrote short thoughts before I closed my scriptures each day. I found what study habits worked well, and which ones were distracting. 

The scriptures came alive because I learned how to STUDY.

And now, I love sharing my experience with others!

You don’t have to have served a mission. You don’t have to have a religious degree. You don’t have to spend years cross-referencing and learning ancient history.

All you have to do is look for the personal lessons in virtually every verse, and then apply the changes in your life. 

That’s what studying the scriptures really means – they have to change you. 

And that’s what I love sharing here every single day!

Our family grew by one more in January of 2020 with our little baby boy Barrett. I’m so grateful I get to spend my days hanging out with my two kids, and sharing my testimony through my writing and speaking. 

I’m glad you are here, and I hope that you find the scriptures just a little more accessible after using what I share.

Because when we transition from reading to studying, the scriptures can change our lives!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black