End of story, right?!

They aren’t going to be able to get these plates back. They tried with their best effort, and they failed. There’s no way Laban will let them take the plates. They’ve got the proof. It’s just the way it is!

Nephi says, “My brethren were about to return unto my father in the wilderness.”

That’s it! They tried, they failed, time to go back and tell their father.

But Nephi wasn’t going to let that happen.

He knew this was a commandment, or personal assignment, from the Lord, so he wasn’t going to go back until they accomplished the task.

Failure wasn’t an option for Nephi.

But WHY wasn’t failure an option? Is Nephi just super awesome and tenacious? He’s just a good guy who didn’t like to give up?

Or did he understand something more?

This is where famous Nephi 3:7 comes in. 

Nephi KNEW the Lord would not let them fail. He KNEW it because it was an errand from the Lord. This wasn’t just Nephi being a go-getter, this was Nephi demonstrating the ultimate FAITH. 

This is actually an empowering concept for me.

What if we lived our lives as if ultimate failure wasn’t an option?

Sure, we might “fail” to get the plates a few times, but we know in the end we will ultimately get them.

What if we knew we COULD figure out how to be a better mom? It will just take lots of effort and trial and error.

What if we knew we COULD become better at serving people around us willingly? We just have to keep practicing and trying over and over.

What if we knew we COULD learn to love the scriptures/General Conference/Come Follow Me/attending the temple? It will just take some time and effort to work through it.

I think there is power in KNOWING that the Lord really does provide a way for us to accomplish the things he commands. This means we cannot fail – as long as we keep trying and stop putting limitations on how much he will help us become better.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post We will fail, but we will not FAIL first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

But I am so grateful for the few glimpses we get into how Lehi and Sariah interacted.

We have the famous account of Sariah complaining and murmuring that her sons were probably killed in the wilderness, and that she can’t believe she trusted her “visionary” husband.

Tons of lessons can be and have been taught about this account of Sariah. 

But I want to look at the little glimpse of interaction between Sariah and Lehi AFTER the complaining and BEFORE their sons return.  

Sariah complains. She complains that her sons are gone, and probably dead. She starts to put the blame on her husband and his visions. 

She’s clearly not in a good place. And honestly, for very understandable reasons. No shade being thrown to Sariah. I have complained and put blame on my husband for MUCH less offences than leaving our home and losing my children in the wilderness. 

But how does Lehi react?

He reaffirms the truth of the “visions” he has had…

And then he COMFORTS her. 

How beautiful. 

Lehi doesn’t try to call her out. He doesn’t turn around and put the blame on her. He doesn’t say, “You should probably pray harder about this”. 

He just comforts his grieving and frustrated wife. 

What an example of grace and pure love.

Sometimes in marriage, it becomes easy to point fingers. To tell your spouse exactly what they are doing wrong in detailed note form, with backup sources. 

But often, what we all need is just comfort.

To know that we are loved and cared for, no matter what our weaknesses are in the moment. 

Shoutout to my fantastic husband who is literally the perfect example of just loving and comforting me, even when I’m clearly in the wrong or dealing with some major shortcomings. Pregnancy ain’t easy on me (not that it’s easy for many people!) and one of his biggest strengths is his ability to COMFORT without any judgement. 

Marriages really are composed of two imperfect people. But how we react to our spouse’s imperfections makes a big difference. Do we chasten and correct more often, or do we just comfort and love? 

What a great pattern Lehi and Sariah give us to follow!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

Artwork by Joseph Brickey

The post When your spouse is WRONG first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Isn’t it CRAZY sometimes to think about how people in very similar circumstances can receive completely different responses to their prayers?

A young couple gets married, and everyone has advice on how long they should or shouldn’t wait to have a kid, based on their own experiences and personal answers. 

Parents pray together about how to deal with a specific child, and receive an answer that seems completely incomprehensible to someone else disciplining their own child. 

A Bishop prays and feels that the ward should have certain initiatives or priorities, even though another Bishop has completely different ideas for his ward. 

So who is wrong, and who is right? 

Nephi clarified this for us in a beautiful, but often complicated lesson.

“I was led by the Spirit”. 

Two people, praying for exactly the same advice, may receive two completely different answers. And if they have the Spirit with them, this is completely fine. 

Two mothers may pray. One mother may get a full-time job, and one mother may stay with her kids full-time. As long as both are staying close to the Spirit and listening to their personal promptings, this is exactly how it should be. 

It is sometimes a little difficult to read the account of Nephi slaying King Laban. How could this make sense? Couldn’t there have been another way for Nephi to obtain these important plates?

But when it comes down to it, Nephi reminds us:

“I was led by the Spirit”. 

The answer he received in that moment was meant exactly for him in that situation. And since he was close to the Spirit, that was clearly the right thing for him to do. No concerns about it. 

Sometimes it can be hard to see when other people act on different promptings than we receive. 

But Nephi followed the personal instructions he was given, no matter how difficult they were for him to follow. 

And I think our lives are best lived when we stop worrying so much about and comparing the decisions other people are making, and instead focus on this big question:

Do I have the Spirit with me?

And if we do, that’s all that matters.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Comparing our personal revelation first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

It was also suuuuuper dry in Arizona last summer. 

14 days before the first day of Stake YW Camp, we received word that the stake needed to cancel the camp. The fire hazard was too much and the surrounding forests were being closed. 

YW Camp Cancelled. 14 days before. Yes, it was as dramatic and shocking as it might sound. 

But here’s the more dramatic part: Camps were turned over to the ward level. But the only days that everyone had already blocked off of their busy summers were… 14 days away.

So with 14 days’ notice, our ridiculously talented YW Presidency threw together a Ward YW Camp at a cabin that was randomly available. Planned food, activities, horseback riding, crafts… 

The girls loved it.

But let’s go back to those 14 days of chaos before everything turned out well.

There was a little bit of murmuring at first, from girls, parents, and leaders. We had spent multiple mutuals planning everything out. Girls had used their time and resources to create beautiful and creative decorations that went along with our stake theme. Budgets had been spent.

The Sunday before this new Ward Camp, our Bishop came to speak to the YW. 

What he said was so poignant to me.

“The Lord knew this would happen the whole time. He knew the whole time you were spending hours prepping for a lip-sync battle that would never happen. He knew the whole time you were shopping for gifts. He knew the whole time you were coming up with cheers and painting banners.

“This was the plan the whole time. This was no surprise to Him. 

“So what lessons do you think He wants you to learn from this?”

I think attitudes were changed in both the hearts of the leaders and the girls that day.

We knew this was a “hard trial” that we needed to have good attitudes about. 

But it changed our perspectives to remember that this was no “wrench in the plan” – this WAS the plan all along. 

And knowing that it really was the plan made it a whole lot easier to adjust our attitudes and find the beautiful and intricate lessons that we needed to learn. 

Why did Lehi’s sons have to “go back” to Jerusalem two different times after leaving it? It was the plan all along. It was meant to happen that way. Which means, there were lessons to learn. What lessons do YOU think they were supposed to learn? And what lessons can WE learn when we feel like we are being asked to “go back”?

The Lord will not be surprised.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Lessons from a cancelled YW Camp first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Nephi and Sam. ⁣

Both righteous men. Brothers. ⁣

And two different styles of believing. ⁣

I think it’s interesting that both of them followed their father and mother into the wilderness BEFORE receiving their own witness that they were really following the Lord. ⁣

They had borrowed their parents’ faith. ⁣

But after a few days in the wilderness, they both needed to know for sure. ⁣

NEPHI prayed. He cried unto the Lord. The Lord softened his heart. ⁣

And SAM believed Nephi’s words. ⁣

I think a lot of the time I’m like Nephi. I need to know for myself. I plead with the Lord and he eventually softens my heart. ⁣

And other times, I am like Sam. The experience and strong witness of others is good enough for me. In fact, it is often accompanied by my own spiritual experience and confirmation. ⁣

But Sam might have had a hard time believing if Nephi hadn’t shared his experience. ⁣

Nephi shared his witness. And then Sam believed. ⁣

When I am like Nephi and I gain a strong witness of a principle or a doctrine, am I sharing it with the people I love? ⁣

Not that I need to share it everywhere with everyone. ⁣

But am I sharing it with my loved ones who may benefit from it? Or just keeping my testimony and witness to myself?⁣

Conversion is powerful and personal. ⁣

But we also have the chance to uplift the Sams around us who may NEED to hear our story in order to start their own conversion. ⁣

How many times have WE been grateful for the touching stories that others have shared that have encouraged further conversion in our lives?⁣

Sometimes we are Sam, and sometimes we are Nephi. And when we are Nephi, let’s have his courage to share what we have learned to help convert others.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Nephi and Sam: How we can help each other grow first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.