“I have faith that I’ll get into that school.”⁣

I remember two friends telling me these statements pretty close to each other. ⁣

They stood out to me because I had been recently studying about faith. ⁣

It seemed to me that faith didn’t always work out. ⁣

People got sick and died.

Friends didn’t get into schools or get jobs that they wanted. ⁣

But… they had faith?⁣

I was reading my scriptures after hearing these statements from friends that just would not get out of my head. ⁣

And then it finally clicked. ⁣

Not faith FOR a certain result. ⁣

Faith IN Jesus Christ. ⁣

And I was reminded of this simple but powerful distinction as I read about Zeezrom’s healing. ⁣

Alma asked Zeezrom, who was on death’s door, “Do you believe in Christ?”⁣

Zeezrom responded with a yes. ⁣

And Alma said, “IF thou believest in the redemption of Christ thou canst be healed.”⁣

In Zeezrom’s situation, Alma knew that God’s will was to heal Zeezrom and keep him on earth. ⁣⁣

But Zeezrom’s faith was not IN his healing, just as the women’s faith had not been IN their saving, or Alma’s faith IN his success for sharing the gospel. ⁣

Their faith was IN Jesus Christ. ⁣

“Then Alma cried unto the Lord, saying: O Lord our God, have mercy on this man, and heal him according to his faith which is in Christ.” (Alma 15:10⁣

And when your faith is in Jesus Christ, the outcome really doesn’t matter all that much. ⁣

Healing or succumbing. Succeeding or failing. ⁣

All of it happens to the faithful who place their faith in the One who can bring peace in the storm.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Does faith really work? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

There are a few examples of the opposite that have always stood out to me.

(I’m not talking about bad examples, I promise! I mean a different kind of opposite…)

After Alma and Amulek watched one of the most tragic events imaginable, here’s what happened:

“The judge stood before them, and said: Why do ye not answer the words of this people? Know ye not that I have power to deliver you up unto the flames?

“And he commanded them to speak;

“but they answered nothing.” (Alma 14:19)

Silence.

They said nothing.

I think of Jesus and the times when He chose not to verbally respond to people.

Speaking up is important.

Defending our beliefs is important.

I can think of countless times in the scriptures and in modern-days when people have been moved to speak up.

In fact, we are often explicitly asked to speak up.

But sometimes the Spirit can move us to just be silent. ⁣

Maybe it’s because the Spirit warns us that saying anything wouldn’t help.

Maybe it’s because the Spirit knows we can be a better example through our actions than our words.

Maybe it’s because we need to be quiet and listen to someone else’s perspective.

“Jesus Christ, the only perfect person to ever walk the earth, taught us through quiet example to say nothing or to be silent in stressful times in our lives rather than to spend time and energy bashing for whatever purpose.” – Marvin J. Ashton

Talking and sharing are so important.

But sometimes the best way to share our testimony is through silence.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The opposite of teaching  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Why do some suffer with cancer while others are cured?

Why do some struggle financially while others have abundance?

Why do some have difficult family relationships to navigate while others have such unity?

Why do some fail while others get accepted to every school they wanted?

Why were the faithful women of Ammonihah and their innocent children killed in the most brutal way, while a prophet of the Lord was told not to intervene?

Life can be infuriatingly unfair.

So, so, so unfair.

Elder Dale G. Renlund gave a talk in 2021 titled “Infuriating Unfairness” that shook me to the core, and I’ve quoted it often since.

I actually want to point you to this apostle’s words to answer this complicated and heartbreaking question.

Please go read or listen to that talk today.

But here are some of my favorite teachings he shared:

“I declare with all my aching heart that Jesus Christ both understands unfairness and has the power to provide a remedy. Nothing compares to the unfairness He endured.

“It was not fair that He experienced all the pains and afflictions of mankind. It was not fair that He suffered for my sins and mistakes and for yours. But He chose to do so because of His love for us and for Heavenly Father. He understands perfectly what we are experiencing.”

“In mortality, we can “come boldly” to the Savior and receive compassion, healing, and help. Even while we suffer inexplicably, God can bless us in simple, ordinary, and significant ways.”

“In the eternities, Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ will resolve all unfairness.”

(Go read his talk and share it with others you know are grappling with the same question.)

Life is inherently unfair, and while this unfairness is manifest in both insignificant and life-altering ways, God’s will always reigns supreme.

And Jesus PERFECTLY understands the unfairness you face.

I am sure that these righteous women and children in Ammonihah, surrounded by their beloved scriptures, praised God “even in the very act of perishing”.

Do we have the faith to praise God, despite the infuriating unfairness we have to face?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Why weren’t they saved?  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“. . .ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear.”

That phrase on its own implies that none of us will be tempted more than we can handle.

Wouldn’t that be nice to have confidence in?

To know that every temptation you face is totally within your power to resist?

But let’s actually look at the whole first part of that verse:

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear.” (Alma 13:28)

People actually WILL be tempted more than they can bear– if they aren’t turning to God!

It happens all the time.

Temptations that are just too difficult for our fallen natural self to resist.

Turning to anger too quickly.

Indulging in inappropriate media.

Judging everyone who likes XYZ candidate.

But how can we avoid this?

How can we stay in that zone where our temptations ARE manageable?

Just flip it around!

If we are humble.

If we are always watching.

If we are always praying.

Then we will not be tempted more than we can bear.

We turn to Jesus with full purpose and with pure love.

Jesus is the answer.

We can watch for the temptation to arise and then pray for power from God to overcome it.

Jesus Himself was tempted while He was here on the earth.

And when we pray for His strength to be with us, we can have His power to overcome temptations just like He did.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Resist the temptation first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.