As I rushed to get ready one morning, everything piled together in my mind.

The list of everything I had to do. The emotions people around me were feeling. The feeling that I would not make it through the day.

This scripture that we’ve been studying this week came to my mind:

“And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs”. (Mosiah 24:14)

⁣I decided that morning to test it.

I knew I still needed to face my problems that day.

But could He really take the FEELING of the burden away without actually solving any of my problems?

I closed my eyes and pictured myself carrying the burdens that seemed to be weighing me down.

And I pictured myself waking humbly up to my Savior…

And setting it all down at His feet.

I said, “I know everything I need to do and manage and handle today.

“But I’m going to leave the feeling of being burdened at your feet.”

I pictured myself walking away, and I took a deep breath.

I felt lighter.

Like, literally, I felt like an actual physical load had been taken off my back.

I said a prayer of gratitude and went on with my day.

My list didn’t change that day, but I was SHOCKED at the miracles that kept piling up.

Like, I said I was going to test this theory with my Savior, and it’s like He was saying “Prove me herewith”.

I can’t list or share all the miracles, but I’ll just say that ONE of them was my ministering sister texting me and telling me that she had “randomly” ordered pizza to be delivered to my home that night.

I floated through that difficult day.

Jesus really means what He says.

If we, who are heavy laden, come to Jesus and really set the weighty, overwhelming feelings down at His feet, He will give us rest.

Not rest in the way you may think or want.

(I’m still hoping I can find time to take a nap in the next couple days, but it’s not looking hopeful…)

But that rest for the soul was all that I really needed.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post He truly gives rest first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

There were two different groups of people.

Both oppressed by the Lamanites.

Both wanting to escape to Zarahemla.

The first group, led by Limhi, thought about how they were going to escape.

They brainstormed ideas, listened to Gideon, and came up with a plan.

Their result?

Limhi’s men gave strong wine to the Lamanite guards and escaped while they were in a drunken sleep.

It worked!

The second group was led by Alma.

They prayed for a long time for relief, and finally got an answer:

“Thou shalt go before this people, and I will go with thee and deliver this people out of bondage.” (Mosiah 24:17)

Not knowing exactly what was going to happen, the people packed their belongings and waited with faith.

Miraculously, the Lamanite guards were in a deep sleep, and everyone escaped!

The Lord answers the prayers of His people.

But He answers them in different ways, in different situations, and in different times.

While Limhi had to come up with ideas, talk with others, and execute the plan…

Alma and his people were just waiting in faith, acting on directions they didn’t quite understand yet.

But guess what was the same with both groups?

The result!

They both were freed from bondage because they relied on the Lord.

“Every one of our paths is different.” – Reyna Aburto

No matter the path the Lord takes, He will provide a way to make miracles happen.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Two groups, two paths first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

There are seven blind mice who each try to figure out what the large object in front of them is. ⁣

One feels the foot and thinks it’s a pillar.

Another one feels the trunk and thinks it’s a snake.

And so on. . .

They all are accurate in their assessment of what they physically feel, and draw completely reasonable conclusions. ⁣

But they are all wrong. ⁣

It’s an elephant. ⁣

The Lamanites made a reasonable, but very incorrect, assumption that the people who kidnapped some of their women were the people of Limhi they kept clashing with next door.

“They were angry with the people of Limhi, for they thought it was the people of Limhi.” (Mosiah 20:6)

But they were wrong. ⁣

This is an essential lesson to learn here on earth: ⁣

While we do our best to draw accurate conclusions each day, there are many times when we are very wrong. ⁣

Your ministering sister who didn’t reach out to you when you were clearly struggling, is dealing with brutal anxiety.

Your bishop who completely ignored you when you obviously needed help, had just received some concerning personal news.

Your friend who didn’t respond to your text, saw your message but then got interrupted by her kids and honestly forgot to reply.

We do our best to create the truth of what’s happening around us, but at the end of the day, we are often wrong in our assumptions of other people. ⁣

And other people are wrong about us. ⁣

So what do we do about this?

I think happiness and peace are found in letting go of the frustrating stories we make up when we don’t actually know the whole truth. ⁣

Sometimes I like to come up with my own backstories in my mind that completely and reasonably explain what someone did.

But most of the time, I’ve learned to just give it to God.

I’m naturally going to feel frustrated, confused, let down, forgotten, annoyed. . .

But I can quickly return to happiness and peace when I let that anger go and humble myself before Jesus Christ, the only One who knows exactly what everyone is going through.

Humility, surrendering it to God, and finding love instead.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Seven Blind Mice first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Then repented?

And then fallen out of the habit yet again?

I certainly have.

I start to feel pretty frustrated.

But I noticed that after Alma had just finished teaching all of the people what it meant to be a member of Christ’s church by mourning with those who mourn, taking Jesus’ name upon them, keeping the commandments, and being baptized, this is what the people did and said:

“. . .they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts.” (Mosiah 18:11)

I can pretty much guarantee that while these people were amazing, they weren’t perfect.

I’m sure they didn’t hear Alma preach and immediately keep every commandment with exactness afterward.

They were human, with human tendencies.

But do you know what they got right?

They had a perfect DESIRE!

They DESIRED to be baptized.

They DESIRED to make covenants.

They DESIRED to serve the people around them.

So even when we aren’t perfect with prayer (or whatever your habitual sin may be)…

Do we desire to pray every day?

Do we keep trying every single time we forget or mess up?

Do we sincerely want to do better?

Do we desire to commune with God more and more?

If we have a good desire to be righteous, then we are on the right track.

“We are going to be blessed for our desire to do good, even as we actually strive to be so.” – Jeffrey R. Holland

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Messing up again  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Other prophets converted entire cities and softened the hardest hearts. ⁣

But that wasn’t Abinadi’s mission.

His was to preach repentance to hardened hearts, convert young Alma who would be cast out, and die a brutal death. ⁣

We all have different missions here on earth. ⁣

Some will endure difficult financial situations.

Some will be saddled with mental illness.

Some will know the pain of losing loved ones prematurely.

But the thing that carries us through is our faith. ⁣

Abinadi figured out, at least by the time Noah was getting angry, that he would be sealing his words with his blood and that physical deliverance would not be his in this life. ⁣

And so, he was filled with that faith in God.

That peaceful faith that surpasses all reasoning.

That faith lasted even until the last moments as the flames surrounded him and he cried out:

“O God, receive my soul.” (Mosiah 17:19)

Do we have the faith in God to endure our personal missions? ⁣

We can’t compare them to other people’s because we’ve all been asked to endure different things.

But ultimately, our faith in God can help us endure our personal missions well.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Accepting the different paths first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Yeah, he was a lazy and wicked man.

But Abinadi had just spoken with clear power from God. ⁣

“King Noah was about to release him, for he feared his word; for he feared that the judgments of God would come upon him.” (Mosiah 17:11)

But his priests, the friends he had chosen to surround himself with, added pressure.

They found accusations against Abinadi.

They got angry. ⁣

And this brought Noah back into his prideful anger, leading Noah ordering Abinadi to be tortured and then burned to death. ⁣

We are all responsible for our own actions. ⁣

But the people we surround ourselves with can make a huge difference. ⁣

This is easy to see when a wayward child is influenced by a group of their peers. ⁣

But it’s a little harder to see in myself.

Who am I surrounded by?

Family members, friends, neighbors, coworkers…

But what about the other influences on my mind too?

Social media accounts, TV shows, podcasts, books…

How are they affecting me?

Am I being subtly nudged toward complaining, making fun, judging harshly, or doubting?

Is my support system supporting my most important goals in life? ⁣

I’m not just saying to only surround myself with “members of the Church”, but doing my best to ensure that the people I willingly interact with the most are kind and have good intentions, no matter their religious affiliation.

And I think the flip side is just as equally worth considering—

Am I being a righteous support system to others – encouraging and loving and accepting and uplifting the best that I can?⁣

“Find good friends. Be good friends. Support one another wherever you are. Stand with holy people.” – Gary E. Stevenson 

We know we are in control of our own actions. ⁣

But Noah’s choices of friends tipped the scale in a dire direction.

And a kind, supportive, loving friend can make all the difference.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Choose your friends wisely  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“If ye teach the law of Moses why do ye not keep it?” (Mosiah 12:29)

They knew the scriptures.

They knew the commandments. ⁣

But they were still lazy and rude and evil. ⁣

Their knowledge didn’t change them. ⁣

Abinadi had the same knowledge of the scriptures and the law. ⁣

But he used that knowledge to open a channel of communication with the Lord, receive the personal revelation that he needed to preach repentance (twice!), and then followed through on the promptings. ⁣

Our knowledge can’t save us. ⁣

Knowing the scripture stories won’t save us. ⁣

Knowing the doctrine won’t save us. ⁣

Our actions will. ⁣

Studying the scriptures and then using that knowledge to change our actions. ⁣

Learning and connecting with the doctrine and then using that to propel us to become more Christlike. ⁣

King Noah, his priests, and Abinadi all had the same knowledge. ⁣

But their hearts were in completely different states.

“In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the gospel of Jesus Christ challenges us to become something.” – Dallin H. Oaks

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Knowing versus acting first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“You’ve got a bad habit, and you’ll never overcome it.”

“Life will always be this overwhelming, so you should stay frustrated all the time.”

“Life is going okay even though you stopped keeping the commandments, so you’ll be fine in the long run.”

In fact, King Noah’s wicked priests made fun of Abinadi for telling them to repent by echoing this same message:

“And behold, we are strong, we shall not come into bondage, or be taken captive by our enemies; yea, and thou hast prospered in the land, and thou shalt also prosper.” (Mosiah 12:15)

They haven’t been taken into bondage yet, so OF COURSE that means they will never be taken into bondage!

They had been prospering just fine, so OF COURSE they are going to continue to prosper!

But Jesus?

He’s all about change.

If you’ve got a bad habit, Jesus wants to help you overcome it.

If you are feeling overwhelmed, Jesus wants to offer you peace and strength to endure.

If you think you don’t need the gospel of Jesus Christ, Jesus invites you to see what you are missing out on.

Nothing ever stays the same….

And that is actually the best news ever.

The post Nothing stays the same first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Zeniff’s people had to fight against the Lamanites.⁣

Zeniff helped his people become good, righteous, and industrious. ⁣

And still, the Lamanites came. ⁣

He armed them with all sorts of weapons. ⁣

And still, people died. ⁣

And each day, on large and small scales, we are facing battles. ⁣

No matter how righteous we are. ⁣

No matter how much we have prepared and defend ourselves. ⁣

Real damage is done to our lives from these battles of all sizes that we are up against. ⁣

The ultimate difference between the wicked Lamanites and the righteous people of Zeniff?⁣

“God did hear our cries and did answer our prayers; and we did go forth in his might”. (Mosiah 9:18)

The people of Zeniff went forth with God’s might. ⁣

Both groups experienced the battle. ⁣

But only one had God’s might and power with them. ⁣

I find this so comforting when going through all of my personal battles, both physical and emotional. ⁣

I have God on my side. ⁣

To strengthen me.

To make the damage not quite as bad as it could be.

To help me prepare even more. ⁣

The trials are still there, but I don’t ever want to face them without the calm and peace that come from going forth with the Lord’s might.

“We are not and never need be alone. We can press forward in our daily lives with heavenly help.” — David A. Bednar

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Battling with the Lord’s might  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

And then some good news comes:

The people from Zarahemla have arrived to save you!

Can you imagine the joy?

Your “saviors” had come!

The miracle you had been praying for had arrived!

This is exactly what King Limhi’s people experienced.

But King Limhi wanted to correct his people.

He taught them that the people from Zarahelma, while helpful, were not their literal saviors.

He reminded them where their actual trust should be:

“Therefore, lift up your heads, and rejoice, and put your trust in God.” (Mosiah 7:19)

When we trust in earthly results, we will miss out on the true joy that comes from focusing on the Savior.

If we are just waiting to feel joy until a rescue party comes from Zarahemla

Or waiting for a difficult trial to end

Our waiting for our health to change

Or waiting for that event

Or waiting for our kid to master potty training…

Then we are putting our trust in the result a little bit higher than our trust in God.

The people from Zarahemla were not the ones who saved Limhi’s people—

God saved them.

We don’t have to wait for the solution before we display our ultimate trust in God, and realize that a higher happiness and peace can be experienced right now.

Our joy and happiness can be found now when we put our trust in God!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Jesus is the true Savior first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.