At dinner time, the boys with the longer reach were able to grab the most food. ⁣

But the family realized that this was bringing a lot of contention. ⁣

Greed from the older boys, and resentment from the younger boys. ⁣

And so they counseled together and came up with a solution:⁣

Each boy had to keep at least one foot on the floor when they reached for more food. ⁣

This led to a fun way to eliminate contention. ⁣

President Nelson (who shared a version of the above story) counseled:⁣

“My concern is that contention is becoming accepted as a way of life. From what we see and hear in the media, the classroom, and the workplace, all are now infected to some degree with contention.”⁣

He said that in… 1989. ⁣

I think it’s powerful to notice two things:⁣

First, contention is literally from the devil. ⁣

He will try anything to get us to avoid the first two great commandments – to love God, and to love others. ⁣

But the second lesson is much more hopeful:⁣

Rooting out contention starts at home. ⁣

The parents of the boys at the table didn’t let the contention stay. They didn’t throw up their hands and say, “Boys will be boys!”⁣

They modeled and encouraged their sons to find a way to solve the problem in unity, while getting rid of contention. ⁣

I believe fully and completely that we can stand up for the things we believe in, point out injustice, discuss various opinions, and be powerful forces for good, without needing any contention. ⁣

And how did our Savior teach the people to turn away from this evil attitude?⁣

“For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.” (3 Nephi 11:29)

Of course, the answer is to turn to Jesus Christ. ⁣

He is the one who shows us the true worth of others, who wants us to feel nothing but love for the people we interact with every day. ⁣

But we have to try – we have to want it.

We have to ask our Savior to remove all contention from our hearts. And then we can receive.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The dinner problem  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“Search, ponder, and pray.”

I’ll admit that the first verb, “SEARCH”, is sometimes the trickiest for me.

Mormon, the author and compiler of 3 Nephi, counsels:

“And now, whoso readeth, let him understand; he that hath the scriptures, let him search them.” (3 Nephi 10:14)

But what does it mean to search the scriptures?⁣

When I’m preparing a church lesson, I often search through the scriptures for something related to my topic.

But I’ve discovered that there are other ways to search the scriptures, too.

I can search for manifestations of God’s love.

I can search for personal revelation.

I can search for calm.

For motivation.

For hope.

For peace.

Reading the scriptures just to cross them off my list is a good first step to creating a good relationship with them.

But it is so powerful to feel the freedom and excitement of opening the scriptures with a question or intent in mind and then searching for an answer that I know and EXPECT will come!

“Just as a road map not read, the scriptures not searched are of little value to us in providing directions.” – L. Lionel Kendrick

What are some ways that you SEARCH the scriptures?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post SEARCH the scriptures first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

The hen who has carried, borne, labored, and delivered her little chicks. ⁣

The hen who has nourished her little chicks time and time again, and gathered them every time they scattered. ⁣

There is such love because there was such sacrifice. ⁣

Selfless service and total sacrifice produce the purest love that is possible. ⁣

This is why our Savior loves us with such tender devotion. Because He sacrificed everything for us.⁣

For me. ⁣

His body was broken for me, and His mental capacity was overwhelmed with the weight of my sins.

And because He did that, He loves me fully and completely, in a special bond that can’t quite compare.⁣

Except to a mother. ⁣

Elder Holland gave his iconic, “Behold Thy Mother” talk in 2015, a few years before I became a mother. I remember thinking, “Wow. I can’t even imagine that kind of love.”⁣

“No love in mortality comes closer to approximating the pure love of Jesus Christ than the selfless love a devoted mother has for her child.” – President Holland

I’m now a mom to three.

There is a lot of sacrifice in order to be a mother. My body has been broken, and healed, and broken, and healed. My mental capacities have been stretched to the limits. ⁣

And because of the sacrifice, there is great love. There is a special bond that comes from that ultimate service. ⁣

Of course anyone who sacrifices out of pure love can feel this bond, too.

But Christ Himself decided to compare His feelings of love to that of a mother.

“How oft have I gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and have nourished you.” (3 Nephi 10:4)

I think about the Motherly figures that He learned from, both in heaven and on earth. ⁣

It makes His comparison all the more powerful. ⁣

And so, when Christ calls to us, when He wants to gather us under His wings and give us nourishment, it isn’t out of duty or pity.⁣

It’s out of the pure love and devotion that can only come from a moment of total sacrifice.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The mother hen  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

It feels icky. ⁣

Jesus doesn’t want us to be caught in that position for a long time.

He doesn’t want our spirit at war with our body.

He knows what that feels like.

Instead, Jesus wants us to feel the peace that comes when our beliefs and actions are aligned to the best of our abilities.

But this icky position is where many of the Nephites were caught when the signs of Christ’s death came.

They cried, saying:

“⁣O that we had repented before this great and terrible day.” (3 Nephi 8:24) 

In other words, they wished they had changed sooner.

Prophets had warned them for years that death and destruction would happen if they didn’t repent.

And they just hadn’t made that change. . . yet.

Jesus always invites us to change for the better.

Not just for fun.

But because He wants us to avoid being in that spot where our spirit is at war with our body.

What is something you’ve felt uncomfortable with in your life recently?

We don’t have to fix every problem all at once.

And we don’t have to fix it overnight.

But He warns us over and over again about the spiritual dangers of just sitting in that spot where we know we can take a step forward, where He knows we are fully able to change, and yet we don’t.

Our Savior will lovingly stay by our side as we choose to make a small change for the better.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Change now  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.