Ever heard or seen a variation of that comment anywhere before?⁣

(Orrrrr maybe even thought something like that before?⁣)

In 2015, Elder Christofferson gave one of those General Conference talks that has just stuck in my mind, titled: “Why the Church”.

Elder Christofferson spends his entire talk outlining why we actually are organized into and asked to attend a church. ⁣

Spirituality is, of course, a personal journey. ⁣

But there are unique purposes for an organized church.⁣

He said, among many things: ⁣

“In the Church we not only learn divine doctrine; we also experience its application.”⁣

This is what I’ve learned to love about church the most, especially recently. ⁣

We teach each other with new perspectives in church, and we practice applying what “loving your neighbor” and service really look like.

In Doctrine and Covenants 43:8, the Lord counsels members of the church: ⁣

“That when ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye may know how to act and direct my church, how to act upon the points of my law and commandments, which I have given.”⁣

We need to interact with and edify people who are lacking. ⁣

Someone at church needs to see you, being exactly who you are. ⁣

They need to hear that comment you’ll make, or just see you showing up after they know you had a tough week. ⁣

So why the church? ⁣

There are many beautiful answers to this question (seriously, just go listen to Elder Christofferson’s talk, because obviously the Sacrament is THE main reason). ⁣

But today, I’m loving the answer that we need each other.

Not the perfect versions of ourselves that we think we need to become first. ⁣

But we need each other, exactly as we are. ⁣

Messy, unsure, overwhelmed, trying our best, super tired, feeling inadequate…⁣

We can show up exactly as we are, and still instruct and edify others. And we need to be instructed and edified by other people, no matter who they are.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Why go to church? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Living the gospel can be fun and simple.

And you really can study a scripture in just a minute each day.

I totally stand behind this!

But also…

This gospel is everything.

It is big.

It can’t be entirely summed up into little tips and tricks.

It is so, so important.

The Lord taught the Saints the message they were to deliver to the whole world.

“Treasure these things up in your hearts, and let the solemnities of eternity rest upon your minds. Be sober. Keep all my commandments.” (D&C 43:34-35)

We are asked to ponder the eternities and treasure eternal truths in our hearts.

This is serious.

This “Plan of Salvation” that we draw cute pictures and diagrams of is actually intense and powerful.

It is everything.

It can be difficult to find time to just ponder about this, though.

The Lord invites us to let these solemn things rest in our minds.

It takes so much effort to sit still and let my mind ponder on the eternities.

But when I do this, I am centered on Jesus Christ and am reminded why I’m coming up with all those little tips and tricks in the first place.

So give it a try today:

Set some time aside and just think, as seriously and as solemnly as you can, about the big picture of it all.

And see what the Spirit teaches you.

“In a world that increasingly demands more of our time, it is essential that we take time to ponder in our homes, so that we may understand divine doctrine and its principles.” – Walter F. Gonzalez

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post  No fun tips and tricks today  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I want my baby to stop crying and go back to sleep. ⁣

I want someone else to clean up when I’m exhausted but people are coming over soon. ⁣

I want someone to tell me how to solve my problem. ⁣

But what Christ really does, is He almost always enables me to get things done. ⁣

I am given extra strength. Extra willpower. Extra grit. Extra patience. Extra faith. ⁣

When I lean on Christ, He doesn’t take over and do my work for me. ⁣

Instead, when I lean on Him, I do even more work than I could do on my own. ⁣

Sometimes, I literally feel that extra strength boosting me forward when I didn’t think I had anything in me. ⁣

My baby still cries, but I feel more calm about it and am given perspective that this is just a phase. ⁣

I feel the energy to clean even when I’m exhausted, but I also start to realize that friends don’t need to see a spotless home when they come over. ⁣

I feel a little prompting for how I might solve my problem, and as I act, the solution is slowly lit up before me. ⁣

He wants me to solve my problems because He wants me to grow. ⁣

But He’s not going to expect me to grow without giving me the power to grow with Him. ⁣

By myself, I am weak. I am flawed and mortal. ⁣

And with Him, I get a glimpse at who I can become. ⁣

Someone who is still surrounded by the trials and distractions and annoyances and frustrations. ⁣

But someone who is, through Christ, able to get the things done that matter most, and to let the other things slide out of my zone of worry. ⁣

Christ is an enabler, in the best way possible.

“That you may be enabled to keep my laws”. (D&C 44:5)

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post He’s an enabler first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

In these classes, we would learn different strategies and theories for keeping kids’ attention.

We’d also talk about how to handle behavioral issues.

However, when I stepped into a fifth-grade classroom for my student teaching…

I realized I still had a lot to learn about managing a group of kids!

I felt like I had forgotten everything.

I wanted to go back to my professors and ask for their advice, but that wasn’t an option.

I just needed to give it a try and figure it out.

And after a few weeks…

Things started to click!

I grew my knowledge exponentially by just giving things a try.

The Lord taught the Saints, who had all officially been Church members for less than a year, that:

“He that receiveth my law and doeth it, the same is my disciple.” (D&C 41:5)

Yes, these Saints needed to prepare to receive the law.

But they also needed to be ready to just do it.

Can you imagine if all those new converts waited until they felt completely ready before serving missions?

Certainly, they needed to learn gospel truths.

But they also needed to just get to work.

How do we get more faith?

By doing things that require a lot of faith.

The older I get, the more I realize I don’t usually feel “totally qualified” to do the things I’m doing.

But that’s kind of the fun of it!

We get to learn, figure things out, and grow as we just try.

Learning gospel truths is so important.

But when we pair that learning with just getting out there and doing good stuff, I think we can be unstoppable.

“We should not expect to understand everything before we act.” – Elder Uchtdorf

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Managing kids first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.