When not all of my questions or requests are actually answered?⁣

And…⁣

How am I supposed to make my prayers more about aligning with God’s will…

Instead of just listing off my thanks and requests?⁣

2 tricky questions with I think the same exact answer.

The Lord teaches pretty succinctly in D&C 46:30:⁣

“He that asketh in the Spirit asketh according to the will of God; wherefore it is done even as he asketh.”⁣

The Lord is teaching specifically about requesting more spiritual gifts, but I think this applies perfectly to any request we have of Him. ⁣

The answer to both of my questions is the presence of the Spirit. ⁣

When I have the Spirit with me as I pray, I know what to pray for. ⁣

I had a very powerful moment in my life where I went to pray for someone’s healing, but I suddenly knew NOT to pray for healing, and to pray for comfort of loved ones instead. ⁣

And I had a very powerful moment in my life where I went to pray to accept the outcome, no matter what it was, but I suddenly knew that I SHOULD pray and request healing. ⁣

It’s hard to explain. ⁣

It’s those quiet whisperings of the Spirit that lead me toward asking the right question, and confirming in my heart that I am knocking on the right door. ⁣

But when I’m saying prayers without requesting the presence of the Spirit, or not living worthily to invite His presence, then I end up asking questions that aren’t ready to be answered yet. ⁣

It all comes back to the Sacrament for me. ⁣

That is such a serious covenant that I renew each week. ⁣

I always want His Spirit to be with me. ⁣

And so I try to always remember Him and keep His commandments. ⁣

My prayers have night-and-day differences when I have the Spirit with me.

And one of the biggest blessings is that I know what to pray for. ⁣

My will starts to be swallowed up in the Father’s will. ⁣

And the spiritual gifts that I request and seek after are given to me as I work hard to obtain them. ⁣

I knock, and it’s opened.

Because I have the Spirit with me to let me know I’m at the right door.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Am I knocking at the right door? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

The Lord had called him to be Joseph Smith’s new scribe, writing down all of his revelations.

John happily accepted this assignment!

But then the Lord called John to also take over as the Church historian.

This was going to be different.

Instead of John just writing down what the prophet dictated to him, John was now being asked to come up with his own words.

John told Joseph he didn’t want to take on the role of historian.

But… he also told Joseph to pray about it.

If the Lord told Joseph again that John needed to accept this calling, he would.

Doctrine and Covenants section 47 was the answer that Joseph received as he took it to the Lord again.

And the answer was: “Behold, it is expedient in me that my servant John should write and keep a regular history . . . it shall be given him, inasmuch as he is faithful, by the Comforter, to write these things.” (D&C 47:1, 4)

John accepted the calling and faithfully recorded the Church history.

But he wasn’t alone in this endeavor.

The Comforter, the Spirit, was promised to help John write the history as long as he had faith.

Just like John did, we can cling to the promise that the Lord’s Spirit will be with us as we choose to willingly accept where we are called to serve.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post I would rather not  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“I don’t know if I have any of those?”⁣

Elder Bruce R. McConkie said this many years ago, and it’s an idea that I heard taught recently that really resonated with me. ⁣

“Spiritual gifts are endless in number and infinite in variety”. ⁣

In other words, the approximately 13 gifts listed in Section 46 do not begin to even scratch the surface of actual spiritual gifts.⁣

So… how are we supposed to know what our spiritual gifts are if we don’t even know what all of the options are?⁣

Here is something I’ve noticed. ⁣

When I am making a concerted effort to live according to the gospel principles, when I’m showing love, and patience, and kindness, when I’m keeping my covenants and pondering on Christ…⁣

Then I feel like there are certain things that I am really good at. ⁣

In other words: When I feel the Spirit in my life, I am more aware of my spiritual gifts. ⁣

Gifts that are given to me and enhanced by the Spirit. ⁣

So if you are still feeling lost about what spiritual gifts you could possibly possess, here are some questions. ⁣

When you are praying and immersing yourself in the scriptures, and you KNOW that you have the Spirit with you, what do you feel like you are really good at doing?⁣

Maybe you are really good at crying when you feel the Spirit. ⁣

Maybe you are really good at noticing what your family member needs and wanting to serve them. ⁣

Maybe you are really good at sending texts to people who need them. ⁣

Maybe you are really good at preparing and teaching a lesson to a primary class. ⁣

Maybe you are really good at feeling calm.⁣

Maybe you are really good at being a mediator in disputes or disagreements. ⁣

Maybe you are really good at understanding concepts that are really complicated but then explaining them in simple ways. ⁣

There are INFINITE possibilities. ⁣

When you are really feeling the Spirit, what are you really good at doing? Those are your spiritual gifts. ⁣

What is one of YOUR spiritual gifts? I’d love to hear!

“For all have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts, and to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God.” (D&C 46:11)

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Infinite possibilities first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

And I lost.

Obviously, I was disappointed.

I spent some time avoiding the girl who had won.

It felt awkward.

Finally, I thought, “I really should just go congratulate her.”

I found her and told her I was happy for her.

I didn’t know how she would react, but I was so pleasantly surprised.

She hugged me and said she was sad we couldn’t both win.

This disarmed me from my awkwardness.

I told her that I knew she would be great in this position and that I was excited to support her.

I felt so good inside!

It felt great to transition from feeling jealous and inadequate to cheering her on in her strengths.

The Lord teaches: “To some is given one, and to some is given another, that all may be profited thereby.” (D&C 46:12)

Sometimes, it’s easy to see that all of our different gifts are complementary and bless other people’s lives.

I’m going to easily compliment the person who bakes amazing cookies, because I don’t enjoy baking.

But do we also show gratitude, love, and support for the people who have very similar gifts to ours?

It was harder for me to acknowledge my senior class president because she had a very similar skill set to mine.

But I have learned that building people up is much more fun than competing with them.

Let’s use our gifts to help everyone around us.

And let’s cheer other people on when they use their gifts, too!

In this way, we all can be profited thereby.

“As we lift others, we rise a little higher ourselves.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Competing gifts first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.