And like honestly, I was a pretty good kid.

But I also realize that maybe I shouldn’t have participated in that prank, or I wonder why I felt I was justified in being rude to someone. ⁣

I can just totally see now that there was a disconnect in my integrity—⁣

My actions did not always line up with my beliefs. ⁣

And I didn’t even always realize it in the moment

When I read about Noah, he is spoken of so highly in the scriptures: ⁣

“Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations”. (Genesis 6:9)⁣

Perfect?! ⁣

Well, I’m a big fan of footnotes, and when I looked at the footnote attached to “perfect”, I noticed something:⁣

The Hebrew meaning could also translate to, “complete, whole, having integrity”. ⁣

Now THAT makes sense to me. ⁣

Noah must have been a man of great integrity. ⁣

When he said that he loved God, his actions aligned with making God a priority in his life. ⁣

When he said he would be obedient, he didn’t purposefully cut any corners. ⁣

When he said he would love and care for those around him, he didn’t make exceptions for anyone. ⁣

He was consistent in each area of his life to the best of his abilities.

This is what makes Noah such a great example and disciple of God.⁣

And it makes me want to consider:

How does my integrity measure up? ⁣

Not my perfection, but my degree of integrity?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Noah’s integrity  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

That is totally and completely. . .

Partially right.

The Lord said with the rainbow, He would “establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you.” (Genesis 9:9)

The rainbow symbolizes His covenant! 

All of the covenant.

This is the same covenant the Lord had already made with Enoch.

That their seed would multiply in righteousness and spread the gospel far and wide and that God would remember these people.

It’s the same covenant God later renewed with Abraham.

And it’s the same blessing we experience today. 

Yes, this covenant to Noah specifically mentions not flooding the earth again, but it’s important to remember there is another half to this.

We are still benefiting from and fulfilling this same covenant, this same promise with God, today!

Rainbows are a beautiful token of this covenant that God will remember and bless His people who remember Him.

“Just as in Noah’s time, we live in a day of prophetic promise and fulfillment.” – Paul E. Koelliker

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

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

I think the adversary is super good at helping us get caught up in false benchmarks. ⁣

“Ugh, once I can actually stay up with the Come, Follow Me schedule, I’ll be okay.”⁣

“I reach out to my ministering sisters once a month so I’m good.”⁣

“If he serves a mission and gets married in the temple, then he’ll be fine.”⁣

Building our own benchmarks. ⁣

Building our own tower, brick by brick. ⁣

While those are fine and worthy goals to have, those aren’t what save us or change us. ⁣

The people in Babel had their sights set on the wrong benchmark. ⁣

“Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven”. (Genesis 11:4)⁣

We need to get closer to heaven? Okay, let’s build a big building to get there, and everything will be fine. God will bless us then. ⁣

It’s relying too much on our outward appearance to judge our closeness to the Savior. ⁣

So… what are your benchmarks to know if you are actually coming closer to Christ?⁣

They probably don’t look too impressive from the outside. ⁣

Here are a few benchmarks that I’ve tried: ⁣

Benchmarks like… becoming slower and slower to anger. ⁣

Reacting with compassion when someone tells me a story instead of judgment. ⁣

Desiring more opportunities for service and honestly seeking them out. ⁣

Finding excuses to show love as often as possible. ⁣

Thinking about Jesus and His goodness often.

Meeting outward benchmarks will never save us, just like the Tower of Babel didn’t save the citizens of Babel.

It’s what’s on the inside that matters, and that’s a little bit more difficult to measure. But it’s worth putting the real effort there!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Building our own tower first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

The Lord noticed that when looking at these people, “every imagination of the thoughts of [their] heart was only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5) 

They had evil intentions behind their wicked actions. 

The Lord knows everyone’s intentions. 

This is sometimes great to remember.

Like when I intend to do something good, but the messiness of life or just plain forgetfulness seems to block me from doing it. 

I get credit for having good intentions! 

This is just a comforting thought. 

The Lord can kindly remind me that I’m doing better than I think I am when I’m trying my best but falling short. 

But on the opposite end, God also knows when we do things with bad intentions. 

He knows if I said a rude comment ignorantly or purposefully. 

He knows if I didn’t go to church because it was too much for me to handle or because it wasn’t a real priority in my heart. 

He knows.

Our actions matter! 

But the thing that only God knows is the intentions behind our actions, for better or worse.

This can comfort me. 

And this can motivate me. 

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

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