It’s a lie that Satan loves to tell. Probably one of his favorites.

I find this lie creeping up in my life in lots of different ways.

“You haven’t reached out to one of your ministering sisters yet?! It’s too awkward and embarrassing to reach out now.”

“You already forgot to say your prayers today? Just go to bed and don’t worry about it tonight then.”

“You haven’t been fulfilling that part of your calling yet? It’s too late to start doing that now.”

It’s so easy to believe this lie that we are “too late”.

But… too late for what?!

There’s no such thing.

Actually, there’s quite literally no such thing.

“The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances of the house of God”. D&C 138:58

You could leave this life here on earth, and there are STILL opportunities to change, to become more Christlike, to accept ordinances done on your behalf, and to keep covenants.

Death isn’t even the finish line.

I personally believe that we will get opportunities to repent and change until our truest and most sincere desires are revealed, and that they match up with our actions.

But no matter what it looks like in the next life, we can still change. We can still learn and grow.

Not to DELAY repentance, since that is never awesome for softening a heart and molding desires.

But not being worried that we have to figure it all out in this life.

We’ve got time. We’ve got a lot of time, in fact.

And it will never ever ever be too late to repent in the ways we want.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Never too late first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Someone took a full body picture of me this week and when I looked at it, I thought, woah, I’m starting to really look different.

Bodies are so interesting from an earthly perspective, because there is so much pressure, especially for women, to constantly be losing weight, “getting your body back”, or fitting into old jeans or dresses.

But from an eternal perspective, bodies take on a whole new meaning.

We agreed to come to earth, to deal with the terrible trials and heartaches we knew we would face, all to get a body (and everything that accompanies obtaining a body).

And those spirits who chose Lucifer’s plan instead?

Their PUNISHMENT was to never receive a body.

Your skin, your heart, your bones, your muscles, your blood…

Your body is one of the biggest blessings and gifts you’ve been given.

And when we have to leave this life and are separated from our bodies again?

I think we’ll miss them.

Until:

“Their sleeping dust was to be restored unto its perfect frame, bone to his bone, and the sinews and the flesh upon them, the spirit and the body to be united never again to be divided, that they might receive a fulness of joy.” D&C 138:17

Being reunited with our beautiful bodies will allow us to receive a fullness of joy.

Sure, bodies aren’t always totally awesome.

Mine actually is causing me a lot of grief, pain, and issues right now, while I simultaneously feel gratitude for sustaining new life.

And our bodies will be “perfected” when we are reunited with them again.

But what our bodies look like or what size we wear is so far from the point in the eternal scheme of things.

What our bodies do, what our bodies allow us to experience, from emotions, to service, to fun, to breathing, to learning, to worship, and everything between…

Getting the opportunity to do these things in a body, created by God, allows us to experience joy here on earth, and obtain a fullness of joy in the world to come.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Bodies, baby bumps, and blessings first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Joseph F. Smith actually saw this righteous assembly in a vision.

Who did he literally see there, being taught by the Savior?

President Smith mentions our Father Adam first. And then…

“Our glorious Mother Eve, with many of her faithful daughters who had lived through the ages and worshiped the true and living God.” D&C 138:39

Our Mother Eve and her faithful daughters from throughout the ages.

Mostly nameless.

Not recognizable to a current prophet looking in.

We don’t know most of their stories.

Not often recorded in the scriptures.

That’s the fate that women have faced for centuries.

But we can’t deny that faithful and righteous women are represented in heaven, right alongside Isaiah and Malachi and Noah.

“These the Lord taught, and gave them power to come forth, after his resurrection from the dead, to enter into his Father’s kingdom, there to be crowned with immortality and eternal life,

“And continue thenceforth their labor as had been promised by the Lord, and be partakers of all blessings which were held in reserve for them that love him.” D&C 138:51-52

Our names don’t have to be known in order to receive immortality and eternal life.

Our stories don’t have to be told in order to receive all the blessings held in store for those who love the Lord.

Life on earth is messy.

(Although I can’t deny how grateful I am to be a woman alive at a time when I feel blessed with so many more opportunities than previous generations.)

But heaven?

It’s filled with women and men assembled together, side by side, with their focuses on the Savior.

Artwork: “Faithful Women” by Amber Eldredge

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Women in heaven first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Here’s a thought that’s been on my mind:

We know that we are going to be judged by our works.

And I hear people talking about this idea all the time:

That they feel like they are drowning because they just can’t seem to be consistent with their scripture study or prayer habits.

So if we are going to be judged by our works, that puts a lot of pressure on us when we feel like we are constantly falling short in the things we are able to do.

But here’s what we learn in D&C 137:9.

“For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.”

Did you hear that last part? Yes, we are judged according to our works, but it is “according to the desire of their hearts”.

To me, this isn’t an excuse, but instead a beautiful showing of mercy.

How many times have I been stopped from going to welcome a new member at church by a kid who needed me immediately?

I missed out on some good works, but what was the desire of my heart?

Or how many times have I been trying to read my scriptures as my eyes keep closing after a long day?

I missed out on some good works, but what was the desire of my heart?

God sees and understands EVERYTHING.

He isn’t keeping track of your daily scripture study as tick marks for or against you.

He has just asked you to come closer to His Son, Jesus Christ, and He is happy to see any good works you choose to do to bring you closer.

And He also completely understands the desires of your heart when you fall short of what you wanted to do.

He sees both. The actions, and the desires.

How merciful is our God!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Works and desires first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

One of the most common “confessions” I hear from people goes something like this:

“I just can’t stay focused while I’m reading! My mind goes everywhere!”

First, I totally understand what you are saying, and if you think my mind never wanders to my grocery list or laundry pile, you would be completely incorrect.

I’ve got lots of tips I’ve shared about reading comprehension tips like taking notes, giving a purpose to scripture study, and being in a good physical environment.

But also…

Letting your mind wander more might be exactly what you need to make your scripture study better.

Joseph F. Smith let his mind wander.

He was reading the scriptures.

And then he got caught up in thinking about how good God is.

And then he started thinking about some other scriptures and decided to turn there and read them.

And then he let his mind wander more on that topic.

And THEN he received one of the greatest revelations of the 20th century.

For me, my scripture study looks like me reading the scriptures only about 50% of the time.

The other time is a mix of writing notes…

And a mix of me just staring and thinking.

I intentionally let my mind wander when it wants to (as long as we are at least staying somewhat gospel-related or uplifting).

I’m thinking about that Sunday School lesson where the teacher told us that story about this principle here in the scripture.

Or I’m pretending I’m teaching a class about this scripture and I’m just getting on my soap box in my head and talking about it.

Or I’m thinking about other scriptures or scripture stories this reminds me of.

Or I’m wondering what that sentence really means and just letting my mind play around with some options.

Or I’m thinking about my friend, and realizing that this scripture gives me a bit of clarity on how to help her out more.

Obviously, off-topic mind wandering isn’t usually super helpful, and there are tools to help there.

But forcing our minds to only stay focused on only reading might be keeping us from the wandering and the pondering that could lead to marvelous revelation!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post In praise of mind wandering! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.