“I really don’t want to go to church today.”⁣

“I should be kinder to my family members. I need to get my temper under control so there can be more peace at home.”⁣

All of these are little temptations we face each day. ⁣

And guess who faces temptation?⁣

ALL OF US. ⁣

I’ve noticed a pattern in other people that I also totally fall into:

We are pretty comfortable admitting mistakes we’ve already made.

Temptations we’ve faced in the past and how we’ve overcome.

But we have a hard time talking about our current temptations!

Our actual desires to do things wrong. ⁣

But we all are tempted.

In fact, often our “mistakes” or “weaknesses” come as a result of temptations we face.

Totally normal.

Satan doesn’t just stop tempting us because we’ve gotten “good enough”.

He’ll always put things in our path to try to make us lose focus, and sometimes, they work very well. ⁣

And I LOVE that Paul reminds us that we don’t have to defeat these temptations on our own. ⁣

“For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15)

We don’t have to get the desire to read scriptures back BEFORE we call on Christ to get blessings. ⁣

Christ was tempted, too!⁣

He knows EXACTLY how it feels to have such strong desires to do things contrary to what we may know better. ⁣

And He can help us in those moments of temptation. ⁣

“Help! I’ve stopped even wanting to read my scriptures! Can you help me get that desire back?”⁣

That can be a little scary to admit sometimes.

Don’t we feel like we want to hide any unrighteous desires from God?⁣

But He knows them all.

He wants to help us. ⁣

And our Savior can do EXACTLY that.

He can help us in the moments that our desires are not what they should be.

He can help succor us in our temptations, if we let him and humble ourselves to ask for that help.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Tempted like Jesus first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“You learn obedience during the hardest times in your life.”

I can think of a time when my husband and I were struggling financially, and I couldn’t find a job anywhere.

He was in school, and I wasn’t getting hired anywhere in a timely manner.

That time of suffering refined me!

I immersed myself in the gospel and learned how to obey with exactness.

(And we saw huge blessings from tithing.)

But I can also think of another time when I was dealing with some tough emotional trials, and I let go of many of my good, spiritual habits.

I felt that I had too much going on and didn’t spend time growing closer to the Lord.

Paul taught:

“Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered.” (Hebrews 5:8)

Obedience can be learned through suffering.

But it comes down to a choice:

Will we let suffering push us to cling to our obedience and the Lord?

Or will we let it be an excuse to turn away from obedience?

I’ve done it both ways.

And the light that came into my life when I continued to turn to obedience during tough times was so, so powerful!

I have fond memories of that really tough financial time.

I learned that focusing on Jesus Christ and obeying every command brought me peace during an uncertain time.

Suffering can bring us closer to the Lord—

If we let it.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Does suffering bring you closer to the Lord?  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I LOVE reading.

When people ask me what book I’ve read recently and I say that I haven’t really read anything, I usually say:

“I don’t have any time to read.”

But what I really mean is, “I wouldn’t feel productive if I just sat down and read when I could be doing other things. That would be lazy of me.”⁣

About a month ago, I had some time without kids, and I was headed downstairs to work or clean or organize something.

But when I passed my bedroom, I saw the stack of books sitting on my bedside table that I hadn’t touched.

And I saw my nice cozy bed. ⁣

And I just decided that I would go lie down in bed and read. ⁣

And I did.

And when the kids were back awake and home from school, I felt refreshed and ready to play all afternoon. ⁣

I feel like I keep having to relearn this lesson:

Avoiding being slothful does NOT mean being “productive” all the time. ⁣

We can relax.

We can do things we enjoy just because we enjoy them.

We can leave the dishes in the sink a little longer and not feel any guilt.

We can follow our passions. ⁣

We can avoid being slothful, and give ourselves time to find joy in life. ⁣

“That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Hebrews 6:12)

Paul gives the counsel to use our FAITH and PATIENCE. ⁣

Patience and slothfulness might outwardly look pretty similar.

They both look like a lot of waiting. ⁣

But, as with most things, it’s the inside intent that counts. ⁣

Are we wasting our precious time away?

OR are we allowing ourselves to slow down and enjoy life?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Am I being slothful or patient? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

My roommate asked this question as we left Relief Society one Sunday when I was in college.

I was embarrassed because I hadn’t felt or noticed the Spirit at all!

In fact, I had kind of zoned out the entire lesson.

Has something like this ever happened to you?

Other people are feeling the Spirit, and you aren’t noticing anything special.

Or maybe you’ve been in the opposite position—

Maybe you felt the Spirit during a talk, but the person sitting next to you didn’t.

Or you sent a talk to someone hoping they’d get the same feeling you did, and there’s nothing.

How can this happen?

Paul teaches us the answer:

“For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.” (Hebrews 4:2)

We need to be engaged with sincere faith to feel the Spirit!

If we aren’t “spiritually engaged” with our faith, we can’t learn what others learn, even when we listen to the same lessons, podcasts, or talks.

“We cannot grow someone else’s faith or rely solely on others to bolster our own.” Elder Dale G. Renlund

“The word” of truth itself doesn’t hold any ability to pierce our heart.

It’s the Spirit who is ready to testify, impress, or witness to our individual hearts in exactly the way that we need it, and to the exact capacity that we are prepared for.

And just to be clear, we can’t demand the Spirit to do anything.

Sometimes the faith and intent is there, but God knows we need patience or a new perspective or… whatever is aligned with His perfect will.

But besides that caveat, I find this so empowering.

I don’t have to wait for the Spirit to try and break through randomly.

I can bring my own engaged, sincere faith to the table.

During scripture study.

On Sundays.

During temple worship.

In a Primary lesson.

I can use my faith in Jesus Christ to “profit” more from the word of God.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Were we in the same lesson?! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.