I had been asked to play a musical number for the Saturday evening session of our stake conference.

And I was SO NERVOUS.

I knew this hymn arrangement super well and it was completely memorized.

But I kept messing up!

Each time I played a wrong note, I would pull the music out and practice that part over and over.

And then I would completely butcher another part that I had always played perfectly.

I focused on each individual note so hard.

Day after day.

The stake conference was approaching and I was honestly embarrassed. I thought I had this piece memorized flawlessly, and yet here I was thinking about every single note and messing up in random spots.

As I sat down discouraged to practice one last time, a thought came to my mind:

“Invite the Spirit and play your testimony.”

I put the music away, closed my eyes, and started playing.

But this time, I tried not to think about any notes.

I just thought about the message and the spirit that I hoped to share as I played.

And I played it perfectly.

I realized later that I played it perfectly BECAUSE I had stopped worrying about all the details.

I had stopped harping on every single mistake that I made and making it a super big deal.

I just got to the core of why I love to play the piano— because it helps me bear my testimony of God and light and hope.

Isn’t this true in regular life, too?

When I try to follow all the rules perfectly and feel overwhelmed with guilt every time that I mess up, then I notice even more mistakes.

Things get even worse. Even messier. I can’t fix it all.

I need a good dose of that simple but powerful lesson Moses tried to teach the Israelites with a brass serpent:

“Every one that… looketh upon it, shall live.” (Numbers 21:8)

It’s too simple.

We just have to love Jesus and God and invite the Spirit to be with us.

That’s all.

And when we do those things with our whole souls, all the rest of the little details fall into place.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Messing up on the piano first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Sure, they complained about it.

But they still ate the miraculous manna from heaven. Every day.

“Manna” is usually compared to the “daily” gospel stuff we are asked to do.

Prayer. Scripture study. Pondering. Service.

(Cue the guilt.)

If we use this analogy, then technically, the Israelites WERE doing all those things each day.

But what was their attitude about it?

“There is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.” (Numbers 11:6)

They had completely lost their GRATITUDE for the daily miracles.

They interacted with God so consistently that they forgot to feel grateful for the interactions.

So are we forgetting how miraculous it is to have scriptures?

What a miracle it is that we even have access to these ancient texts?

What a miracle it is that we can be taught and guided by their words?

What a miracle it is that we are able to approach the God of all the universe in individual prayer?

Here’s what I’ve found:

When I remember what a miracle each of these daily touch points are, I can’t help but feel overwhelming gratitude.

And when I feel that gratitude, I am more likely to actually study my scriptures or say my prayers.

Gratitude is a beautiful motivation to interact with the divine each day.

I am grateful for all the ways I get to connect with heaven each day.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Gratitude for the manna first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

“I’m reading my scriptures each day, so why am I still struggling to be patient with my kids?”

“I followed that very specific prompting, so why did that friend start pulling away from me?”

I’ve thought these questions, and many more like them, at various points in my life.

Basically, they are all a form of:

If I’m being loyal to God, why aren’t the circumstances of my life awesome?

The Israelites were really good at looking at their outside circumstances.

And when they looked at what they had physically been through… boy, was there a lot to complain about.

“Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!… were it not better for us to return into Egypt?” (Numbers 14:2-3)

They had endured so much since leaving Egypt, so wouldn’t it have been better to just endure the hard things they had to face in Egypt?!

Why did life seem to be getting harder and more difficult, even though they were following the Lord and the prophet?

Oh children of Israel, I can relate to that question.

And this is why I love studying the scriptures.

Because from far away, I can see the answer that the Lord wanted to teach the Israelites.

It seems crystal clear and obvious.

And then I go… “Oh yeah. Duh. He’s doing the same thing in my life, too.”

God doesn’t want us to measure the success of our life by our circumstances.

He never has, in Old Testament times, New Testament times, Book of Mormon times, and modern times.

So why would I think my life would be the exception?

Boom. I love studying the scriptures for this exact reason. I see the PATTERNS the Lord has worked with for centuries.

Why does the Lord care if we keep His commandments with sincere intent?

Because He cares about the journeys that our hearts take.

Are we becoming more devoted? More dependent? More likely to align our will to His?

That’s what a successful disciple’s life has looked like, dispensation after dispensation.

He wants to see where our hearts go and what they become.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Journeys and patterns first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.