Invite someone over!⁣

It’s foolproof.

Instead of a big open-ended never-finished task, you’ve now placed a deadline.

And then you just magically get it done in whatever time you have.

This is honestly one of the reasons why I love hosting play dates and parties at our home so often.

Because I am a procrastinator!⁣

And procrastinators need deadlines.

So what’s so wrong with procrastinating our repentance?⁣

“I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end”. (Alma 34:33)

First of all, we don’t know when the deadline is. ⁣

So we can’t wait until right before the deadline and cram in repentance, because then we’d probably miss it. ⁣

But much more importantly, what does repentance mean?⁣

To change. ⁣

And God doesn’t want us to wait to change. ⁣

Because that’s literally why we are here on earth! ⁣

In my home, I’m actually working on getting better at doing small cleaning habits so that I don’t even have to rush before friends come over. ⁣

And that’s what we really want in our spiritual lives, right?⁣

Making small little daily changes in order to just be more spiritually mature as we go, instead of trying to “grow up” later. ⁣

Seeing sin that has taken root and doing the daily maintenance to keep it at bay. ⁣

Or when things get really bad, and our lives need a “deep clean” – we just get it done.⁣

We realize we have the agency to start casting off that weight and moving toward freedom and cleanliness.

We rely fully upon the Savior for his cleansing power, but we have the agency to START that process. ⁣

Little sins, big sins, bad habits, weaknesses… ⁣

It’s an everyday maintenance. ⁣

And I think that when we realize this, it makes the sacrament that much more meaningful.

That little weekly check-in can serve as a mini deadline to help encourage us to stay motivated and try again.

“Yes, we should learn from the past, and yes, we should prepare for the future. But only now can we do. Now is the time we can learn. Now is the time we can repent.” – President Nelson

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Procrastinators unite… tomorrow!  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

There are a few examples of the opposite that have always stood out to me.

(I’m not talking about bad examples, I promise! I mean a different kind of opposite…)

After Alma and Amulek watched one of the most tragic events imaginable, here’s what happened:

“The judge stood before them, and said: Why do ye not answer the words of this people? Know ye not that I have power to deliver you up unto the flames?

“And he commanded them to speak;

“but they answered nothing.” (Alma 14:19)

Silence.

They said nothing.

I think of Jesus and the times when He chose not to verbally respond to people.

Speaking up is important.

Defending our beliefs is important.

I can think of countless times in the scriptures and in modern-days when people have been moved to speak up.

In fact, we are often explicitly asked to speak up.

But sometimes the Spirit can move us to just be silent. ⁣

Maybe it’s because the Spirit warns us that saying anything wouldn’t help.

Maybe it’s because the Spirit knows we can be a better example through our actions than our words.

Maybe it’s because we need to be quiet and listen to someone else’s perspective.

“Jesus Christ, the only perfect person to ever walk the earth, taught us through quiet example to say nothing or to be silent in stressful times in our lives rather than to spend time and energy bashing for whatever purpose.” – Marvin J. Ashton

Talking and sharing are so important.

But sometimes the best way to share our testimony is through silence.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The opposite of teaching  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Invite someone over!

???? It’s foolproof! Instead of a big open-ended never-finished task, you’ve now placed a deadline, and then you just magically get it done in whatever time you have!

To all my friends, yes, this is honestly why I like hosting play dates at our house so much. #truestory

Because I am a procrastinator!

So what’s so wrong about procrastinating our repentance?

First of all, we don’t know when the deadline is.

We have no clue when all this repenting needs to be complete. And so we can’t wait until right before the deadline, because then we’d probably miss it.

But much more importantly, what does repentance mean?

To change.

And God doesn’t want us to wait to change.

Because that’s literally why we are here on earth!

I’m actually working on getting better at doing small cleaning habits so that I don’t even have to rush before friends come over.

And I’m getting better and better at doing that! Taking care of little messes as soon as they happen, cleaning up toys as we go, doing dishes more often… those little things all add up to not needing to scramble as much when someone comes over.

And that’s what we really want in our spiritual lives, right?

Making small little daily changes in order to just be more spiritually mature as we go, instead of trying to “grow up” later.

Seeing sin that has taken root and doing the daily maintenance to keep it at bay.

Or when things get really bad, and our lives need a “deep clean” – we just get it done. We scrub the baseboards and the corners and the back of the fridge.

Instead of sitting with the weight of feeling dirty, we realize we have the agency to start casting off that weight and moving toward freedom and cleanliness. We rely fully upon the Savior for his cleansing power, but we have the agency to START that process.

Little sins, big sins, bad habits, weaknesses…

It’s an everyday maintenance.

And I think that when we realize this, it makes the Sacrament that much more meaningful.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Procrastination cleaning tips first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Alma and Amulek didn’t say a thing after watching the believing saints being burned.

They were questioned and mocked and imprisoned.

But they didn’t say anything.

I think of Jesus Christ, and the times that he chose to not respond verbally to people.

Sometimes, he chose to be silent.

Speaking up is important. Defending our beliefs is important. I can think of countless times in the scriptures and in modern-days when people have been moved to speak up. In fact, we are often explicitly asked to speak up.

But sometimes, the Spirit can move us to just be silent.

I have felt this a few times in my life.

Sometimes, it’s been because saying anything wouldn’t change their mind. Although I enjoy teaching and sharing new perspectives, sometimes I feel that little prompting that tells me not to continue with the conversation.

Other times, it’s because I can be a better example through my actions than my words. When someone starts speaking rudely about another person with me, sometimes I feel like the best way to stop the gossip is to just not respond or react to what the person is telling me.

And other times, I need to be silent for my personal improvement. When talking with other people, I often start formulating a response or opinion in my head. But sometimes I get the quiet thought that tells me to just stop and listen.

Talking, sharing, speaking. Those are all important.

But sometimes, saying nothing is the best way to make the biggest impact.

Sometimes, we can share our testimony through silence.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Saying nothing first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

She listened to Amulek, who she recognized from around town, and she saw the mighty transformation that he had gone through.

She heard the teachings about a Savior, power from God, the purpose of life, the chance to repent… and she knew it was true.

She returned to her house with her children in tow, she fell to her knees, and she repented.

She discussed her feelings with her husband, whose heart had also been softened by Alma and Amulek’s words.

She sat down and searched the scriptures.

She taught her children what she now knew in her heart to be true – that there is a God and a Savior, and they love her.

She heard that the chief judge had taken and bound Alma and Amulek.

She took her family and gathered with the other new believers to see what these men’s fates would be.

She saw Zeezrom, that wicked judge, have a change of heart and plead for the lives of Alma and Amulek. Surely this would change the chief judge’s mind!

And then suddenly her husband was whisked away with the other men. She saw others in the crowd pick up rough, heavy stones and run after them.

She cried for his safety and offered up prayers to the God she now knew existed.

But then people began to gather around her. She picked up her children and held them close.

She saw the piles of wood form.

She looked around at the other women and children. Surely this would not be their fate. This was too cruel.

And so she prayed again.

She saw Alma standing up ahead, tears streaming down his face. Surely he would save them with his power from God.

She prayed again.

And suddenly, everything became clear.

She felt peace.

This was going to be her fate. She didn’t know why this had to be, but she knew that it was the only path now.

A martyr for a God she just started to get to know. A Savior that she would soon meet.

And so she hugged, and kissed, and prayed, and cried.

And her faith in God was unshaken to the end.

Painting by Niki Martins

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post A woman in Ammonihah first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.