I always cringe a bit when reading Moroni’s epistle to the chief judge Pahoran in Alma 60.

Moroni is getting angry and assuming a whole lot of things very incorrectly. Awkward.

But this time, verse 33 in Alma 60 made me do a double take. ⁣

Moroni tells Pahoran that the Lord told Moroni to go to battle against the Pahoran if he didn’t repent of his sins and iniquities.

What?!

Pahoran actually wasn’t committing sins and iniquities, and this was all a misunderstanding on Moroni’s part.

Moroni was receiving revelation to battle Pahoran even when he wasn’t actually doing anything wrong?

Why would the Lord prompt Moroni with incorrect information?⁣

And then I got to Pahoran’s response in Alma 61. ⁣

“I was somewhat worried concerning what we should do [about these rebels taking over the government and pushing Pahoran out], whether it should be just in us to go against our brethren. ⁣

“But ye have said, except they repent the Lord hath commanded you that ye should go against them.”⁣ (Alma 61:19-20)

And then Pahoran calls for Moroni to join him and bring troops for a battle against the rebels in the capital. ⁣

Pahoran had been praying to know whether or not he should go to battle against his own people. ⁣

He had been kicked off the judgment seat, but he wasn’t sure what to do next. ⁣

And Moroni’s inspiration that Moroni totally thought was about going to battle against Pahoran, was actually God’s way of answering Pahoran’s prayers – by telling him that they should go to battle against the people who had kicked him out. ⁣

So this whole misunderstood letter from Moroni? The false accusations and warnings and calls to repentance?⁣

They were all really just a messy vessel for God to answer Pahoran’s prayer. ⁣

And AMAZING and HUMBLE Pahoran was able to overlook the misunderstandings and offensive phrases in Moroni’s letter in order to find the truth within it. ⁣

Because at the end of the day, it’s not just a cliche: God really does only have imperfect people to work with. ⁣

And sometimes we have to just ignore and forgive the messy parts in order to find the gold we need in each other.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Was the Lord wrong?! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

The Lord speaks to us in so many ways, and the one He teaches in Section 8 is one of my favorites.

My husband and I recently had to make a financial decision that we were going back and forth on.

We prayed about it a lot, but our hearts weren’t telling us anything yet.

We finally logically came to the conclusion that we should go in one particular way.

After we had made that decision, our hearts started to feel at peace. We felt super confident moving forward with our choice, and we knew we had our answer!

In one of the most famous scriptures in the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord tells Oliver Cowdery:

“Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.”

In other words – the Lord likes to send us his Spirit through both our mind and our heart.

Both!

That feeling in your heart is the Spirit, but that thought in your head that seems so logical is the Spirit, too.

However, I’ve learned they don’t always speak at the same time.

With this financial decision, the logical journey came first. I wanted to feel it in my heart. Desperately.

But I needed to make up my mind before the confirmation came.

I needed to trust my agency and use it wisely.

And then other times, I feel it in my heart before I can work through the logic.

I want it to make sense, but it doesn’t really make sense yet. So I have to move forward in pure faith that my heart is right, and wait for the logic to catch up.

I want the heart and the mind at the same time, but I think the Lord likes to give me opportunities to practice with just one or the other.

Practice my agency with my mind, and practice my faith in God with my heart.

And eventually, sometimes much much later, I feel it in both.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The heart and the mind first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Often I get caught up in all the complicated and intricate ways that Heavenly Father responds to me, that I forget that sometimes, He is totally ready to just give me a response when I ask a question.

The Brother of Jared spoke to the Lord: “We shall perish, for in them we cannot breathe, save it is the air which is in them; therefore we shall perish.” (Ether 2:19)

And the Lord responded: “Thou shalt make a hole in the top, and also in the bottom; and when thou shalt suffer for air thou shalt unstop the hole and receive air. And if it be so that the water come in upon thee, behold, ye shall stop the hole, that ye may not perish in the flood.” (Ether 2:20)

A concern was presented.

And an answer was given.

But there’s one thing that I noticed.

The Brother of Jared had already built the barges.

The Lord had previously told him to build barges, and the Brother of Jared built them, knowing he didn’t have the answers.

He built them knowing that air and light were going to be concerns.

He didn’t need to know all the details before he started.

He knew that if the Lord had told him to build barges, all of the issues would be solved and questions answered in due time.

I like to “see the forest before the trees” when I work through new projects in my life.

I like to see the whole picture before I can take the steps from tree to tree.

But often, the Lord just shows us one tree at a time, before we ever see the forest.

He’ll answer our questions when He knows they need to be answered, and not when we first think of them.

The Lord absolutely can answer our prayers right after we ask our questions – but sometimes, the timing of our asking is the most important part.

Build. Get to work. If the Lord commanded, He will answer the small questions when He knows we need them.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Answers when we need them first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

First group: Limhi thought about how to escape. He asked the people for ideas. Gideon came up with a plan that seemed like a good idea.

So they gave strong wine to the Lamanite guards, and escaped while they were in a drunken sleep. It worked!

Second group: Alma and his people prayed, and the Lord told them to just wait a little bit longer. Finally, the Lord told Alma that they would escape that night, and that everyone should gather their things.

The Lamanite guards were in a deep, unexplained sleep, and Alma’s people all escaped.

The Lord answers the prayers of his people.

But He answers prayers in different ways for different people, situations, and times.

Limhi had to figure it out. He had to use the people and the resources he had, come up with a plan, and execute it.

How empowering!

WE can solve it own problems! WE can wrestle and come up with ideas, consider them all, and then execute the best plan of attack!

Alma had to rely on the Lord. It seemed impossible, but THE LORD came up with the plan. HE told them what to do. HE made the solution possible.

How faith-promoting!

The Lord will make a way, even when it seems impossible! He will make miracles happen! We just follow the promptings we receive, and the rest will be taken care of.

I’m grateful for the times in my life where I’ve been allowed to figure things out. To struggle to learn new skills, to be creative, to make scary decisions and then move forward with them.

And I’m also grateful for the times when I feel lost and I can feel the Lord guiding me and proving the miracles that I need in order to move forward.

Different times. Different people. Different answers.

But still the same result.

Artwork by James Coates

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Different answers, same result first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.