Because on the one hand, I want my home filled with peace.

I want everyone to be kind and loving, I want smooth routines, I want a clean kitchen at night…

I want peace and calm.

But— am I seeking after peace…

And instead sending a message of: “you better not have any sins or weaknesses that rock the boat”!

Life needs to be messy.

My kids need to make crazy mistakes.

My husband needs to have a bad day.

I need to battle with my weakness.

So is my home a safe place for all this messiness?

Are we allowed to change?

Is repentance openly embraced?

Or do I try to sweep it under the rug, adding shame and secrecy to the list of problems?

When we have done something wrong, no matter how trivial or how serious, and we approach the Lord with humility, we are NEVER met with shaming.

We are never pushed down, avoided, or made fun of.

In fact, the Lord taught Oliver and David exactly what He does in Section 18, verse 13:

“How great is his JOY in the soul that repenteth!”

The Lord is joyful when He hears that we want to change!

He allows us to feel the consequences of our actions and to learn from our mistakes, but He is ready to look forward.

So… am I making my home a place where people are comfortable making mistakes?

Is shame part of my parenting strategy?

Are confessed sins met with hostility or greater love?

Does everyone feel comfortable communicating honestly?

Do I feel like I will be judged for my weaknesses or do I try to hide them from the people I love most?

Are we harder on ourselves and our loved ones than the Savior of the world is?

Food for thought today.

Is my home a safe place for change?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Is my home a safe place for change? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I’ve been thinking a lot about that word recently.

It evokes this feeling of such great, godlike, perfect love and understanding.

Did you know that I’ve prayed for a lot of assistance recently with Barrett since he will just not let me set him down anywhere?!

It’s been testing my patience and making it really difficult to get even basic tasks done.

And then sometimes I think to myself, “Really? There are a million ways your life could be worse right now. It’s just a phase. You are a big girl and you can handle this.”

One moment, when I offered up my little sincere prayer of frustration, I just felt this overwhelming feeling of compassion.

God wasn’t judging me for being annoyed that I can’t seem to get anything done right now.

He just had…

Compassion.

And then I have slowly felt Him kindly and sincerely offer up thoughts to calm my mind, give me perspective, or inspire new strategies to keep Barrett occupied.

There were many reasons that God allowed three formal witnesses to the gold plates.

It followed His pattern of two or three witnesses, it literally fulfilled scripture, these three men had a desire to see them…

But I was really struck by D&C 17:4–

The Lord tells the three men to bear witness of what they see.

“And this you shall do that my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., may not be destroyed”.

Part of the reason the Lord allowed witnesses was out of pure love for Joseph.

He knew Joseph’s reputation would be attacked and picked apart for hundreds of years.

And so He lovingly allowed others to view these plates, requesting that they publicly declare what they saw, in order to keep Joseph from utter destruction.

Compassion.

In the big world-changing events, and in the small should-I-really-care-about-this moments, God shows loving compassion on His sons and daughters.

Where have you seen His compassion in your life recently?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Compassionate witnesses first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I love Instagram and I don’t plan on leaving it, but I know that so many people prefer to listen rather than to read.

Plus, I love to talk about as much as I love to write!

But as much as I wanted to start a podcast, I knew the timing wasn’t right.

Until Kristen Smith invited me to speak as a guest on her podcast.

And after we finished recording our episode together, I felt the desire to work with her more.

The desire was just natural. (And as I told Kristen about the desire to work with her more, I told her I hoped she didn’t think I was sounding weird or obsessed! Luckily, she didn’t!)

Eventually, after many conversations, Kristen invited me to permanently co-host the One Minute Scripture Study podcast with her.

And boy, did that feel right.

I had held onto such a strong desire to start a podcast, and now the opportunity was presenting itself, and I felt the Spirit confirm that this was the answer I had been waiting for.

My desire to share my testimony in new ways was the prompting I needed to guide my decisions.

I’ve been really struck by David, Oliver, and Martin’s passionate pleadings this week.

I had always pictured Joseph asking God who the Three Witnesses to the gold plates should be, and receiving these three men’s names.

But really, David, Oliver, and Martin were all moved with a desire to become one of the witnesses that they knew had been prophesied of.

And they ASKED Joseph to be witnesses to the gold plates.

Section 17 is the result of Joseph asking the Lord if these three men were acceptable for this sacred responsibility, and the Lord approving.

But these weren’t random names that the Lord happened to approve—

Because they each had a burning, righteous desire to be a witness in the first place.

Our righteous desires can be promptings from the Lord on how we can use our talents to build up the kingdom of God.

The things that we really want to do? The things that are righteous, selfless, or useful?

Those desires can be the first whisperings of the Spirit on what direction we should head, or what opportunities we should be on the lookout for.

And then we can ask.

We can ask to be included, we can ask to be in consideration.

We can let our righteous desires drive us to righteous action.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

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

I get people messaging me a form of this question pretty often.

And I always laugh.

Because if you want tips on how to organize your time, I’m probably not the person to admire.

And not because I’m not a great planner (I mean, I’m not the best, but I can be pretty organized).

It has more to do with the two little children that I am primarily responsible for each day.

Three year olds and one year olds sure have a lot of needs.

Unexpected, constant needs. 

I don’t handle everything at all.

If I’m making dinner, I’ve probably put a show on for the kids. If I’m writing posts for Instagram, I’m ignoring the pile of laundry in my laundry room. If I’m playing with my kids, I’m not responding to urgent messages on my website.

But there is one not-so-little secret that makes many of my days run more smoothly.

And those are the days when I remember to pray and ask:

“What should I be doing right now to best make use of my time?”

Now that doesn’t mean that I’ve got God as my scheduler.

I want to make that clear – I’m not putting all my decision-making on God.

I still make decisions all the time as to how I can spend my day wisely. (Or sometimes, not-so-wisely)

But when I feel clarity with my schedule, or I feel urged to switch something up, that’s how I know I’m doing what I should be doing at the moment.

In Doctrine and Covenants Section 15 verse 4, the Lord told John Whitmer:

“For many times you have desired of me to know that which would be of the most worth unto you.”

I think this is such a beautiful question to ask.

What is of most worth for you in this time in your life?

What is of most worth for you this week?

Today? In the next ten minutes?

Try it out this week, and see where the Spirit takes you. 

️Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post What is of most worth? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

When they said their name I thought, “Oh that’s a memorable name! I will definitely remember that one!”

And then as soon as my husband asked what her name was after the conversation, I completely forgot.

Anyone else have this problem?!

Even though I THINK I will remember important things, my memory is not always awesome.

President Henry B. Eyring said in his 1989 address, “Remembrance and Gratitude”, that:

“The Holy Ghost brings back memories of what God has taught us.”

It’s one of my favorite roles that the Holy Ghost has, but it’s one I don’t think we talk about quite as much.

He can help us REMEMBER important things that have happened to us!

David Whitmer was a new acquaintance to Joseph Smith.

The Smiths were now living at the Whitmer home in Fayette, New York.

In this revelation to David, the Lord tells him in verse 8 that:

“You shall receive the Holy Ghost, which giveth utterance, that you may stand as a witness of the things of which you shall both hear and see”.

I truly believe that we see the Hand of God everywhere, every day.

We are surrounded by miracles and tender mercies.

Flooded and overwhelmed with blessings.

And yet, even if I think, “Oh, what a beautiful tender mercy that I needed!” during the day, I find myself getting to bedtime and thinking that nothing special happened that day.

But the Holy Ghost can help me remember.

I can remember the things that I have seen and that I have heard.

And when I remember, I am filled with gratitude.

And then I can stand as an accurate and grateful witness of the miracles that I have seen and heard each and every day.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Remembering and witnessing first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

And it was so dark!

Outside, inside– everything just seemed eerily quiet and dark.

We turned on the flashlights from our phones and were pretty surprised at how well we could see with just this small light source.

And then, finally, the power came back on.

The light was back!

From a scientific standpoint, darkness isn’t a real thing.

There are varying degrees of light, or there is an absence of light.

But there is no darkness.

And lights cannot be hidden in darkness.

There is no such thing as “too much darkness”.

And what a powerful reminder for us about our most powerful and our only essential light source, our Savior Jesus Christ.

There will never be “too much darkness” in the world for Him to overcome.

But it’s also been a peaceful and merciful message in my life recently.

I want to shine out as much of Christ’s light to others as I can.

And even though I have hopes of being a bright sun, sharing light and being a vessel for great power…

Sometimes I feel like a little cellphone flashlight in a giant, dark house.

And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.

Because I don’t think that Christ would say that is “not enough light”.

HE can shine through any amount of darkness, purely because of His nature.

Any amount of light will conquer any amount of darkness.

Anywhere that there is an absence of Christ, then any amount of His presence makes all the difference.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Darkness doesn’t exist first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I want to be humble.

And I want to be full of love.

That’s how I picture my Savior. (And, what I’ve learned about Him from the scriptures.)

Someone who didn’t get offended.

Someone who reacted with emotional maturity.

Someone who invited all to worship Him, and yet showed no pride.

Someone who wasn’t focused on all the injustices in his life.

Someone who noticed the “others”.

Someone who wasn’t focused on fitting in or making good friends.

He was just… a good friend to all.

He just loved and served.

And those are the kinds of servants the Lord wants. He wants humble people who are full of love.

But He’ll also take us as we are right now.

One thing I’ve learned about humility is that it is really only achieved in my life by getting rid of pride.

Whereas gaining love is mostly achieved by seeing others how they truly are.

Ultimately, it’s seeing ourselves and others exactly how Christ sees us.

Understanding our great worth and value, and understanding that we are surrounded by people with the same worth and value.

We aren’t more than or less than anyone else.

Treating everyone like the special Son or Daughter of God that they are.

That’s really what love and humility mean, right?

I know where I stand with God, that knowledge never wavers, and I extend that godly love to all of His children.

I’ll keep working on it!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Love and humility first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

A job.

A calling.

An amount of money.

Little human beings.

Possessions.

Talents.

Skills.

There is a lot that God has entrusted us to take care of.

In fact it’s a little intimidating to think about sometimes.

(Let’s be honest, raising human beings is probably the scariest thing that any of us are allowed to do.)

So how are we doing with it all?

The Lord told Joseph Knight, Sr., that anyone who has desires to establish this work needs to be “temperate in all things, whatsoever shall be entrusted to his care.” D&C 12:8

Temperate: “showing moderation or self-restraint”

Are we showing moderation in the things that have been entrusted to us?

Are we letting any of our duties overindulge on our time?

Are our worries about one area overindulging on our brain energy?

Are we literally overindulging on the resources we have been given?

Because when it comes down to it, everything that we have, that we have stewardship over, that we have “earned”…

Is really an act of trust on God’s part.

Of course, He knows we are mortals and we are going to blow it all the time.

We let our calling distract us from taking care of our families.

We worry so much about our children that we neglect developing our own passions.

We waver between “scrimping and saving” and “overindulging” on our finances.

But the Lord wants to help us become better.

To use our time and our resources in order to have moderation amongst our priorities.

He can guide us and send His Spirit to prompt us.

And He trusts us.

He knows it will be a long journey, but He has entrusted us.

And He won’t set us up for failure.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post I have been entrusted first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I had no idea that I would be one of the final people to walk through those temple doors.

And that it would be the very last time I stepped foot inside a temple for a long time.

And I miss it.

I drove past the Gilbert temple the other day, and it looks so beautiful and powerful and calm.

It has also made me reevaluate my temple habits pre-pandemic.

If I knew my temple attendance was going to be completely restricted for the next who-knows-how-long, I probably would have gone more. And I probably would have gone more regularly.

I do not want to ever take the temple for granted again.

But guess what John the Baptist promises us in Doctrine and Covenants Section 13 verse 1?

While Oliver Cowdery and Joseph Smith were in the woods near Joseph’s home in Harmony praying to receive more knowledge about baptism, John the Baptist appeared.

He restored the Aaronic priesthood to Joseph and Oliver, and gave them wonderful news:

“This shall never be taken again from the earth”.

Never!

Even when temples close, and missionaries are in limbo, and church is changing, and General Conference looks different, and youth activities have to adjust…

The priesthood will NEVER be taken away from us.

So here’s the perfect time for reflection:

Am I taking the constant access to the priesthood that I currently have for granted?

How can I show God that I appreciate this gift and power?

The priesthood is here to stay, allowing me to feel comfort, to have my sins cleansed, to receive service.

It is the power of God here on the earth.

And the power of God cannot be removed.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Never be taken again! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Do you know about this guy and his wife, Polly?

His quick-believing heart gave emotional and financial support to Joseph Smith.

His friends and family in Colesville, New York were all converted because of his example of faith, as well as his wife’s.

Joseph Knight, Sr., is the focus of the revelation in Section 12 of the Doctrine and Covenants.

Pretty soon after this revelation was given, all of the Colesville saints were asked to move to Ohio, and then shortly after they got settled, Missouri.

While other believers made these same journeys, there was special unity with the Colesville saints.

They all stayed together and faithfully followed the prophet Joseph’s directions on where to go.

They stayed together, followed the prophet, and helped each other.

The Colesville Saints from Colesville, New York, led at the helm by Joseph and Polly Knight, changed the course of church history in a not-very-loud way.

Keeping this humble and faithful future in mind, I love reading Section 12, knowing what waited in store for Joseph Knight, Sr., and his posterity.

So, what specific directions was Joseph Knight, Sr., asked to do by the Lord?

I pulled out some of these simple invitations from this revelation:

Give heed to God’s word

Reap the harvest

Ask and ye shall receive

Keep the commandments

In other words…

Joseph Knight, Sr., was advised to read God’s word in the scriptures, share the gospel and reap the harvest, ask God in prayer, and keep the commandments.

Nothing groundbreaking or new.

Sunday School answers through and through.

But this simple revelation, given to Joseph Knight, Sr., led him on a path of quiet and powerful goodness.

Powerful discipleship doesn’t have to be flashy and dramatic.

The whole world doesn’t need to know your name in order to make a difference.

But quietly following the will of the Lord, teaching your family, and following the prophet can make a world of difference in the quietest way possible.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Joseph Knight, Sr. first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.