1) They started gripping their crayons differently.

2) They picked up a play purse and told me they were “Ready to go to the temple!”

3) They picked up a large rectangular block and told me they were texting.

Now what do all three of these things have in common?

My child was copying something they had just seen me do. ⁣

Jesus invites us, “. . . wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do.” (2 Nephi 31:12)

The cool thing is that we don’t have to guess what Jesus would do.

We don’t have to guess because we can see it in the scriptures.

We can learn through His prophets.

We can be shown by the Spirit.

Kids tend to emulate the adults they are around the most.

So if I want to start emulating my Savior even more, I’ve got to “hang out” with Him more often!

I have to be in the scriptures.

I should be learning from others who know Him.

I need to be inviting the Spirit into my life.

Because when I am around Jesus more, it’s natural to want to do what He does.

I’ll become more like Jesus as I spend more time with Him.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Spending more time with Jesus first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

She sat her teenagers down and told them something new they would try:

She would be setting time limits on certain apps on their phones.

One child in particular expressed some unhappiness about this new limit.

So the mom said that she would set the same exact time limits on the same apps on HER phone that she was requiring for them.

They would all be in this new challenge together.

And she would take the lead. ⠀⁣⁣

She was then shocked the next day when her “time limit” alert came much sooner than she expected.

She didn’t realize how much she probably needed the time limits, too.⁣

What a beautiful example of a mother leading by example in her family.

She was then able to sympathize and work on her own habits, while setting an invaluable example for her teenagers. ⠀⁣⁣

Who partook of the fruit first in Lehi’s dream? ⁣

Lehi.⠀⁣⁣

This fruit “…was desirable above all other fruit.” (1 Nephi 8:12)

Lehi tasted of that happiness and joy first.

And THEN he desired that his family should partake of this same happiness.⁣

I think the order of this is so important.⁣

He tasted of this joyous fruit, STAYED by the tree, and beckoned his family members to come join him.

He didn’t tread through the mists of darkness, he didn’t search through the great and spacious building, he didn’t wade through the water.⁣

He didn’t look at the tree from afar, hoping everyone else could get there but not making his own journey his top priority.

He stayed by the tree as an example for his family members to follow.

And many of them did follow him!⁣

This is my passionate viewpoint for scripture study as well.⁣

Are WE studying and learning and growing from the scriptures, tasting of that fulfilling JOY that comes from the Book of Mormon, and then beckoning our family members to come join us?⁣

Or do we sometimes try to push our family members toward the scriptures and the tree while forgetting to stay by the sweet, pure, happy tree ourselves?⁣

“Let’s stay at the tree, partake of the love of God, and share it. By lifting the people around us, we ascend together.” – Sister Runia Oct 2023

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Phone Usage and Staying at the Tree  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Why can’t we just do our own thing and worry about our personal salvation?⁣

I think it’s important to be good examples in order to attract others to the gospel.

We can be the light on the hill.

We can talk about the joy and peace that permeates, even in the tough times.

We want to prove that being a follower of Christ actually changes who we are for the better.

⁣And the biggest lesson I’ve learned as I’ve tried to be a good example, is that it’s important to learn how to be comfortable being different!

Paul taught: “. . . Be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12)

If we are going to choose to be different in

the words we say,

our topics of conversation,

the way we serve,

the sensitivity of our spirits,

the faith we develop,

and the purity of our minds,

then we are choosing to stick out amongst the rest of the world.

Are we okay being different and peculiar?

Jesus sure was different when He walked on the earth.

He stood out.

He was peculiar and unique in the things He said and the way He acted.

It’s good to get comfortable with being a bit different.

And if we stick out a bit by being a believer of Christ, we are in good company.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Be an example of the believers first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

As part of my planning, I was trying to find the best quotes, scripture stories, and examples.

So I really started to ponder:

How have I personally learned the importance of service?

Story after story popped into my mind of watching my parents, teachers, and leaders and observing how they helped others.

And even more stories popped into my mind of when others had served me in a moment of quiet need.

And then I laughed!

Here I was trying to teach a lesson about service in a classroom through quotes and presentation, when the best way to learn about it is actually by watching others serve.

“We not only teach with words; we teach also by who we are and how we live our lives.” —Thomas S. Monson

In Matthew 10:1, Christ calls all twelve of His disciples.

“And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.”

He gave them the priesthood power to serve and perform miracles!

But how did these disciples know how to use their priesthood power appropriately?!

They had just watched the Savior do all of these same things!

He lived it.

And then He invited them to do the same. ⁣

Are we asking people in our lives to be kind and patient but not giving them the kind and patient example to follow?

Are we asking people we love to study the scriptures without modeling what meaningful scripture study can look like? ⁣

Are we asking people to be more loving, without showing more love to them, too?

Jesus taught by using His words and then living a life that completely backed up and even elaborated on what He said.

Now, we aren’t going to be as perfect as the perfect example.

Have I raised my voice in frustration to yell, “Why can’t we all be calm and happy?!”

Yup.

But we’ve got the goal.

And we can realign and repent and try again over and over.

The best lesson we can ever teach is how we live our lives.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post How to teach about service first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I’m not a natural “crafter” by any means, so I was making sure I followed the instructor’s every word!

She told us the next direction, and I picked up my paint brush to do what I assumed she meant.

She quickly mentioned: “Wait, make sure you DON’T saturate it with paint! You want to keep it super light, otherwise you will ruin all the other work you just did!”

I put my paint-drenched paintbrush back in the cup and scraped off a bunch of paint.

Whew. Close call.

It is great to know what to do.

But it’s also great to know what NOT to do, right?

One of the most straightforward examples of this is found in Zephaniah 3:2 this week. Using feminine pronouns to refer to Jerusalem, he taught:

“She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the Lord; she drew not near to her God.”

Pretty straight forward, right?

Jerusalem didn’t obey the voice of the prophets. They didn’t receive correction. They didn’t trust in the Lord. And they didn’t actively find ways to draw near to their God.

And it didn’t turn out well for Jerusalem.

Knowing that fantastic nonexample, now which area can you work on with even more diligence?

Obey. Receive correction. Trust. Draw near.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The best nonexample first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

How could you make the biggest impact for good on others that you possibly can?

It’s gotta be something big right?!

A big event.

An elaborate service project

A huge social media account.

Greatest good = tons of people, right?

I want to flip the question a bit.

What things have made the biggest impact in YOUR life?

Who has inspired you to live the gospel with integrity, and how did they inspire you?

Who has taught you how to be kinder and more loving, and how did they teach it?

For me, the answers to those questions are not big.

At least, they don’t look big.

They look like a text message sent at exactly the right moment.

They look like a leader who always lived the gospel with integrity.

They look like someone teaching a lesson that they probably never got thanked for, but one phrase completely changed me.

Doing the greatest good seems to not look like large, grandiose gestures.

Doing the greatest good looks an awful lot like becoming a Christlike person who tries to do the little things that He would do.

So what’s the greatest good you could be doing right now?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The greatest good first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

My friend and I were having a discussion years ago about sharing the gospel, visiting teaching, and feeling uplifted, all by being social.

And her very introverted husband interrupted us and asked this question.

It kind of stopped me in my tracks, because I had just been talking about how connecting and talking with as many people as possible was how I felt the love of God working in my life.

I don’t think I had a great answer for him then, and he didn’t really share his thoughts at the moment, but I’ve never forgotten his question.

Because we’ve been asked to let our light shine.

And since I’m pretty extroverted, it’s not natural for me to understand others’ desires to NOT be social and interact with people.

But I feel that as I’ve matured and grown, I’ve learned that absolutely 100% without a doubt that introverted people can still let their lights shine and be perfect examples of gospel living.

Why?

Because we ALL have the light of Christ within us.

Sharing our “light” doesn’t mean getting up on stage and belting out a solo. It doesn’t mean baking treats and carrying out lengthy conversations with everyone in the ward. It doesn’t mean putting your testimony on social media every single day.

It CAN mean those things, but it certainly doesn’t have to.

Letting our light shine means letting the Light of Christ naturally shine through as we develop our strengths that we have been given.

And if that means that your “shining” looks different, smaller, less important, or less interesting than the ways that other people “shine”, it truly doesn’t matter.

If we are doing good works and leaning into our unique strengths, Christ can help us become more than we are now.

He can amplify our light and stretch us to become even brighter.

So what is YOUR unique way that you can shine? It will probably look different than mine, or your spouse’s, or your friend – but comparison is the thief of joy.

So turn your attention to the Savior – how can you let your personal God-given light shine in the best way that only you can?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post A gospel for introverts first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Three seemingly unrelated things that my daughter did in the past week:

• She started gripping her crayon in a different way.
• She picked up a play purse and told me she was, “Ready to go to the temple!”
• She picked up a rectangular block and told me that she was texting.

What do they all have in common?

My daughter was copying something she had just seen me do.

I know she is always learning from me, but honestly within the past week, she has clearly become a lot more intentional about copying very little things that I do.

The Savior invites us to “Come, Follow Me”.

What does that phrase really mean?

I use that phrase at least daily now to refer to the church curriculum.

But has the repetition made me forget its significance?

What do I see the Savior doing?

In the scriptures. Through his prophets. Through the Spirit.

I have that desire to do as he does. To follow him.

Because he already has it all figured out.

He has the perfect perspective. The perfect response to trials. The perfect attitude toward others.

So I can always look to him and make immediate adjustments, just like my daughter who decided to try holding a crayon from the side instead of gripping it at the top because she saw me coloring that way.

We have to “observe” our Savior, and then follow him.

He knows the way better than we do, because he is the way. We just have to take his invitation to come, and follow, and do as he does.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Come, follow me first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.