We say things like:

“I hope you are doing well!”

“I have faith that you can finish that!”⁣

“I hope that goes away soon!”⁣

This really is fine.

Many people use them as sweet, well-meaning sentiments. ⁣

But I’ve been thinking a lot about the real, weighty meanings of those words:

FAITH

and HOPE

Moroni beautifully teaches us:

“Faith is things which are hoped for and not seen;

“Wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.” (Ether 12:6)

It can be tempting to say we have faith…

And then feel hurt when the result we wanted doesn’t happen.

And it can also be tempting to think that having “hope” in a world like this is naive and too optimistic.

But people will disappoint us.

Others will sin.

Some people will even deliberately offend or harm.

I’ve learned that my faith has to be IN Jesus.

And when I have faith in Jesus Christ, I can have solid hope for good things that will come.

“As we strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ, we see beyond our struggles to the blessings and promises of eternity.” – Neil L. Andersen

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Hope and faith first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

It seems like the winds never stop. ⁣

I try to block things out for a bit – but when I resurface with my emotions, the wind is still there. ⁣

I keep trying, but I can’t get rid of it. ⁣

It can be exhausting. ⁣

To want to fix a problem. To want to eliminate the wind and keep the calm sea for just a bit. To feel in control. ⁣

But the wind still blows. ⁣

And so these two verses jumped out to me:⁣

“The Lord God caused that there should be a furious wind blow upon the face of the waters…” (Ether 6:5)⁣

“The wind did never cease to blow…” (Ether 6:8)⁣

The Jaredites experienced constant and furious winds. ⁣

For weeks and months on end, the wind blew and there wasn’t a thing they could do about it. ⁣

But guess which part of the scriptures actually jumped out to me?⁣

The second half. ⁣

Read those same verses again, now with the endings added:⁣

“The Lord God caused that there should be a furious wind blow upon the face of the waters, towards the promised land.” (Ether 6:5)⁣

“The wind did never cease to blow towards the promised land.” (Ether 6:8)⁣

The winds weren’t blowing just for fun. The Lord didn’t forget about calming the sees of their journey. ⁣

The winds were exactly what was driving them towards the Promised Land. ⁣

Maybe some Jaredites prayed for the wind to stop or at least slow down. ⁣

But that actually would have gone against their prayers for safety on their journey. ⁣

The winds WERE the answer. They were what was driving them towards the result they wanted. The result He knew they needed. ⁣

And so I received the reminder I so desperately needed. ⁣

I don’t think my winds are going anywhere right now. ⁣

Because they are actually blowing me towards my destination. ⁣

Thanks, furious, never-ending wind. ⁣

I have faith that my destination will be even greater than what I have in mind.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

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

I saw a meme recently that said being an adult is basically saying that phrase over and over each week.

I had to laugh, because I know for sure that I’ve said that sentence countless times.

And do things ever “die down”?!

Not really. I mean, maybe a bit. But there’s always “something new” coming up.

It’s life.

And I’ve actually found a lot more joy and acceptance when I lean into that chaos a bit!

Instead of always waiting for things to “calm down”, I find that life is actually pretty good when I accept that there’s always going to be “something”.

There will always be a big event or deadline or life change or serious decision looming.

And it’s all good!

The 13th Article of Faith is so good, but one of my favorite lines is tucked away in the middle of it:

“We have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things.”

Isn’t that awesome?!

NOT: “We have endured many things and hope that things will calm down and we will actually get blessings pretty soon here”.

But instead, embracing the fact that the future is going to be filled with more things to endure!

We aren’t looking for rest and calm in this life. That isn’t our doctrine.

Our doctrine is that we are ready to endure.

We’ve done it in the past, we are ready to do it some more in the future, and we have hope that we can handle it.

So is this week looking crazy for you?

Ready for things to die down a bit?

After December, honestly, maybe they will for a while!

But we are Latter-day Saints who have endured many things, and sure hope to be able to endure all things that will come our way in the future.

We’ve got this.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Enduring forever first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Mormon had just finished telling his son Moroni about the terrible things that were going on with the Lamanites and Nephites, and what tragic futures were to come.

But then he reminds his son:

Don’t let these things weigh you down.

Don’t let the evils of others bring your spirit and your faith down.

Don’t let the wickedness of the world dim your light.

Don’t let other people’s poor decisions linger in your mind.

And instead?

Let Christ lift you up.

Let your knowledge of His atoning sacrifice bring you hope.

Let His mercy linger in your mind.

Let His goodness be a powerful example to you.

What a lesson right?

Sometimes, I wish that I didn’t tie so many of my posts into “2020”. But at the end of the day, I can’t ignore the similarities between the end of the Book of Mormon and our current reality.

There is a lot of evil around us.

There are people with ill-intentions.

There are people making terrible decisions that affect us.

And yet, knowing that Christ has already atoned for our sins makes the weight much less heavy.

Because – Christ has already won. He has won victory over sin, over weaknesses, and over death.

And that knowledge can lift us up, even when we are surrounded by the most unpleasant of circumstances.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Weighed down and lifted up first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I’ve got a lot of hopes.

Things that I would love to have happen in the future.

But Mormon is just a rockstar for pointing us in the right direction with our true hope.

Although we hope people will get better, viruses will be eradicated, others will forgive, circumstances will improve, and love will grow…

When it comes to our most essential, godly hope, we can’t look to things in this lifetime.

And think about the men who are teaching this.

Both Mormon who spoke these words, and Moroni who wrote them down years later as words he hoped would be of great worth to us.

Their hopes for improving circumstances, healing, and softened hearts were virtually unanswered.

But both Mormon and Moroni stamp their powerful testimony of where our hope should be.

We have hope that, because of Christ’s atoning sacrifice, we will be raised to eternal life in the next life as a result of our good desires and actions.

We have hope that our righteous desires and unseen acts of service will be rewarded with eternal life.

We have hope that our trials and hardships are only trials from a mortal standpoint.

We have hope that the relationships we develop here on earth do not end at death.

We have hope that we will be able to live with our Heavenly Father and our Savior.

What a truly hopeful message!

Although we may be disappointed, maybe even often, with our earthly hopes, Mormon gives us that beautiful reframe:

Our hope is in the promises given to us about what we can expect in the next life.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post I hope! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

There are a lot of unknowns.

We tend to toss around “faith” and “hope” like candy these days.

“I have faith that you can finish that!”

“I hope that goes away soon!”

It’s all fine – often sweet, well-meaning sentiments.

But I’ve been thinking a lot about the real, weighty meanings of those words.

FAITH.

Men’s (and women’s) hearts shall fail them.

People will disappoint, sin, get better and then fall off the tracks again. Even deliberately offend or harm.

And I sometimes fail myself.

So I’ve learned that my faith has to be in my Savior.

Not that my kid will be healed. Not that we’ll meet this goal. Not that I’ll finally figure out how to overcome a weakness.

But my real faith is that my Savior lives, he loves me, and that he will be my advocate with the Father.

HOPE.

We don’t know what’s coming.

Now more than ever.

We don’t know what the future holds. But I can still hope for a bright future for the things that I can control.

The unknowns are countless.

But my hope can keep me looking forward.

Not with blind, naive optimism. But with pure, distinctly chosen faith.

Faith is things which are hoped for and not seen.

I have faith that my Savior will make all things right. I have faith that my Savior will bring me peace. I have faith that my Savior loves me in the ways that I’ve been taught.

I can’t see it.

But I’m not just guessing. I feel its truthfulness in my heart.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Real faith and hope first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I told her that I couldn’t even imagine what she was going through and that she was in my prayers as she prepared.

She responded, “It’s really been such a beautiful ride. All of it. I think it comes down to, do you trust Him? And I trust Him so I’ve just felt peace.”

And then she asked me how I was doing with my son and getting his vision impairment diagnosis (this was a few months ago when it all went down).

My response:

“Whenever people have offered condolences or anything, I love sharing the peace that I’ve felt through it all! I’m not worried about the future cuz the Savior brings me that peace, and he has through the whole process.”

These times should be dark.

Maybe you are going through a time that, on paper, sounds pretty dark right now.

Like a major surgery. Or a child getting a diagnosis. Or whatever version of “hard” you’ve been dealt right now.

But the sign of Christ’s birth in the Americas wasn’t just for the Nephites and Lamanites.

This is what Christ has always done, and continues to do.

When the sun goes down, when things are SUPPOSED to be dark,

He brings us that light.

The whole night long.

He doesn’t erase the night. He doesn’t usually get rid of the tough situation.

But He gives us that sustaining light.

The power to see true perspective, to see His plan, to feel His love.

“Oh Savior, stay this night with me.”

What a beautiful gift that He gives us, that I can never even begin to repay.

He makes things light, especially when it should be dark.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Light when it should be dark first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.