As a parent of a 3 year old, I see a lot of examples of her levels of maturity:

-When I tell her she can’t dunk her battery-operated toys in the water table outside, she gets frustrated that I am taking away her fun. ⁣⁣

-When we encourage keeping the Sabbath Day holy, she focuses on everything that she can’t do on Sundays.⁣⁣

-She gets really upset when someone else isn’t following the rules.⁣⁣

-When she is really really tired or hungry, she loses any little amount of maturity she had left in her and anything could set her off.⁣⁣

-She changes her mind on what she wants to eat for lunch after I have already made it. ⁣⁣

-She doesn’t always say please or thank you, and she ultimately has no idea what sacrifices I make out of love in order to make her life fairly enjoyable, fun, and safe. And that’s okay. As a parent, I don’t expect her to see or recognize it all. ⁣⁣

Okay… did you notice any parallels to your own spiritual understanding?⁣⁣

Here’s what I’ve noticed. How many times have I thought:

-That Heavenly Father was giving me rules that were keeping me away from having more fun?

-That the Sabbath is more of a burden than a blessing?

-That I have to be concerned and worried about everyone else’s decisions?

-That I can ignore healthy food and sleep habits and still function well? (HINT: I absolutely cannot )

-That I actually wanted a different blessing or opportunity than the one He gave me?

-That I should try and do better at saying prayers of gratitude to my Heavenly Father, forgetting that I only see a sliver of what He actually does for me?

Spiritual maturity is essential to develop. ⁣⁣

In D&C 109:15, the Kirtland saints prayed: “that they may grow up in thee”. ⁣⁣

We aren’t going to be fully spiritually mature right now. But we can take inventory:

Are we understanding the importance of seeing the big picture?

Are we maturing?

Are we growing up in the Lord?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Growing up  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Now that I have 12+ years of social media presence, every old post of mine that pops up is a trip down memory lane.

Was that an inside joke with someone?

Wow, that is a lot of pictures to post from just a night out with friends.

Why did I post so many song lyrics?

Let’s just say… I am grateful that I have changed in the last 12 years of my life.

Isn’t that such a human part of life?

We meet up with old friends and realized that we’ve all changed a lot.

We remember how we acted with our spouse as newlyweds and realize that we’ve changed a lot.

For better (and let’s be real, sometimes not-for-better), everyone is always changing.

So to me, it is such a relief to hear from the Lord:

“For I am the Lord, I change not”. (Malachi 3:6)

He’s not going to become more angry or more strict.

He’s not going to become more permissive.

He’s not going to become less loving.

He’s not going to stop sending prophets to declare His word.

He’s not going to want us to stop making covenants and serving others.

He’s not going to stop asking for our hearts and wills and desires.

My relationship with my Savior keeps changing because I am the one who is spiritually maturing.

But I always know what to expect from Him.

I’ve been taught about Him and His patterns my whole life.

I’ve studied the patterns again and again in every book of scripture.

The Lord does not change.

I change.

And thank goodness for both of those truths.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Unchanging Lord first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

And now that I live day-in and day-out with a three year old, I get a clearer and clearer picture of it every day!⁣⁣

Here are a few interesting observations I’ve noticed in my daughter recently.⁣⁣

(And for what it’s worth, my daughter is actually very mature, kind, and brilliant for her age for the most part! I don’t want this to seem like I’m ragging on her– it’s all in good fun, and for an important point!)⁣⁣

When I tell her she can’t dunk her battery-operated toys in the water table outside, she gets frustrated that I am taking away her fun. ⁣⁣

When we encourage keeping the Sabbath Day holy, she focuses on everything that she can’t do on Sundays.⁣⁣

She gets really upset when someone else isn’t following the rules.⁣⁣

When she is really really tired or hungry, she loses any little amount of maturity she had left in her and anything could set her off.⁣⁣

She changes her mind on what she wants to eat for lunch after I have already made it. ⁣⁣

She doesn’t always say please or thank you, and she ultimately has no idea what sacrifices I make out of love in order to make her life fairly enjoyable, fun, and safe. And that’s okay. As a parent, I don’t expect her to see or recognize it all. ⁣⁣

Okay… did you notice any parallels to your own spiritual understanding?

⁣⁣How many times I’ve thought Heavenly Father was giving me rules that were keeping me away from having more fun–⁣⁣

That the Sabbath is more of a burden than a blessing–⁣⁣

That I have to be concerned and worried about everyone else’s decisions–

⁣⁣That I can ignore healthy food and sleep habits and still function well (HINT: I absolutely can not!)–⁣⁣

That I receive a blessing, just to think that I wanted a different opportunity more–

⁣⁣That I forget to pray and thank my Heavenly Father, even though I only see a sliver of what He does for me–⁣⁣

Spiritual maturity is essential to develop. ⁣⁣

In D&C 109:15, the Kirtland saints prayed: “that they may grow up in thee”.

⁣⁣Are we growing up? Are we maturing? Are we handling emotions and understanding the importance of boundaries and taking time to see the bigger picture?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Three year old maturity first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.