Heading out on the first mission for the tiny church. ⁣

Heading west, with a strong end goal, but not sure how the details would play out. ⁣

They were going to share the Book of Mormon with the Native American tribes west of Missouri. ⁣

And the Lord told them He would be in their midst. ⁣

And that if they decided to let God prevail in their personal lives, that He would prevail against any obstacles they met. ⁣

And within a few months, they would return back home…⁣

WITHOUT converting a whole bunch of Native Americans to the restored gospel. ⁣

A failed mission. ⁣

So… where was God?⁣

Why had they failed if God said that He would prevail?⁣

Because their mission resulted in the doubling of church membership. ⁣

DOUBLE. ⁣

It wasn’t the Native Americans. ⁣

It was the people they visited in Ohio along the way. ⁣

It was Sidney Rigdon. It was Edward Partridge. It was countless other faithful new Saints who were converted to the gospel of Jesus Christ. ⁣

God most certainly prevailed. ⁣

Because not ONLY did church membership double, but the next location for all the Saints to travel to was established. ⁣

A place that would be home to numerous essential revelations. ⁣

A place that would house the first temple of the Lord in this dispensation. ⁣

A place where the Savior, Jesus Christ Himself, would visit. ⁣

The Lord most certainly prevailed on the sacred mission that these four men faithfully embarked on. ⁣

But we can’t define “prevailing” as accomplishing the end goal that we had in mind. ⁣

I mean, even the Lord told them that their mission was to the native tribes!⁣

But how else would He had gotten these four faithful men to His beloved children in Ohio who were ready to hear the gospel?⁣

It wasn’t a failure. Not by a long stretch.⁣

When we let God prevail in our personal lives, nothing will prevail over us.

“I myself will go with them and be in their midst… and nothing shall prevail against them.” (D&C 32:3)

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The failed mission  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

We were at a restaurant, and this new colleague said to me, “Hey I’m gonna head inside and grab a beer. Do you want me to grab you one?”

I told him thanks for the offer, but that I didn’t drink.

He responded, “Oh! Do you not drink because your church tells you not to drink, or is it a personal choice?”

What a question, right?

I only had a split-second to gather my thoughts.

But I was able to respond to him:

“Well, I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, if that’s what you’re getting at, so yes, my religion encourages us not to drink alcohol. But it is also a personal decision that I’ve made to follow that advice and not drink alcohol.”

He very graciously said, “Of course, of course, I get it!”

(And for the record, we worked together very well afterwards, so he obviously didn’t think I was too crazy for my response!)

I knew that he really wanted to just know whether or not I was “Mormon” or not. I get it.

But… I really wanted to let him know that I didn’t just not drink alcohol because my church told me not to.

I had also made a personal decision to follow the counsel, and have felt that decision confirmed to me many times.

In Doctrine and Covenants Section 37, the Lord gives the big, life-altering commandment to ask the Saints to move from New York to Ohio!

But the Lord ends this commandment with this interesting note in verse 4:

“Behold, here is wisdom, and let every man choose for himself.”

The Lord gives commandments.

The church gives guidelines.

Our prophet gives challenges.

Our Bishop gives us callings.

And yet, we always get to choose for ourselves.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Choose for yourself! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I’ve been there.

It’s rough.

But I’ve also come to believe that the trials we experience become our own specific superpowers to help us look out for those going through similar struggles.

They are little lessons for us.

You wished someone would have showed up on your doorstep with a treat and a hug?

Then we can be that person to someone else.

You wish your ministering sister would have at least checked in on you from time to time?

Then we can check in on her often.

Life is so unbelievably unfair and difficult.

We can think about that all the time and wallow in self-pity for all the help we didn’t receive.

Or we can use that as fuel to become “that person” for someone else.

As the Saints in New York were asked to start making the journey to Ohio, they were advised by the Lord to especially look out for the poor and the needy.

This trip was going to take a lot of money and sacrifice, and the Lord didn’t want any of His children left behind due to financial hardship.

And so His counsel?

“Let every man esteem his brother as himself”. (D&C 38:24)

If YOU needed a place for your family to stay after selling your farm and before leaving for Ohio, what kind of help would you want?

Then BE that kind of help for someone else.

Life is hard enough without spending time and energy on thinking about how unfair we have it. How forgotten we feel. How rough our hand of cards is.

And so I’d rather treat others the way that I wish that I had been treated.

To allow my trial to be my specific training for how to serve those around me even better.

We can be the change that we wish to see.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Be what you needed first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.