Am I showing good results as a member of the Lord’s restored gospel?

I try to study my scriptures each day.

Say prayers.

Serve others.

Fulfill my calling.

Keep the sabbath holy.

It can start to become too much. I can start to become weighed down.

Yes, it’s good fruit.

But when it starts to outgrow my roots, that’s when there’s a problem.

When I study the olive tree allegory, the Lord of the vineyard seems the most concerned with two parts of His olive trees:

The roots

AND

the fruit.

“And this I do that, perhaps, the roots thereof may take strength because of their goodness; and because of the change of the branches, that the good may overcome the evil.” (Jacob 5:59) 

Sometimes, I’m so focused on producing “good fruit” that I forget it’s impossible to do so without strong roots.

And roots need constant nourishment.

Instead of just checking off my scripture study for the day, I try to really connect with God and feel the Spirit in order to nourish my soul.

I turn off the fun TV show and listen to a conference talk, really focusing on connecting with God.

I find meaning in my church service instead of just getting things done.

And it makes a world of a difference.

When I feel “exhausted”, I’m usually not taking care of my gospel roots. I’m usually only focusing on the “good fruit” that other people might see.

But when I start taking care of nourishing my “roots” a lot more, feeding them a steady stream of scripture, doctrine, and goodness, guess what starts to happen?

When my roots are strong, my “fruit” is naturally good, too.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Roots and branches  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Even though this lengthy allegory’s interpretation covers the entire earth and thousands of years, and could take hours of dissection and analysis…

I want to focus on what we can learn about God.

What does He do in this allegory of an olive tree?

“And it came to pass that the master of the vineyard went forth, and he saw that his olive-tree began to decay; and he said: I will prune it, and dig about it, and nourish it, that perhaps it may shoot forth young and tender branches, and it perish not.” (Jacob 5:4)

God wants to save.

He wants to save me!

He wants to give me as many chances as He possibly can.

He will not give up on me.

He will graft, prune, and dig.

Which is very arduous work.

But He is willing to do on my behalf.

He will help me get nourishment.

He’ll weep when I do not produce good fruit.

He’ll rejoice when I do!

As Elder Kearon so eloquently put, “God is in relentless pursuit of you.”

The allegory of the olive tree can be so overwhelming and complicated to dissect all at once.

But this allegory becomes so special and personal when we look at what we can learn about the nature of God.

It shows the great lengths that He will go, out of love, to save each person.

You are worth saving!

You are worth Heavenly Father’s time, effort, and attention, even more so than the olive tree.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post My olive tree lesson first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

And what is it about?

“he saw that his olive tree began to decay…”

“It grieveth me that I should lose this tree;”

“let us go down into the vineyard, that we may labor…”

It’s about our Savior trying to save an olive tree in his vineyard.

Now, this full allegory and its interpretation span the entire earth and thousands of years.

But what can I learn about the Savior’s personal mission in my own life from this lengthy chapter?

What can I learn about Christ’s nature from this story?

He wants to save me. He wants to help me. He will give me as many chances as he possibly can. He will not give up on me.

He will graft. And prune. And dig.

He will consider what soil he has planted me in and help me get good nourishment.

He will weep and grieve when I do not produce good fruit.

He will rejoice when I produce good fruit.

He will use his prophets and other servants to help me.

The allegory of the olive tree shows that my Savior cares about every branch and tree within his vineyard.

And it shows the lengths that he will go to, out of love, in order to save each member.

I am worth saving. I am worth the time. I am worth the effort.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

Artwork: “Olive Tree Above Stone Fence” by Vitaliy

The post I am worth the effort first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.