There was one day in particular when we both hadn’t been on our phones very much because we had a packed schedule of fun events.

It was evening before we both had a chance to sit down and pull out our phones to scroll social media.

We sat down to just chill and scroll social media a bit.

However, as soon as I had opened it, I immediately had to put my phone away.

I’ve always thought people posting their opinions on social media didn’t affect me much.

But in that moment, I felt such a stark contrast.

I had been living in the moment all day—

Connecting, experiencing, relaxing, having fun, and having meaningful conversations.

And then I opened my phone and saw a literal “war of words and tumult of opinions.”

It was too much for me.

That evening, I stayed off social media, FaceTimed my kids, read my scriptures, and went to bed.

Ignore any historical context you may know about this verse, and try to read it from your current perspective:

“In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often said to myself: What is to be done?” (JS-H 1:10)

As I sat there, looking at this war of words online, I realized I could do what Joseph did.

Instead of thinking:

“What do I need to post? What do I need to comment on? Where should I share my opinion?”

I tried to ask myself:

“What is to be done right now? What do I need to do?”

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the war of words?

Weighed down by the tumult of opinions?

Instead of adding to the words and the opinions, I think we would be wise to follow Joseph’s thought process.

Try focusing on what good things we can DO.

In our own spheres of influence.

We can create, serve, worship, love, solve, restore, and praise.

What is to be done?

Let’s do it.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post What is to be done?!  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Isn’t it CRAZY sometimes to think about how people in very similar circumstances can receive completely different responses to their prayers?⁣

A young couple gets married, and everyone has advice on how long they should or shouldn’t wait to have a kid, based on their own experiences and personal answers. ⁣

Parents pray together about how to deal with a specific child, and receive an answer that seems completely incomprehensible to someone else dealing with their own child. ⁣

A Bishop prays and feels that the ward should have certain initiatives or priorities, even though another Bishop has completely different ideas for his ward. ⁣

So who is wrong, and who is right? ⁣

Nephi clarified this for us in a beautiful, but often complicated lesson.⁣

“I was led by the Spirit”. ⁣(1 Nephi 4:6)

Two people, praying for exactly the same advice, may receive two completely different answers.

And if they have the Spirit with them, this is completely fine. ⁣

Two mothers may pray.

One mother may get a full-time job, and one mother may stay with her kids full-time.

As long as both are staying close to the Spirit and listening to their personal promptings, this is exactly how it should be. ⁣

It is sometimes a little difficult to read the account of Nephi slaying King Laban.

How could this make sense? Couldn’t there have been another way for Nephi to obtain these important plates?⁣

But when it comes down to it, Nephi reminds us:⁣

“I was led by the Spirit”. ⁣ (1 Nephi 4:6)

The answer he received in that moment was meant exactly for him in that situation.

And since he was close to the Spirit, that was clearly the right thing for him to do. No concerns about it. ⁣

Sometimes it can be hard to see when other people act on different promptings than we receive. ⁣

But Nephi followed the personal instructions he was given, no matter how difficult they were for him to follow. ⁣

And I think our lives are best lived when we stop worrying so much about and comparing the decisions other people are making, and instead focus on this big question:⁣

Do I have the Spirit with me?⁣

And that’s all that matters.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Married way too young first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

He had felt a pull to this young Joseph, and wanted to help him financially.

He went on a journey of “proof” to find professors in New York who could verify the ancient letters.

He felt like he needed to volunteer to scribe for Joseph.

And his wife thought this was all one big deception.

And the two of them temporarily moving into the Smith home for the translation just made things worse.

She was skeptical, sneaky, and just a not-so-great guest.

And so Martin had an idea after his wife returned back home:

If he could just show her some of these beautiful messages that he had been writing down, he could change her mind toward this whole operation, and ultimately, restore his image in her eyes.

But the Lord said no.

But… did the Lord really understand how embarrassing this might be for Martin to continue helping Joseph while his wife spiraled?

Did the Lord get that people were making fun of Martin for giving Joseph money?

Did the Lord know that Martin’s life would be a whole lot harder if there wasn’t any proof?

Of course the Lord did.

Because the Lord asks us to do really hard things.

He asks us to put Him above all.

Above being popular. Above being stylish. Above being funny. Above being well-respected. Above being rich. Above having power.

Above being liked.

Above everything we often crave.

And it’s easier said than done.

But it’s the most important choice we learn to make –

Out of the Lord or our peers, who do we want to “save face” with more?

Whose opinion matters more right now?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Does He realize how difficult this is? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.