I grew to love those kids, but every day was an exercise in my patience, classroom management, crisis management, and attitude, to say the least! ⁣

I moved to a new school the following year, and these kids were a dream. ⁣

I remember coming home after the first day and telling my husband that this was going to be a much better year. ⁣

After the first week of school, my co-teacher, who I swapped the exact same kids with every day after lunch, sat down with me to debrief. ⁣

I sat there shocked as he went on and on about how rough these kids were! ⁣

He had been teaching at that exact same school for 10 years, and he said it was the worst group of kids he had ever had. ⁣

Our attitudes toward our two shared classes were almost completely shaped by the differing experiences we had prior to that moment. ⁣

In that moment, I realized that so much of our experience here on earth is about comparison. ⁣

Adam and Eve learned this lesson very early on.

In Moses 5:10-11, Adam said:⁣

“Because of my transgression my eyes are opened, and in this life I shall have joy…” ⁣

Eve said, “Were it not for our transgression… we never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption”. ⁣

As tempting as it can be to wish for smooth-sailing throughout life, with perfectly organized and balanced schedules, it can’t be so. ⁣

There’s a purpose for the busy seasons, for the chaos, for the trials and struggles. ⁣

We need both! ⁣

We need the rough times so that we can actually find the joy when the blessings flow.

“Opposition is an essential part of the divine plan for helping us grow, and in the midst of that process, we have God’s assurance that, in the long view of eternity, opposition will not be allowed to overcome us.” – President Oaks

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Opposing 6th graders first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

It was so annoying!

From eating to speaking to sleeping…

I found that so many of my daily habits were affected by my inability to breathe through my nose.

When my sinuses finally cleared, I was so excited.

I could finally breathe through my nose again!

It was all I could think about.

And I quite literally prayed many prayers of gratitude for my nose.

I’m not going to lie; it usually is not fun to think about this truth:

“For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things.” (2 Nephi 2:11)

But it is true.

If I had never had a stuffy nose, I would have never felt gratitude for a clear one.

The negative opposition isn’t fun to experience.

This goes from things as trivial as stuffy noses or headaches…

To much more serious issues like family arguments, physical trials, or emotional issues.

These hard times can be really tough to dwell on.

But if we keep the proper perspective, we can use these hard times to teach us gratitude.

We can use opposition as fuel to keep constant gratitude in our hearts.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post My stuffy nose  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

There may or may not have been some stories in the news about this recently…

It’s unfair to cheat.

It gives you an advantage that other people don’t have.

But when it comes to the battle with our adversary, we’ve been explicitly told in the scriptures all of the “plays” he will try in order to keep our hearts from turning to God.

We’ve been given the unfair advantage over the opposition!

John reveals one of the biggest tactics the adversary will use in the last days:

“And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth.” (Revelation 13:14) 

He will try to deceive us!

But what does it mean to be deceived?

It means we are convinced to believe something is not true even when it is.

So that means deception will be a significant tool the adversary uses on people who already believe in Jesus Christ.

Think about the truths you know about Jesus Christ.

Think about what Jesus does for you, and how much God loves you.

Has the adversary ever tried to convince you that those things were actually false AFTER you had already received your testimony?

Elder Neil L. Anderson counseled:

“Embrace your sacred memories. Believe them.”

The adversary wants to erode our trust with ourselves.

We had a strong impression that Jesus Christ loves us so so so much?

The adversary wants us to be deceived.

When it comes to the Savior, the adversary has been and always will be working overtime to make us doubt what we already know.

So what’s our play going to be?

How can we go on the offensive, knowing that our opposition is going to try to deceive?

To me, this means that it is always a good time to seek out more spiritual experiences.

I need a steady stream of CURRENT impressions and witnesses so that I can stay grounded in truth.

And with the inside knowledge that I have, I will be guaranteed to come out on top.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The opposition’s playbook  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I grew to love those kids, but every day was an exercise in my patience, classroom management, crisis management, and attitude, to say the least!

I moved to a new school the following year, and these kids were a dream.

I remember coming home after the first day and telling my husband that this was going to be a much better year.

After the first week of school, my co-teacher, who I swapped the exact same kids with every day after lunch, sat down to debrief.

I sat there shocked as he went on and on about how rough these kids were!

He had been teaching at that exact same school for 10 years, and he said it was the worst group of kids he had ever had.

Our attitudes toward our two shared classes were almost completely shaped by the differing experiences we had prior to that moment.

In that moment, I realized that so much of our experience here on earth is about comparison.

Adam and Eve learned this lesson very early on!

In Moses 5:10-11, Adam said:

“Because of my transgression my eyes are opened, and in this life I shall have joy…”

Eve said, “Were it not for our transgression… we never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption”.

As tempting as it can be to wish for smooth-sailing throughout life, with perfectly organized and balanced schedules, it can’t be so.

There’s a purpose for the busy seasons, for the chaos, for the trials and struggles.

We need both!

We need the rough times so that we can actually find the joy when the blessings flow!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Opposition in all things first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.