Joseph and Sidney Rigdon were doing great work. ⁣

Day in and day out, they worked in John and Elsa Johnson’s home in Hiram, Ohio, translating the Bible. ⁣

They were truly the example of being anxiously engaged in a good cause.⁣

But then…⁣

Ezra Booth was causing problems. ⁣

He had become disaffected with Joseph on their journey from Missouri to Ohio a few months previously, and even though all of the other men had forgiven each other and moved past it, Ezra did not. ⁣

He left the church and began writing pretty malicious letters about Joseph and the church, and publishing them in local newspapers. ⁣

And now, a lot of their neighbors in Ohio, who really had been welcoming and totally fine with the saints’ presence thus far, were starting to worry about who these church members really were.

So, the Lord told Joseph and Sidney, these two men who were working on a great, eternally important project to stop “for the space of a season” (D&C 71:2) and preach the gospel around in Ohio. ⁣

They had to stop the good thing they were doing in order to put out the urgent fire of discord that was spreading in Ohio. ⁣

I wonder if Joseph or Sidney ever felt annoyed. ⁣

Or frustrated. ⁣

They had to stop their good work to go put out the consequences of someone else’s bad decisions. ⁣

But they did it anyways. ⁣

They spent about a month traveling around Ohio, preaching true doctrine and showing the people in Ohio who they really were. ⁣

And guess what? ⁣

It worked. The people in Ohio calmed down and a lot of rumors were squashed. ⁣

And in Section 73, we get to see the other end of this. ⁣

The Lord tells Joseph and Sidney that “it is expedient to translate again”. ⁣(D&C 73:3)

Sometimes, we have to stop doing really good things that we are doing. ⁣

We have to put life on pause to deal with a medical concern. We have to stop cooking dinner to deal with a frustrated child. We have to stop our normal routines to help a friend in need. ⁣

Sometimes, we need to put out the urgent fire for just a season, and then we can do other good things we had planned.

And God can give us a glimpse of the big picture when we act in faith.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post I would have been frustrated  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Most of the time, they were just quick questions. Not a big deal.

Sometimes they were super positive and kind! ⁣

Buuuut sometimes they were not very kind.

At all. ⁣

When I first started teaching, I would immediately try to tackle writing a response. ⁣

Even though I’m pretty good at keeping things professional, I was still writing it in an emotional state.

I’d want to refute every point they had made.

I’d want to fully explain every detail of the full story.

When I would read the correspondence a few days later, I would feel a little regret with a few lines that I felt I “needed” to include at the time. ⁣

What I quickly learned was the importance of being

SWIFT TO HEAR,

SLOW TO SPEAK, and

SLOW TO WRATH. ⁣

I’ve tried to become the best listener ever.

I don’t want to assume or butt in with my own thoughts.

I just want to listen.

But the most important element has been as I’ve learned to be SLOW to speak.

There is so much power in a pause.

Even if my first reaction is anger or frustration or disappointment…

I know that I need to WAIT. ⁣

This has applied everywhere in my life, from parenting to social relationships, from church issues to huge trials.

Sometimes the “waiting” is just a few seconds.

A quick breath to remind myself that my toddler is a toddler and isn’t supposed to do everything “right”. ⁣

Sometimes “waiting” is a few days.

A change in a calling, church policy, work situation, or routine.

If I literally just wait a few days, I find the change isn’t as dramatic as I thought.

And other times, the “waiting” takes… a really long time.

There are hard feelings towards another person or situation.

It just takes some waiting, a lot of prayer, and a lot of reflection. ⁣

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath”. (James 1:19)

To me, this verse is practical AND spiritual.

It’s brought so much peace to my life as I’ve slowed down and stopped thinking about myself so much, learning to listen and wait.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Slow to speak first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Joseph and Sidney Rigdon were doing great work.

Day in and day out, they worked in John and Elsa Johnson’s home in Hiram, Ohio, translating the Bible.

They were truly the example of being anxiously engaged in a good cause.

But then…

Ezra Booth was causing problems.

He had become disaffected with Joseph on their journey from Missouri to Ohio a few months previously, and even though all of the other men had forgiven each other and moved past it, Ezra did not.

He left the church and began writing pretty malicious letters about Joseph and the church, and publishing them in local newspapers.

And now, a lot of their neighbors in Ohio, who really had been welcoming and totally fine with the saints’ presence thus far, were starting to worry about who these church members really were, and who this Joseph really was.

So, the Lord told Joseph and Sidney, these two men who were working on a great, eternally important project to stop “for the space of a season” and preach the gospel around in Ohio.

They had to stop the good thing they were doing in order to put out the urgent fire of discord that was spreading in Ohio.

I wonder if Joseph or Sidney ever felt annoyed.

Or frustrated.

They had to stop their good work to go put out the consequences of someone else’s bad decisions.

But they did it anyways.

They spent about a month traveling around Ohio, preaching true doctrine and showing the people in Ohio who they really were.

And guess what?

It worked. The people in Ohio calmed down and a lot of rumors were squashed.

And in Section 73, we get to see the other end of this.

The Lord tells Joseph and Sidney that “it is expedient to translate again”.

Sometimes, we have to stop doing really good things that we are doing.

We have to put life on pause to deal with a medical emergency. We have to stop cooking dinner to deal with a frustrated child. We have to stop our normal routines to help a friend in need.

Sometimes, we need to put out the urgent fire for just a season, and then we can get back to the good things we had planned.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Pausing the good things first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.