The idea that when things are going generally well, people tend to forget God and become prideful.

So then He sends a variety of difficult things to make life tough enough that people start to call upon God again.

As they call upon God again, the trial is eventually removed, but then, unfortunately, the cycle starts to repeat when life becomes so good that they stop turning to God again.

And let me just reassure you that this pattern did not only occur during the Book of Mormon times.

In D&C 101:8, the Lord chastises the saints:

“In the day of their peace they esteemed lightly my counsel; but, in the day of their trouble, of necessity they feel after me.”

I, unfortunately, can relate to this.

When life is throwing everything at me, and I’ve got tough stuff to handle, I find myself constantly turning to the Lord in prayer and finding any little way to bring the spirit into my life so that I can feel guidance and peace.

Pleading. Dependent. Longing.

But when things are going just fine, I tend to lose that sense of gravity and seriousness.

That desperation to connect with God.

So how do we break out of that pride cycle?

How do we avoid only seeking God when things are difficult?

The two answers I’ve found in my life?

Gratitude and humility.

When I keep in perspective what He has done for me, and how much power He has at all times, it becomes that much easier to stay dependent on His counsel.

Is life feeling pretty rough right now?

Plead to the Lord. Ask for help. Lean on Him.

Is life feeling alright right now?

Try leaning into gratitude so that you can remember just how dependent we always are on Him who created everything.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Only in the hard times first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

All in the space of one chapter.

My thoughts were always…

Really, Nephites?

You are going to forget the word of God and turn to wickedness that quickly? It seems a little ridiculous.

Until I examine my own life.

Circumstances can change super quickly.

And when circumstances change…

Habits can change FAST.

Hearts can change FAST.

This is not-so-great news.

And, this is great news.

We can make fast changes in our lives.

I can suddenly stop going to church.

And I can suddenly start reading my scriptures.

I can suddenly decide that I’m not going to initiate family prayer anymore.

And I can suddenly text a friend and ask how I can help.

Although most of us probably aren’t cycling between extreme wickedness or extreme righteousness every single week, we do find our lives and habits to be cyclical in nature.

And we can decide pretty quickly whether we are headed in one direction or another.

So what’s a quick change you can make right now?

Is there a decision you’ve been putting off? Is there a habit that you’ve been waiting to start? Is there a sin that you’ve been waiting to stop?

Make the fast decision now.

Because if the civilizations in the scriptures teach us anything, it’s just how quickly people can change.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Fast changes first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.