There are weird, vague events.

Sudden scenery changes.

Mergers of different people that we know. ⁣

And we just go along with it!

But then we wake up. ⁣

And suddenly, it is clear that THIS is reality. ⁣

It seems strange to have even believed that our abstract dreams were reality. ⁣

There are times in my life when I have felt like I was dreaming when it came to my spiritual connection to God. ⁣

I didn’t fully realize that I was dreaming at the time, though.

It seemed like it was just reality.

God just seemed like a tricky person to actually connect with. Not much I could do about it. ⁣

And then something wakes me up. ⁣

Sometimes it’s a big trial that humbles me. Sometimes it’s a powerful talk or lesson. Sometimes it’s a spiritual awakening in a haphazard personal study. ⁣

But all of a sudden, I REALIZE how “asleep” I had been in my worship. ⁣

And the contrast is stark to feeling AWAKE. ⁣

I become an active participant in my spiritual progression. I feel the connection to God. I reach out to people around me and share my light. ⁣

Sometimes, we just need a reminder to AWAKEN our souls. ⁣

But this can be tricky when we don’t even recognize how spiritually asleep we are. ⁣

Nephi’s passionate plea, “Awake my soul!” (2 Nephi 4:28) can remind us that we have the power to wake ourselves up from our dreamlike state. ⁣

We can wake up and take the reigns of our relationship with God. We can wake up and choose to act. We can wake up and share our testimony with others. ⁣

Awake, my soul!

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Awake my soul!  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

I can still distinctly remember her cries waking me up shortly after I had just fallen asleep.

My immediate instinct was to soothe her in any way possible in her bassinet.

I put my hand on her chest.

I fished around for her pacifier and tried to put that in her mouth.⁣

And then quite often, I’d realize she wasn’t going back to sleep, and was ready to eat.⁣

I’d pull my body up from the comfy sheets, prop up my pillows, pull her from her bassinet, and feed her for a half hour in the dark. ⁣

Motherhood is a sacrifice.

A sacrifice of my body. My comfort. My sleep. My time. My mental resources. ⁣

But this sacrifice has refined me into a more selfless, more kind, more fulfilled, and hopefully more Christlike person. ⁣

Could I ever ignore or forget my baby’s cries in the middle of the night?

It’s hard to even imagine. ⁣

And yet, our Savior will forget us even less than a mother and her newborn child.

“For can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel.” (1 Nephi 21:15)

He has given us a greater sacrifice than even a mother who has birthed a child.

His body was broken for us. His emotional energy was depleted for us. His mortal life was ended for us. ⁣

He has sacrificed so much for us, that He could never forget us. ⁣

He has graven us upon the palms of His hands. ⁣

Do we remember that we can cry out to Him?

Do we trust that He really will respond every time in exactly the way that we need?

Do we know that His sacrifice for us forges a connection that can never be lost?⁣

The Lord will not forget us. He has never. And He will never. ⁣

He is aware of our every action and thought and move. He knows when we are in pain. He knows when we are confused. He knows when we just need a break. ⁣

All we need to do is trust that He really is there.

At 1:00 am, or whenever we need Him, He is there.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Sleepless nights  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.