That fridge you keep saying you’ll clean out?

That person you keep meaning to text?

I do.

It’s like there’s this unpleasant list of all the things I don’t really want to do, that I need to do…

And it just weighs me down!

When I finally call and schedule that appointment, I always always always think, “man, that wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be and I feel a million times better now.”

And that’s basically what the Lord is telling us all the time.

“Release yourself from bondage.” D&C 19:35

In this case, it was the Lord telling Martin Harris to just pay off the debts to publish the Book of Mormon, and move on.

In other words, release yourself from the mental “unknown” and anguish, and just get it done.

And in the kindest way possible, that’s what He’s inviting us to do all the time.

Whether it’s a big sin we’ve been carrying around on our backs, or a minor little task that we just can’t seem to do, He has lovingly already done His part.

And He’s ready for each of us to decide to release ourselves from the bondage.

The bondage of sin, yes, but I think that also includes the bondage of heavy mental loads, too many commitments, or a long to-do list.

As soon as we start to make the first move, to pick up that phone, to decide that today is the day, He is right by our side doing more than His fair share of the heavy lifting.

But we have to make that decision to release ourselves.

What will you release yourself of today?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Release yourself first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Mormon had just finished telling his son Moroni about the terrible things that were going on with the Lamanites and Nephites, and what tragic futures were to come.

But then he reminds his son:

Don’t let these things weigh you down.

Don’t let the evils of others bring your spirit and your faith down.

Don’t let the wickedness of the world dim your light.

Don’t let other people’s poor decisions linger in your mind.

And instead?

Let Christ lift you up.

Let your knowledge of His atoning sacrifice bring you hope.

Let His mercy linger in your mind.

Let His goodness be a powerful example to you.

What a lesson right?

Sometimes, I wish that I didn’t tie so many of my posts into “2020”. But at the end of the day, I can’t ignore the similarities between the end of the Book of Mormon and our current reality.

There is a lot of evil around us.

There are people with ill-intentions.

There are people making terrible decisions that affect us.

And yet, knowing that Christ has already atoned for our sins makes the weight much less heavy.

Because – Christ has already won. He has won victory over sin, over weaknesses, and over death.

And that knowledge can lift us up, even when we are surrounded by the most unpleasant of circumstances.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Weighed down and lifted up first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.