There are people who have spent their entire lives studying things and even they don’t know it all.

It is mind blowing how much we don’t know.

I get that same feeling when I read through Moses chapter 1.

God talks about the numberless worlds He has created and inhabitants everywhere. 

Woah.

There is so much information Heavenly Father has not shared with us yet.

And I think Moses even felt slightly overwhelmed when he humbly asked the Lord why He’d created this whole plan. 

But do you know what I am grateful for?

God answers Moses’s question.

He gives Moses and us “the why.”

“For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” (Moses 1:39)

It’s for immortality and eternal life.

That’s why we are here.

That’s why we have a veil and can’t remember anything from before.

That’s why life is fantastic and also painful.

That’s why Jesus is so important.

We may not know everything, but it’s all for our immortality and eternal life.

And we can trust that He’s got a plan to help us get there.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Walking into a library first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

That’s how I feel after every General Conference. ⁣

I was never really into sports, but I imagine this is what it feels like after getting a big pep talk and running out onto the field. ⁣

I’m ready to go. I feel clarity on the changes I need to make. ⁣

I’m ready to refocus on my goal of God and Jesus and eternal life, and do whatever it takes to get there. ⁣

And then I run out, and the opposition starts. ⁣

The distractions are everywhere. ⁣

My poor habit routines fall back into place despite my good intentions. ⁣

There are people to deal with and work with and contention everywhere. ⁣

But that’s where the real work happens. ⁣

It is hard sometimes. ⁣

It brings joy, but it still takes work. ⁣

So I don’t give up. ⁣

I have a rough few minutes and then I get back up, brush myself off, and try again. ⁣

Keeping the focus on the Savior. ⁣

Looking toward the real endgame. The ultimate goal. ⁣

Do I have faith that if I keep my focus on Jesus, then I will ultimately win, no matter what?⁣

That takes a lot of faith, and trust. ⁣

And then it just takes a lot of action. ⁣

The Lord taught: “Therefore, gird up thy loins for the work.” (D&C 112:7⁣)

Get ready, this is going to be a lot of work. ⁣

But it’s going to be so joyful. So rewarding. ⁣

So peaceful.

And the work is worth it all to get closer to my God.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Post-conference pep talk  first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Everyone was excited at first!

Mixing and stirring and pouring is fun.

But that excitement soon turned to boredom.

Listening to directions and putting away ingredients is not fun.

Eventually, I was all alone.

I put the pan in the oven.

When I took the pan out, the kids came running to my side immediately.

“I want to eat them! I want to eat them!”

I had to laugh as the story of The Little Red Hen popped into my head.

In this story, the little red hen decides to make some bread, but all her barnyard friends say, “Not I,” when she asks for help.

As soon as the bread is finished and the smell fills the air, though, she has a long line of people who would like to help eat that bread.

I, of course, still let my kids eat some of the brownies.

But I think it is interesting that the Lord reminded many of the early Church leaders:

“If you will that I give unto you a place in the celestial world, you must prepare yourselves by doing the things which I have commanded you and required of you.” (D&C 78:7)

In other words, if we want the reward, we need to put in the work.

Are we just dreaming of our mansions above?

Or are we waking up and doing something good?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post “Not I!” first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Most modern inventions and advancements make life easier and more comfortable for everyone.

Handwashing all my laundry and riding horses everywhere sure seems like a lot of work.

I mean even just camping in cabins last week, I was reminded how easy my life is on a daily basis.

So what does this mean about my sins?

I’ve noticed that most of the sins and bad habits in my life are the ones that keep me feeling comfortable.

Even though this means they stop my growth.

So if I’m asked to repent and change, that can be a little scary.

Because that means I’m being asked to give up comfort.

I often have to step aside from a lifestyle that’s a little more comfortable and instead choose to do more work.

We might have to stay away from the tempting “comforts” of not needing to help others, keeping 100% of our income, or doing whatever we want on the Sabbath.

And yet, we are invited to, “. . .fear not, and lay aside every sin, which easily doth beset you, which doth bind you down to destruction, yea, come and go forth, and show unto your God that ye are willing to repent of your sins and enter into a covenant with him to keep his commandments.” (Alma 7:15)

We are invited to not have fear.

Jesus asks us to grow instead of being so focused on comfort.

It can be scary to give up a “comfortable” life, but it doesn’t have to be.

Because on the other side of that mortal “comfort” is pure love, joy, and true rest with our Savior.

“To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain.” —Richard G. Scott

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post My comfortable life first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

When faced with a tragedy, most people say that the traditional offering of “thoughts and prayers” doesn’t do anything.

People say that only actions will change things or offer any real help.

I always think:

Why not both?

Thoughts and prayers AND action!

We should always accompany our prayers with sincere effort.

Effort matters!

Whether that’s taking steps to support family members who need help.

Or actually reaching out to the ward members who aren’t at church.

Or becoming involved in advocacy for national or international causes that you care about.

But what do we do when “action” isn’t an option?

What do we do in those impossibly difficult moments when someone is enduring a trial that we wish we could take away but can’t?

What do we do when someone’s heart is too hardened to notice our efforts?

What do we do when we can’t control the outcome?

I have learned that prayer works.

Prayer really works.

God is powerful.

There are some blessings that God wants to give to us, but He needs us to ask Him in prayer.

The Bible Dictionary entry for “Prayer” says:

“The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them.

“Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them.

“Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.”

That’s the only condition for many blessings!

We have to ask.

We have to intentionally ask.

“We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers.” (1 Thessalonians 1:2)

We can plead for those around us in our prayers.

We should absolutely accompany our sincere prayers with actions and service if possible. ⁣

But our Heavenly Father recognizes the form of “work” that offering a prayer is and is willing to give us and others blessings from that action.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Thoughts and prayers! first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

COMPASSION.

Have you noticed it in the parable of the Good Samaritan?

First, a priest and a Levite pass this “half-dead” man on the side of the road.

Probably pretty good people.

Probably with legitimate excuses to be somewhere.

Probably knew this guy didn’t really have a chance, or maybe even deserved the trouble he was in. ⁣

But then…

“A certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him”. (Luke 10:33)

The Samaritan passes the man and is filled with COMPASSION.

How are we doing with feeling compassion towards other people?

When we see a homeless individual on the side of the road, do we make fun of them and make some snide remark?

Or are we filled with COMPASSION?

When someone tells us they are going to do something and then they don’t, do we think negative thoughts about them or even “tell the story” to someone else?

Or are we filled with COMPASSION?

When a family member disappoints you, do you take it personally and add drama to it?

Or are you filled with COMPASSION?

But this Good Samaritan didn’t even stop at compassion!

After he was filled with COMPASSION, he acted.

He got right to work to solve the problem. ⁣

I love that. ⁣

When other people aren’t acting the way we think they should, let’s be filled with COMPASSION and then GET TO WORK. ⁣

When bad things happen to people we know, let’s be filled with COMPASSION and then GET TO WORK. ⁣

When we see people in need, let’s be filled with COMPASSION and then GET TO WORK.

COMPASSION and then GET TO WORK.

It’s a beautiful duo.

A divine duo.

The perfect combination to make this famous Samaritan “good”.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Compassion in the Good Samaritan first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Every few months, I have a crazy work week where I need to use every single spare minute working.

And that includes sacrificing a lot of sleep.

Last week was one of those weeks.

I usually dread them.

But last week, I tried something different.

I tried intentionally inviting Jesus’ “rest” into my life at the same exact time that I was getting very little physical rest.

And it was…

Life-changing.

I got all my work done, as I usually do during that crazy week.

But I felt calm. I found more creative ways than usual to get work done. My kids napped more often. My husband was able to support me even more than usual.

I felt… peace.

The work wasn’t gone.

But I felt this joy and relief that came WHILE I was still working and staying up late.

I knew we would be studying this scripture this week, so I kept focusing on it, each time learning something new:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

Do you labor?

Are you heavy laden with burdens?

Then learn of Jesus.

Read His teachings. Immerse yourself in the scriptures. Remember Him as constantly as your mortal mind can handle.

Now, a crazy work week is more of a trivial example.

I’ve had many more times in my life where the burdens have felt like too much, and I had no guarantee that they’d be over in a week.

Some are still going on right now.

But my little case study last week has given me greater resolve:

Jesus won’t always take away our burdens.

But He will give us relief. He will give us peace and joy in unexpected ways.

He can give us rest.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Finding rest, even with no sleep first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

How do we raise gritty and resilient kids?

How do we teach children to keep trying over and over, even when it is difficult?

Even when they don’t see success?

How do you persevere and stay engaged, especially when things aren’t always “fun”?

I feel like I’ve noticed a shift in our church culture, too.

“Even in turbulent times, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is gritty and resilient. It helps us sift through unimportant distractions. It encourages us to keep moving along the covenant path.” —Lisa L. Harkness

How do we develop gritty faith?

The faith in Jesus Christ that is resilient? That isn’t dependent on immediate results?

The faith in Jesus that sustains even when the social aspect of church fails us?

The love for God that keeps us clinging to our covenants instead of getting swayed by every persuading opinion we hear?

“Be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the Lord, and work: for I am with you, saith the Lord of hosts: According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.” (Haggai 2:4-5)

The Lord asks us to get to work.

He asks us to cast our fears away and focus on hope and love instead.

He asks us to remember what God has done in the past in order to trust that He’ll keep His promises in the future, too.

Gritty faith.

It’s not a phrase I’ve heard very often, but it’s one that I really like.

The faith in Jesus Christ that keeps us moving forward, focused on the things that matter most, no matter what may come our way.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Gritty faith first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

That’s how I feel after every General Conference.

I was never really into sports, but I imagine this is what it feels like after getting a big pep talk and running out onto the field.

I’m ready to go. I feel clarity on the changes I need to make.

I’m ready to refocus on my goal of God and Jesus and eternal life, and do whatever it takes to get there.

And then I run out, and the opposition starts.

The distractions are everywhere.

My poor habit routines fall back into place despite my good intentions.

There are people to deal with and work with and contention everywhere.

But that’s where the hard work happens.

It is hard sometimes.

It brings joy, but it still takes work.

So I don’t give up.

I have a rough few minutes and then I get back up, brush myself off, and try again.

Keeping the focus on the Savior.

Looking toward the real endgame. The ultimate goal.

Do I have faith that if I keep my focus on Jesus, then I will ultimately win, no matter what?

That takes a lot of faith, and trust.

And then it just takes a lot of action.

The Lord taught: “Therefore, gird up thy loins for the work.” D&C 112:7

Get ready, this is going to be a lot of work.

But it’s going to be so joyful. So rewarding.

So peaceful.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post Ready to work? first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.

Her response, and I quote, was: “No thank you, I’m just going to watch some TV.”

I mean, points for politeness, right??

I mixed up the ingredients and put the pan in the oven.

When I took the pan out, Quin came running to my side. “I want to eat them! I want to eat them!”

I had to laugh as the story of the Little Red Hen popped into my head.

Remember that classic?

Where the little red hen decides to make some bread, but all her barnyard friends say “Not I” when she asks for help?!

And then as soon as the bread is finished and the smell fills the air, she’s got a long line of people who would like to help eat that bread.

Now, as a mom of a 3 year old, I certainly let Quin eat some of the brownies that she had not helped mix at all.

But in D&C 78:7, the Lord reminded many of the church leaders:

“If you will that I give unto you a place in the celestial world, you must prepare yourselves by doing the things which I have commanded you and required of you.”

In other words, if we want the reward, we need to put in the work.

Section 78 was received less than a month after that groundbreaking Section 76 vision where Joseph and Sidney learned about the celestial kingdom, and what it would be like there.

I’m gonna bet that there were some saints who were pretty excited for the celestial kingdom, now that they knew it existed, and talked about it a lot.

And so I can see the Lord needing to give some gentle reminders to the saints and their leaders.

We can’t just dream of our mansions above.

Instead, we have to wake up, and do something good.

We need to put in the celestial work.

So what celestial work can you do today?

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

The post The little red hen and celestial work first appeared on Come Follow Me Study with Cali Black.