August 4, 2025 • 12 mins
Have you ever heard the term “a deep dive” when people talk about studying the gospel? And have you ever wondered how to do it? Well, this week I show you one way that you can deep dive into almost any scripture that stands out to you. Not only are the steps on my free worksheet this week, but we go through it together on the podcast. It’s so exciting to me, because this is where the REAL POWER of scripture study lies - in diving in deep enough to apply it to your own life and draw nearer to the Savior. So grab your scriptures and the free worksheets, and let’s dive in together! –Cindy Young
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Don't forget the parable of the snowball: listening to someone else talk about the gospel is like having snowballs thrown at you. Reading the scriptures is like making your own snowball. Taking the time to search, ponder, and pray about what you've read is like rolling the snowball around and around so that it grows and grows. So don't just listen to me - please go read for yourself so your knowledge and testimony can grow and grow!!
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Beginners Guide to Scripture Study
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The Book of Mormon
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:05):
Hey, hey, hey.
Welcome, welcome.
I am your host, Cindy Young, andthis is Primarily Scripture, where
we use Come Follow Me to help uslearn how to study the scriptures
more effectively on our own.
Each week I create free nostrings attached worksheets,
and you can find those on mywebsite, PrimarilyScripture.com.
Between the worksheets and the podcastepisodes, I give you study tips and
(00:29):
tricks and teach you techniques thatyou can use to level up from reading
the scriptures to studying them.
So let's dive in!This week we are in Doctrine and
Covenants sections 85 through 87, andif you look at the top of page two of
my worksheets this week, you'll see thestudy tip that we're talking about today.
It says (00:48):
"the spirit can use the tiniest word or phrase to speak to
your heart. So slow down and take timeto ponder anything that stands out."
Have you guys ever experienced this?
Oh my goodness.
If you haven't, then you should considermaking this a goal of your scripture
noticing when the Spirit nudgesyou in a way that tells you that
(01:12):
what you're reading is important.
It is so fantastic!It's what makes scripture study one of
my favorite things in the whole world!Now this feeling will be
different for each person.
You might just find your eyes drawnto a certain word, or you might
have a really strong feeling, or itmight even be a tiny little thought.
Sometimes the tiny thought caneven feel like a distraction.
(01:36):
But if it's about what you're reading orabout a gospel principle, then there's a
really good chance that that is the spiritgiving you a nudge in a certain direction.
So that's why I'm telling you to slowdown and ponder anything that stands out
so that you can have that opportunityto recognize when the spirit nudges you.
(01:59):
So what does the pondering part look like?
Well, just like it's different whenthe spirit speaks to each of us and
we experience that differently, thepondering part can be unique to us too.
But we get to choose HOW we ponder.
Now, remember that the point of ponderingis to "dive deeper," which means taking
a closer look at what you're studying.
(02:20):
So imagine you're looking intoa pool of water and you see
something colorful at the bottom.
That's really neat.
But if you put your head intothe pool, you'll be able to
see it a little bit better.
And in order to really understandwhat you're seeing, you would need
to dive in and get as close as youcan, and that way you can learn
so much more about what you see.
(02:42):
If you get close enough, youcan feel it and see the details
that were otherwise unclear.
And the gospel is the same way.
So if you notice something, take time todive deeper and take a closer look at it.
Now, you can do thislots of different ways.
You can maybe find a conferencetalk or look up more scriptures
(03:04):
that are about that topic.
One of my favorite things to dois to write down all the random
thoughts that I'm having, and letme tell you, it is amazing how many
more thoughts I have when I'm doingthat, when I'm writing them down.
But another thing that you can do andthe worksheets help you to work through
this is to ponder by asking questions.
(03:25):
So let's look at the worksheetand see what it says.
We are in Doctrine and Covenantss 86, andit's explaining the parable that Jesus
taught about the wheat and the tares.
In the parable, there's a fieldand that represents the world.
And then verse two of section 86tells us that the sowers meaning the
people who plant the seeds, right?
(03:46):
Like the farmers, they are the apostles.
And then in the story, anenemy comes and plants tares.
And tares are a kind of weed, and theylook really similar to wheat, like almost
identical, but of course it's a weed.
So the enemy is Satan, and the weedshe's planting are false teachings that
(04:09):
might seem good, but they're contrary,meaning they go against God's teachings.
So let's look at the end of verse sixright here, and we'll read what it says.
he "soweth the tares," he plants thetares, "wherefore, the tares choke the
wheat and drive the church into thewilderness." So this part of the verse
(04:32):
stood out to me a little bit, and inthe margins right here on the worksheet,
I show you how I would dive deeper.
I started with the question aboutwhat I'm reading and how it's
relevant in the world today.
So the question I wrote here is,"how is Satan trying to disrupt the
testimonies of members of the church?"Now when I ask that question, I can
(04:57):
think about it and give a reallybasic answer like, oh yeah, Satan is
working so hard, and then move on.
But that's not really diving deeper.
That's recognizing it for whatit is, but it's not a deep dive.
So if we want to dive deeper, thenwe really need to explore the idea.
And that means being morespecific a lot of the time.
(05:19):
So I left you room here on theworksheet to make a little list, and
you might have to write small or dothe actual writing on your journal
page, but there is some room here.
Now if I was exploring this idea, Imight put things like, um, being mean
to people who have different ideas.
That's something thatSatan wants us to do.
Or teaching that Jesus doesn't care if wesin or not because he forgives everybody.
(05:43):
And while it's true that Jesus forgiveseverybody, uh, he does care if we sin.
So that is false doctrine thatSatan is trying to spread.
Let's see, what else could I write here?
Um, Satan is trying to devaluethe family by teaching that
other things are more important.
So these are all ideas that soundgood at first to many, many people,
(06:04):
but they are tricks of Satan tolead us away from God's teachings.
Do you see how we kindof explored this thought?
Well, now that we've explored someof these ideas and made a list of how
Satan is attacking the world, let'sdive even deeper and we'll take it a
little bit closer to home and we'llask, how is Satan trying to get to me?
(06:26):
Me personally?
Do you see how we're staying with the sameidea, but we're just going more specific
and more personal with our questions?
Now, this isn't really somethingthat we can fill out on this
podcast because it's very personal.
This is a chance for you to thinkabout your own life and where you
feel Satan is trying to get to you.
(06:46):
And I encourage you tonot make a long list here.
We all have a million things that wecan be better at, but one of Satan's
favorite tools is making us thinkthat we will never be good enough.
And he loves long to-do lists becausethen he can whisper in your ear about
how you'll never get it all done.
So don't make a super long list.
(07:07):
Just think of one or two things, andif you're not sure, then you can say a
little prayer and the spirit can helpyou find one or two things to work on.
Maybe you lose your temper easily,or maybe you struggle with being
kind to a certain family member.
Maybe you judge others too quickly,or you need to work on the things
that you watch or listen to.
(07:29):
Maybe Satan is distracting youduring church, or he's whispering
to you that you are not good enough.
These are just a few examples and you'llneed to ponder and identify Satan in
your life because sadly, I promiseyou, he is there trying to get to you.
But once you identify how Satan is tryingto get you, then you can move to the
(07:50):
next step of our deep dive, and thatis to pray about what the Lord wants
you to do to fight back against Satan.
And this one should definitely bea matter of prayer because even
though you might have a good idea ofsomething you can do, the Lord also
knows, and his ideas might surpriseyou, but his ideas are also the best.
(08:11):
So this step might take some time.
Maybe even a few days or weeks.
But if you pray about it and listenfor promptings and write down the
ideas that come to you, then youwill be using the principle of
personal revelation and you'll getspecific guidance for your own life.
Now, when those thoughts come, ifit's a very specific thought, like
(08:34):
I should listen to a conference talkas I drive to school in the morning.
Well, then you can just startdoing that exact thing because
that's a very specific thing to do.
But sometimes you'llhave more general ideas.
It would be something like, "I shouldlisten to conference talks more."
And then it's up to you to decidewhat that is going to look like.
(08:55):
So if your answer is more vagueand open-ended, then you move to
the next level of our deep dive,which is to make a specific plan.
And your plan might be something like,I will read the scriptures for five
minutes before I get out of bed, orI will write down three things I'm
thankful for at the end of the day.
What you decide to do is going to dependon what the Lord told you to work on,
(09:19):
so it's going to be impossible forme to answer this question for you.
You have to do the pondering yourselfand take it to the Lord, and then
you have to make your own plan.
But remember, the Lord loves effortand he wants you to figure out a plan
and he will help you as you work on it.
So there you go.
Do you see how we took the verse thatdescribes Satan going after the members
(09:41):
of the church and we did this deep dive?
We pondered what itlooks like in the world.
And then we identified it in our ownlives, and then we took it to the
Lord, and you can make a plan to fightback and overcome Satan's influences.
Now that verse isn't just aboutthe parable, but it is actually
changing your life and it'shelping you to follow the Lord.
(10:05):
And this is so exciting because this iswhere the power is in the scriptures.
It isn't just in the words- even thoughwords about the Lord and his gospel are
powerful, they increase in power whenyou bring them to life by pondering them,
looking closer, applying them to yourself,and using them to draw closer to the Lord.
(10:30):
And you probably haven't realizedit, but I have used this exact
same pattern in a lot of thestudy activities on my worksheets.
So you have done this already.
I have just broken itdown now for you to see.
And so now you can take this tool andapply it to different places in the
scriptures as you study on your own.
(10:50):
In fact, if you look closely, youwill find this same pattern on
page one of this week's worksheets.
One of the study ideas that I haveon there follows this pattern.
So anytime something stands out to you,take time to ponder it, and if the spirit
nudges you to dive deeper, you can usethis method to discover more gospel truths
(11:12):
and find ways to connect with the Savior.
I love it! So exciting!So I'm so excited to give this
tool to you, and I hope you willuse it as you study the gospel.
Now remember, there are so, so, somany ways to learn about the Gospel
of Jesus Christ, but no matter whatother resources you use, your study
should be primarily- which meansmostly, most importantly- scripture.
(11:37):
So go dive into those scripturesand see what you can find.
I'm Cindy Young.
I'll see you next time.
Bye guys!Thanks for tuning into primarily
Scripture with Cindy Young.
Don't forget you can subscribe to thenewsletter and download free worksheets
on the website, primarily scripture.com.
And if you like the channel,be sure to subscribe, like,
(11:59):
share, and leave a review.
See you next time.
Hey, hey, hey.
Welcome, welcome.
I am your host, Cindy Young, andthis is Primarily Scripture, where
we use Come Follow Me to help uslearn how to study the scriptures
more effectively on our own.
Each week I create free nostrings attached worksheets,
and you can find those on mywebsite, PrimarilyScripture.com.
Between the worksheets and the podcastepisodes, I give you study tips and
(00:29):
tricks and teach you techniques thatyou can use to level up from reading
the scriptures to studying them.
So let's dive in!This week we are in Doctrine and
Covenants sections 85 through 87, andif you look at the top of page two of
my worksheets this week, you'll see thestudy tip that we're talking about today.
It says (00:48):
"the spirit can use the tiniest word or phrase to speak to
your heart. So slow down and take timeto ponder anything that stands out."
Have you guys ever experienced this?
Oh my goodness.
If you haven't, then you should considermaking this a goal of your scripture
noticing when the Spirit nudgesyou in a way that tells you that
(01:12):
what you're reading is important.
It is so fantastic!It's what makes scripture study one of
my favorite things in the whole world!Now this feeling will be
different for each person.
You might just find your eyes drawnto a certain word, or you might
have a really strong feeling, or itmight even be a tiny little thought.
Sometimes the tiny thought caneven feel like a distraction.
(01:36):
But if it's about what you're reading orabout a gospel principle, then there's a
really good chance that that is the spiritgiving you a nudge in a certain direction.
So that's why I'm telling you to slowdown and ponder anything that stands out
so that you can have that opportunityto recognize when the spirit nudges you.
(01:59):
So what does the pondering part look like?
Well, just like it's different whenthe spirit speaks to each of us and
we experience that differently, thepondering part can be unique to us too.
But we get to choose HOW we ponder.
Now, remember that the point of ponderingis to "dive deeper," which means taking
a closer look at what you're studying.
(02:20):
So imagine you're looking intoa pool of water and you see
something colorful at the bottom.
That's really neat.
But if you put your head intothe pool, you'll be able to
see it a little bit better.
And in order to really understandwhat you're seeing, you would need
to dive in and get as close as youcan, and that way you can learn
so much more about what you see.
(02:42):
If you get close enough, youcan feel it and see the details
that were otherwise unclear.
And the gospel is the same way.
So if you notice something, take time todive deeper and take a closer look at it.
Now, you can do thislots of different ways.
You can maybe find a conferencetalk or look up more scriptures
(03:04):
that are about that topic.
One of my favorite things to dois to write down all the random
thoughts that I'm having, and letme tell you, it is amazing how many
more thoughts I have when I'm doingthat, when I'm writing them down.
But another thing that you can do andthe worksheets help you to work through
this is to ponder by asking questions.
(03:25):
So let's look at the worksheetand see what it says.
We are in Doctrine and Covenantss 86, andit's explaining the parable that Jesus
taught about the wheat and the tares.
In the parable, there's a fieldand that represents the world.
And then verse two of section 86tells us that the sowers meaning the
people who plant the seeds, right?
(03:46):
Like the farmers, they are the apostles.
And then in the story, anenemy comes and plants tares.
And tares are a kind of weed, and theylook really similar to wheat, like almost
identical, but of course it's a weed.
So the enemy is Satan, and the weedshe's planting are false teachings that
(04:09):
might seem good, but they're contrary,meaning they go against God's teachings.
So let's look at the end of verse sixright here, and we'll read what it says.
he "soweth the tares," he plants thetares, "wherefore, the tares choke the
wheat and drive the church into thewilderness." So this part of the verse
(04:32):
stood out to me a little bit, and inthe margins right here on the worksheet,
I show you how I would dive deeper.
I started with the question aboutwhat I'm reading and how it's
relevant in the world today.
So the question I wrote here is,"how is Satan trying to disrupt the
testimonies of members of the church?"Now when I ask that question, I can
(04:57):
think about it and give a reallybasic answer like, oh yeah, Satan is
working so hard, and then move on.
But that's not really diving deeper.
That's recognizing it for whatit is, but it's not a deep dive.
So if we want to dive deeper, thenwe really need to explore the idea.
And that means being morespecific a lot of the time.
(05:19):
So I left you room here on theworksheet to make a little list, and
you might have to write small or dothe actual writing on your journal
page, but there is some room here.
Now if I was exploring this idea, Imight put things like, um, being mean
to people who have different ideas.
That's something thatSatan wants us to do.
Or teaching that Jesus doesn't care if wesin or not because he forgives everybody.
(05:43):
And while it's true that Jesus forgiveseverybody, uh, he does care if we sin.
So that is false doctrine thatSatan is trying to spread.
Let's see, what else could I write here?
Um, Satan is trying to devaluethe family by teaching that
other things are more important.
So these are all ideas that soundgood at first to many, many people,
(06:04):
but they are tricks of Satan tolead us away from God's teachings.
Do you see how we kindof explored this thought?
Well, now that we've explored someof these ideas and made a list of how
Satan is attacking the world, let'sdive even deeper and we'll take it a
little bit closer to home and we'llask, how is Satan trying to get to me?
(06:26):
Me personally?
Do you see how we're staying with the sameidea, but we're just going more specific
and more personal with our questions?
Now, this isn't really somethingthat we can fill out on this
podcast because it's very personal.
This is a chance for you to thinkabout your own life and where you
feel Satan is trying to get to you.
(06:46):
And I encourage you tonot make a long list here.
We all have a million things that wecan be better at, but one of Satan's
favorite tools is making us thinkthat we will never be good enough.
And he loves long to-do lists becausethen he can whisper in your ear about
how you'll never get it all done.
So don't make a super long list.
(07:07):
Just think of one or two things, andif you're not sure, then you can say a
little prayer and the spirit can helpyou find one or two things to work on.
Maybe you lose your temper easily,or maybe you struggle with being
kind to a certain family member.
Maybe you judge others too quickly,or you need to work on the things
that you watch or listen to.
(07:29):
Maybe Satan is distracting youduring church, or he's whispering
to you that you are not good enough.
These are just a few examples and you'llneed to ponder and identify Satan in
your life because sadly, I promiseyou, he is there trying to get to you.
But once you identify how Satan is tryingto get you, then you can move to the
(07:50):
next step of our deep dive, and thatis to pray about what the Lord wants
you to do to fight back against Satan.
And this one should definitely bea matter of prayer because even
though you might have a good idea ofsomething you can do, the Lord also
knows, and his ideas might surpriseyou, but his ideas are also the best.
(08:11):
So this step might take some time.
Maybe even a few days or weeks.
But if you pray about it and listenfor promptings and write down the
ideas that come to you, then youwill be using the principle of
personal revelation and you'll getspecific guidance for your own life.
Now, when those thoughts come, ifit's a very specific thought, like
(08:34):
I should listen to a conference talkas I drive to school in the morning.
Well, then you can just startdoing that exact thing because
that's a very specific thing to do.
But sometimes you'llhave more general ideas.
It would be something like, "I shouldlisten to conference talks more."
And then it's up to you to decidewhat that is going to look like.
(08:55):
So if your answer is more vagueand open-ended, then you move to
the next level of our deep dive,which is to make a specific plan.
And your plan might be something like,I will read the scriptures for five
minutes before I get out of bed, orI will write down three things I'm
thankful for at the end of the day.
What you decide to do is going to dependon what the Lord told you to work on,
(09:19):
so it's going to be impossible forme to answer this question for you.
You have to do the pondering yourselfand take it to the Lord, and then
you have to make your own plan.
But remember, the Lord loves effortand he wants you to figure out a plan
and he will help you as you work on it.
So there you go.
Do you see how we took the verse thatdescribes Satan going after the members
(09:41):
of the church and we did this deep dive?
We pondered what itlooks like in the world.
And then we identified it in our ownlives, and then we took it to the
Lord, and you can make a plan to fightback and overcome Satan's influences.
Now that verse isn't just aboutthe parable, but it is actually
changing your life and it'shelping you to follow the Lord.
(10:05):
And this is so exciting because this iswhere the power is in the scriptures.
It isn't just in the words- even thoughwords about the Lord and his gospel are
powerful, they increase in power whenyou bring them to life by pondering them,
looking closer, applying them to yourself,and using them to draw closer to the Lord.
(10:30):
And you probably haven't realizedit, but I have used this exact
same pattern in a lot of thestudy activities on my worksheets.
So you have done this already.
I have just broken itdown now for you to see.
And so now you can take this tool andapply it to different places in the
scriptures as you study on your own.
(10:50):
In fact, if you look closely, youwill find this same pattern on
page one of this week's worksheets.
One of the study ideas that I haveon there follows this pattern.
So anytime something stands out to you,take time to ponder it, and if the spirit
nudges you to dive deeper, you can usethis method to discover more gospel truths
(11:12):
and find ways to connect with the Savior.
I love it! So exciting!So I'm so excited to give this
tool to you, and I hope you willuse it as you study the gospel.
Now remember, there are so, so, somany ways to learn about the Gospel
of Jesus Christ, but no matter whatother resources you use, your study
should be primarily- which meansmostly, most importantly- scripture.
(11:37):
So go dive into those scripturesand see what you can find.
I'm Cindy Young.
I'll see you next time.
Bye guys!Thanks for tuning into primarily
Scripture with Cindy Young.
Don't forget you can subscribe to thenewsletter and download free worksheets
on the website, primarily scripture.com.
And if you like the channel,be sure to subscribe, like,
(11:59):
share, and leave a review.
See you next time.
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