Who am I?

Consider the power of the idea taught in our beloved song “I Am a Child of God” (Hymns, 1985, no. 301), sung so impressively by the choir at the beginning of this session. Here is the answer to one of life’s great questions, “Who am I?” I am a child of God with a spirit lineage to heavenly parents. That parentage defines our eternal potential. That powerful idea is a potent antidepressant. It can strengthen each of us to make righteous choices and to seek the best that is within us. Establish in the mind of a young person the powerful idea that he or she is a child of God and you have given self-respect and motivation to move against the problems of life.

Dallin H. Oaks, “Powerful Ideas,” Ensign, Nov 1995, 25

The Contest of Priorities

"Some of our most important choices concern family activities. Many breadwinners worry that their occupations leave too little time for their families. There is no easy formula for that contest of priorities. However, I have never known of a man who looked back on his working life and said, 'I just didn't spend enough time with my job.'"

Dallin H. Oaks, “Good, Better, Best,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 104–8

A Powerful Idea . . .

"A powerful idea with immediate practical application is the reality that we can pray to our Heavenly Father, and he will hear our prayers and help us in the way that is best for us. Most of us have experienced the terrible empty feeling that comes from being separated from those who love us. If we remember that we can pray and be heard and helped, we can always withstand that feeling of emptiness. We can always be in touch with a powerful friend who loves us and helps us, in his own time and in his own way."

Dallin H. Oaks, “Powerful Ideas,” Ensign, Nov 1995, 25