From her book ‘Teaching to Build Faith and Faithfulness:’ Kathy K. Clayton shares:
The story is told of an elderly man who was having difficulty finding what he was looking for in a grocery store. The fellow was quite reputable in his community and accustomed to deference from those around him. He marched to the front of the store to demand assistance. Dissatisfied with the attention he received from the young cashier, he stormed, “Young lady, do you know who I am?” The young woman took her store microphone from its receiver and broadcast to the whole store, I have an old man up here in the front who doesn’t know who he is.”
The fellow suffered from an inflated sense of self and felt to insist that others acknowledge him as the important person he felt sure he was. Unfortunately, the opposite, inaccurate assessment of ourselves is more commonly the case. We too often see and treat ourselves and others with less regard than either we or they deserve. Our identity and that of every single person who is born into our families or walks into our classrooms is a son or daughter of God. Internalizing and remembering that absolute doctrinal fact changes profoundly the way people behave, both children and students as well as parents and teachers.
We know that every mortal soul, is a child of God, an heir to eternity. We know that we have all come to this mortal sphere and that our Heavenly Father dearly wants us to make choices that enable us to return to Him. We also know that as parents and teachers, we have a sacred assignment to assist those with whom we interact within the process of navigating mortality faithfully. As we help others to know who they are eternally, we will promote their feeling both the privilege and the responsibility that is implicit in a heavenly identity.
A Sense of Identity is a Powerful Motivator
. . . . With the benefit of the restored gospel, we have access to information about who we are that can serve as a springboard to worthy behavior. President Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve offers a compelling testimony of the life-changing effect that understanding doctrine has on conduct. He teaches: “True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than the study of behavior will improve behavior.”3 Our helping students and children understand their true divine identity is key to influencing their behavior for good.
The Doctrines of the Gospel Teach Us Essential Truths about Our Eternal Identity
The most important and authoritative source of understanding eternal identity comes from what we know doctrinally. Young women recited weekly the mighty statement of identity that begins their theme: “We are daughters of a Heavenly Father, who love us and we love Him. We will ‘stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things and in all places’ (Mosiah 18:9) as we strive to live the Young Women values.”4 The Relief Society declaration Declaration similarly states: “We are beloved spirit daughters of God, and our lives have meaning, purpose and direction. . . . We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity.”5 Every volume of scripture offers additional witnesses of our identity: . . . .Kathy K. Clayton, Teaching to Build Faith and Faithfulness (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2012), 25-27 . . . . continued
