Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke during the Saturday morning session of October 2025 general conference about discipleship and doing one’s part. The following is a summary of what he said.
Elder Uchtdorf’s talk summary
“Discipleship takes self-discipline. It is not a casual endeavor, and it doesn’t happen by accident.”
Faith in Jesus Christ is a gift, but receiving it is a conscious choice that requires a commitment of “might, mind and strength” (Moroni 10:32).
“Our faith, which is our loyalty to the Savior, becomes stronger as it is tested against the opposition we face here in mortality. It endures because we keep nourishing it, we keep actively applying it, and we never give up.”
A “great truth” is that each individual is a being of light and spirit child of an infinite God, with a potential beyond imagination. “Your origin story is divine, and so is your destiny. You left heaven to come here, but heaven has never left you. You are anything but ordinary. You are gifted.”
Spiritual gifts, while sometimes not flashy, are important. Such gifts can range from showing compassion or being a peacemaker to simply forgiving, repenting and enduring.
“I urge and bless every member of the Church and all who desire to be part of it to trust the Savior enough to engage, patiently and diligently, in doing your part with all your heart — that your joy may be full and that, one day, you will receive all the Father has.”
Notable quotes
“Simply put, discipleship takes self-discipline. It is not a casual endeavor, and it doesn’t happen by accident.”
“Your origin story is divine, and so is your destiny. You left heaven to come here, but heaven has never left you. You are anything but ordinary. You are gifted.”
“I urge and bless every member of the Church and all who desire to be part of it to trust the Savior enough to engage, patiently and diligently, in doing your part with all your heart — that your joy may be full and that, one day, you will receive all the Father has.”
Who is Elder Uchtdorf?
- Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 2004. He served as second counselor in the First Presidency under President Thomas S. Monson, from February 2008 to January 2018.
- From 1965 to 1996, he was a pilot, captain and corporate executive for the German airline Lufthansa.
- Twice in his life, he and his family have been refugees. When he was 4 years old, World War II forced his family from Czechoslovakia. Years later, the Uchtdorfs fled their home in East Germany in search of safety in West Germany.
- He met his wife, Sister Harriet Reich Uchtdorf, in their teens attending a branch in Frankfurt, Germany, soon after she and her family joined the Church. Years later, following Elder Uchtdorf joining the German air force and completing his training in the United States, they began a courtship and were soon married in the Swiss Temple (now the Bern Switzerland Temple) in 1962. They are the parents of two children.
What has Elder Uchtdorf done recently?
Read more of Elder Uchtdorf’s general conference addresses, or follow him on Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter and YouTube.
