With God, All Things are Possible

From Ohio.gov:

Ohio’s state motto is “With God, All Things Are Possible.” It was suggested in 1958 by James Mastronardo, a 10-year-old from Cincinnati. With help from his state senator, he gathered signatures and spoke to lawmakers to support the idea. The motto became official in October 1959.

The phrase, a favorite of his mother, is from the Bible—Matthew 19:26. While it comes from a religious text, it’s meant to express hope and determination, not to promote a specific religion.

The motto is defined in Ohio Revised Code, section 5.06.

From Wikipedia:

With God, all things are possible is the motto of the U.S. state of Ohio.^[2] Quoted from the Gospel of Matthew, verse 19:26, it is the only state motto taken directly from the Bible (Greek: παρὰ δὲ θεῷ πάντα δυνατά, para de Theō panta dynata).^[2][3] It is defined in section 5.06 of the Ohio Revised Code^[4] and sometimes appears beneath the Seal of Ohio. The motto was adopted in 1959 and survived a federal constitutional challenge in 2001.^[2] The state maintains that it is a generic expression of optimism rather than an endorsement of a particular religion.^[2]

On August 6th, 2025, James Mastronardo died:

Born and raised in Ohio, Jim left his mark on the state’s history at an early age.  He was 10 yrs old when a school class project on state mottos piqued his interest. He learned that Ohio was the only one out of 48 states that didn’t have a motto. He recommended the phrase “With God All Things Are Possible” which is a quote from the bible and was one of his mother’s favorite phrases.  He contacted his state Senator and was registered as a lobbyist and petitioned the Senate State Government committee.  On June 22, 1959, the House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass a bill adopting his motto.  It’s use as a state motto is not intended to endorse a specific deity but instead stands as a generic expression of optimism.