The Life and Teachings of President Henry Bennion Eyring

The Biography of President Henry Bennion Eyring

The one thing which really stuck out to me about President Eyring was the fact that he is a Mormon, and a Scientist. My best friend, Richard is majoring in physics, just like President Eyring did in college, and as I read about President Eyring, I thought a lot about my best friend. Although President Eyring didn’t have the same passion for science like my best friend, they both share a passion for the Gospel. Another thing which really stuck out to me was that President Eyring is related to President Kimball. I think it fascinating to see how even as a young child, he had great people who were responsible for him one day becoming one of the many spiritual role models the world needs in these troubling times.

The Testimony of President Henry Bennion Eyring

            The first thing which jumped out at me about President Eyring’s testimony was that he bore his testimony on the importance of temples. I have always loved the Salt Lake Temple. The history of the Salt Lake Temple has always fascinated me. I know every temple is important and unique in its own way, but the Salt Lake Temple has been my favorite for as long as I can remember. I love that President Eyring bore his testimony on the importance of temples because my maternal great-grandparents were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. On June 20^th, 1923 my Great-Grandpa John “Jack” Ellis married my Great-Grandma Leila “Nana” Larsen. My great-grandparents were only married on this earth for eleven years before my great-grandpa died from appendicitis. My Great-Grandma Nana would die 65 years later, but she never remarried which in my mind is proof of her unfailing love for my Great-Grandpa Jack. Even though they were only married for eleven years here on earth, the fact that their marriage didn’t end at death, but was for time and all eternity is what I believe really kept my Great-Grandma Nana going during those difficult times that followed after her husband died. Having this as part of my family’s history makes me truly understand the importance and significance of temples. Being able to personally relate to President Eyring’s testimony on the importance of temples is really what made his testimony mean so much more to me. I’m confident that if President Eyring were to have borne his testimony on some other topic, I would have been able to personally relate to it in some way, but the fact he chose to bear his testimony on the importance of temples really made me feel happy.

Recent Teachings

President Henry Bennion Eyring, A Priceless Heritage of Hope, April 2014 General Conference, Saturday Morning Session

Key Doctrine and Principles:

·         Making and Keeping Covenants

·         Missionary Work

·         Importance of Teaching Children When They Are Young

Favorite Quotes and Why They Matter to Me:

·         “Whoever you are and wherever you may be, you hold in your hands the happiness of more people than you can now imagine. Every day and every hour you can choose to make or keep a covenant with God. Wherever you are on the path to inherit the gift of eternal life, you have the opportunity to show many people the way to greater happiness. When you choose whether to make or keep a covenant with God, you choose whether you will leave an inheritance of hope to those who might follow your example.”

o    I loved this quote because it not only talks about making and keeping covenants, but being an example to others by our desire to make and keep those covenants. From this quote, I am reminded of the poem by Emily Dickenson, “Hope is the Thing with Feathers” which happens to be one of my favorite poems about hope. ‘“Hope” is the thing with feathers - / That perches in the soul - / And sings the tune without the words - / And never stops - at all - / And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard - / And sore must be the storm - / That could abash the little Bird / That kept so many warm - / I’ve heard it in the chillest land - / And on the strangest Sea - / Yet - never - in Extremity, / It asked a crumb - of me.’ From this poem, I have been able to draw parallels about hope and missionary work. The message of the Gospel and the hope it brings to those who hear and accept it allow it to take root with them and it “perches in the soul”. From there the message spreads when the soul “sings the tune without the words” through their unfailing example to other because it “never stops – at all”. The words “and sweetest – in the Gale – is heard, and sore must be the storm” reminds me of the words of the hymn, “Sweet is the Peace the Gospel Brings” because “the little Bird, that kept so many warm” is the Light of Christ which shines within us. The words “I’ve heard it in the chillest land, and on the strangest Sea” remind me of the word of the Prophet Joseph Smith when he said, “the Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.” Hope is what pushes us forward. It is what gives us the strength to face every trial we have been asked to face.

·          “Heinrich knew that in sacrament meetings we could renew our promise to always remember the Savior and have His Spirit to be with us. It was that Spirit that sustained him on the mission to which he was called only a few months after accepting the baptismal covenant.”

o    I loved this quote because it completely describes how I feel about Sacrament Meeting. If I miss taking the Sacrament, it ruins my entire week. There are no other wards for me to go to where I might be able to just stay long enough to take the Sacrament because of the time when my ward has church. I once had a friend tell me that I choose to let missing the opportunity to take the Sacrament ruin my entire week. I responded by telling her that if I choose to let missing the opportunity to take the Sacrament ruin my entire week, then I also choose to let my day be rough when I forget to read my scriptures or say my prayers. There are just certain things that no matter how hard I try, if I miss them, things are very difficult for me. Taking the Sacrament, reading my scriptures and saying my prayers are some of those things.

·         “There are things you can do early, when those you love are young. Remember that daily family prayer, family scripture study, and sharing our testimony in sacrament meeting are easier and more effective when children are young. Young children are often more sensitive to the Spirit than we realize. When they are older, they will remember the hymns they sang with you. Even more than recalling music, they will remember the words of scripture and testimony. The Holy Ghost can bring all things to their remembrance, but the words of scriptures and hymns will last the longest. Those memories will exert a pull that may bring them back when they wander for a time, possibly for years, from the pathway home to eternal life.”

o    This quote goes hand in hand with the previous quote. My family didn’t have regular family scripture study, family home evening, and family prayer. My dad would leave for work at 5am every morning, and he wouldn’t get home until sometimes after 7pm. There were only three times in my childhood when I can remember having Family Home Evening, and all three ended badly. It wasn’t until all three of us kids were grown up that my dad was finally able to get home from work at 4pm every day because he had been transferred to an office closer to home, but he still had to leave at 5am each morning. And yet from all of this, from the few times we had family prayer, family scripture study, and family home evening, I was able to learn just how important these things really are in a child’s spiritual development. It was from my friends, who had regular family prayer, family home evening, and family scripture study that I saw that spiritual development, and I knew that if I wanted that in my life, I needed to find a way to create it for myself.

President Henry Bennion Eyring, The Priesthood Man, April 2014 General Conference, Priesthood Session

Key Doctrine and Principles:

·         Heroes and Role Models

·         Service and Missionary Work

·         Temple Work

Favorite Quotes and Why They Matter to Me:

·         “When we choose heroes, we begin to copy, consciously or unconsciously, what we admire most in them.”

o    This quote reminds me of a little girl who was in my Sunbeam class when I was a Primary Teacher. I still remember her coming up to me and saying to me, “Sister Best, I want you to know, you’re my best friend.” Her mom would later tell me that she would go around telling everyone that I was her best friend. This little girl taught me a lot about what it means to be a person’s hero or role model. My actions are what will either draw other to me, or repel them from me. I remember telling my mom after this happened that my actions are what will draw others toward the Gospel and the Light of Christ within me, or they will make others want to steer clear of me. I want others to copy my actions which will draw them closer to the Light of Christ within me and ultimately to the Gospel.

·         “In temples across the world, priesthood holders arrive before sunrise. And some serve long after sunset. There is no recognition or public acclaim in this world for that sacrifice of time and effort. I have gone with young people as they serve those in the spirit world, who are not able to claim temple blessings for themselves. As I see happiness rather than fatigue in the faces of those who serve there early and late, I know there are great rewards in this life for that type of unselfish priesthood service, but it is only a token of the joy they will share with those whom they served in the spirit world.”

o    I loved this quote because it reminds me of not just my parents, but several of my friends who serve in the temple. A few years ago, I remember my dad telling the reason he drove out the temple every Saturday was because as expensive as gas was at the time, he couldn’t afford to not work at the temple. This statement might seem selfish, but to me, it makes perfect sense. The work we do in the temple is far more valuable than any early wealth we may gain. It is what has made my dad determined to move close to a temple and brave the cold winter weather when my parents decide to move to Utah. Doing temple work is something we should all view as something we cannot afford to not to do.

·         “Above all, remember that of all the service you give, none is greater than to help people choose to qualify for eternal life.”

o    I loved this quote because it speaks of discipleship, service, and missionary work. It is through our example and discipleship that others want to know what it is that we have that makes the Light of Christ radiate from within us. It is through service that people want to know what it is that we have which makes us so happy. It is through missionary work, whether it is through serving a full-time mission or through being a full-time member missionary, that other learn more about what we have that makes the Light of Christ radiate from within us and make us so happy. Through discipleship, service, and missionary work we provide others with the necessary tools to qualify for eternal life.

Past Teachings

President Henry Bennion Eyring, Daughters in the Covenant, General Women’s Meeting, March 2014

Key Doctrine and Principles:

·         Discipleship

·         Family History and Temple Work

·         Covenants

Favorite Quotes and Why They Matter to Me:

·         “I will speak tonight about the path—which in such beautiful ways has been described today—that we must take on our journey back to our Heavenly Father. That path is marked by sacred covenants with God. I will talk with you about the joy of making and keeping those covenants and helping others keep them.”

o    I loved this quote because at the present time, I am working towards and preparing to go through the temple and take out my endowment. I haven’t started taking to classes, but I have talked to my bishop and he has said that it would be a good idea for me to take out my endowment and he will let me know when the next class starts. I have already made the baptismal covenant a part of my life, and I am on the path towards making other covenants in the near to not so distant future.

·          “I remember the smile of Sister Ruby Haight. She was the wife of Elder David B. Haight, who was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. As a young man he served as the president of the Palo Alto stake in California. He prayed over, and worried about, the girls in the Mia Maid class in his own ward. So President Haight was inspired to ask the bishop to call Ruby Haight to teach those young girls. He knew she would be a witness of God who would lift, comfort, and love the girls in that class. Sister Haight was at least 30 years older than the girls she taught. Yet 40 years after she taught them, each time she would meet my wife, who had been one of the girls in her class, she would put out her hand, smile, and say to Kathy, “Oh! My Mia Maid.” I saw more than her smile. I felt her deep love for a sister she still cared for as if she were her own daughter. Her smile and warm greeting came from seeing that a sister and daughter of God was still on the covenant path home.”

o    I love this story because it is a perfect example of discipleship within the church. To me discipleship isn’t just being an example to those who are not members, but it is so much more. It means being an example to those who are members. I learned this when I was first called to be a Primary Teacher in my ward. At the time I was teaching the Sunbeams, and during the week I had been at Target to get some things I desperately needed. It had been a very rough day and I was tired, unhappy, and irritated that I couldn’t find what I was looking for. I was on the verge of “blowing a fuse” from being so stressed out. As I came around the corner and started walking down the next aisle, I ran into one of my Sunbeams and his mom. I am so grateful that I ran into them because they made my day brighter and somehow they were able to help me find what I was looking for. Another one of my Sunbeam told me I was her best friend, and from her mom I learned that she had been telling everyone I was her best friend. These are just two of the many different experiences I had as a Primary teacher, and they taught me a great deal about discipleship.

·         “While Satan may be attacking sisters at earlier ages, the Lord is lifting sisters to higher and higher levels of spirituality. For example, young women are teaching their mothers how to use FamilySearch to find and save ancestors. Some young sisters that I know are choosing to go early in the morning to perform proxy baptisms in temples without any urging beyond the spirit of Elijah.”

o    This quote really stuck out to me because of a lesson which was recently taught in Relief Society. The lesson was on Family History and it was taught by the Relief Society President. One of the things she said which really stuck out to me was that she had played some 4,000 games of FreeCell and how as she was studying the lesson, she felt she should have been doing Family History research instead of playing FreeCell. It wasn’t until recently that I felt the spirit of Elijah in my life. About two years ago I got an iPad and one of the first apps I download was the Ancestry.com app. From there I started to create my family tree. Things snowballed from there and I now have really come to understand the importance of doing temple work. I have also come to understand the importance of indexing. One of the sisters in my ward shared a story during this lesson and said that she was having difficulty finding an ancestor and she had about given up on ever finding this person. One day when she was doing some indexing, she came across the person she had been looking for, and the rest of her research just fell into place. I am currently in the same situation with my own family history. On my paternal grandmother’s side, our family history goes back several generations and then just stops. I know it will be through indexing that one day I will find the missing link and everything else will fall into place.  Another reason this really stuck out to me is because in less than a month, my stake is having Stake Conference and one of the things my stake has done for the last five year or so is to “take over” the Redlands Temple on the Thursday before Stake Conference. It is at this time that the members of the stake work to fill up every seat in every session to perform as many saving ordinances for the dead as possible.

·         “In missions across the earth, sisters are being called to serve as leaders. The Lord created the need for their service by touching the hearts of sisters in greater numbers to serve. More than a few mission presidents have seen the sister missionaries become ever more powerful as proselyters and particularly as nurturing leaders. Whether or not you serve as a full-time missionary, you can gain the same ability to enrich your marriage and the capacity to raise noble children by following the examples of great women.”

o    I loved this quote because as I was watching the General Women’s Meeting, I was surrounded by the sister missionaries in the mission in which I live. I hadn’t been able to stop crying during the broadcast and one of the really sweet sisters had already given me all of the tissue she had previously gotten for herself. I have watched as countless friends have taken the announcement of the change in ages for missionary service by putting their lives on hold to serve the Lord. Right now I have a good friend who just graduated from high school this past week and she is preparing herself to serve a mission. I know that even though I am not a full-time missionary, it doesn’t mean I’m exempt from being a full-time member missionary and being a light to all those around me.