President Henry B. Eyring on remembering God at all times

President Henry B. Eyring (born May 31, 1933) served in the Presiding Bishopric from 1985-1992, as a Seventy from 1992-1995, then was called to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. He has served in the First Presidency since 2007.

"Living as we do with a veil over our eyes, we cannot remember what it was like to be with our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, in the premortal world; nor can we see with our physical eyes or with reason alone the hand of God in our lives. Seeing such things takes the Holy Ghost. And it is not easy to be worthy of the Holy Ghost's companionship in a wicked world.

"That is why forgetting God has been such a persistent problem among His children since the world began. Think of the times of Moses, when God provided manna and in miraculous and visible ways led and protected His children. Still, the prophet warned the people who had been so blessed, as prophets always have warned and always will: 'Take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life' (Deuteronomy 4:9).

"And the challenge to remember has always been the hardest for those who are blessed abundantly. Those who are faithful to God are protected and prospered. That comes as the result of serving God and keeping His commandments. But with those blessings comes the temptation to forget their source. It is easy to begin to feel the blessings were granted not by a loving God on whom we depend but by our own powers."

- Henry B. Eyring, "O Remember, Remember," General Conference, October 2007; see Ensign, November 2007, pp. 66-69
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President Eyring suggests that throughout history, mankind has persistently experienced the problem of continually forgetting God. Many have never known Him, or choose to ignore Him as a general pattern of their lives. But in this excerpt, we are warned about a different challenge: when we are blessed by God, but then forget the source of the blessings. Ironically, when blessings come from God as a result of faithfulness and obedience, the temptation can be to forget the influence God has in our lives and instead assume our own efforts have produced the results.

It seems ironic that the recipient of a great gift would forget the Great Giver. President Eyring suggests a key to avoid the problem: safeguard our companionship with the Holy Ghost. He provides our means of contact across the veil of mortality, maintaining touch with the Divine. As we see through inspired eyes, we can maintain the eternal perspective that reminds us of our eternal debts and eternal gratitude. We must strive to always be worthy of that companionship, to help us always remember Him.

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2017)