BECAUSE HE FIRST LOVED US - A Compilation of Discourses by Henry B. Eyring

by Henry B. Eyring

In this companion volume to the bestseller To Draw Closer to God, Elder Eyring elaborates on ways in which we can more fully come to the love of God and share that love with others. More specifically, we learn how to deepen our relationship with Christ and with our Heavenly Father; pray more effectively; obtain power by making and keeping our covenants; grow as parents who can lead families to Christ; improve as teachers of the doctrines of the gospel; and extend ourselves in missionary work and charity. In his gentle and persuasive way, Elder Eyring reminds us of the depth of God’s love and defines gospel truths that will speak peace to our hearts, inspiring us to love those around us as God does—Because He First Loved Us.

Genres: Religion, Lds, Church, Nonfiction, Inspirational, Spirituality, Lds Non Fiction

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Henry Bennion Eyring is an American educational administrator and religious leader who is First Counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Eyring was the Second Counselor to Gordon B. Hinckley in the First Presidency from October 6, 2007 until Hinckley's death on January 27, 2008. On February 3, 2008, Eyring was called to be the First Counselor to Thomas S. Monson in the First Presidency, serving with Second Counselor Dieter F. Uchtdorf.

Eyring has also served in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the presiding bishopric, First Quorum of the Seventy, and as Commissioner of Church Education of the LDS Church.

Reviews

[Beth Given · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the kind of book you want to read slowly, to contemplate. Read it too fast and it’s not going to make a huge impact, I’d think, because how could you apply all the principles he outlines?

Elder Eyring’s first book, To Draw Closer to God, was geared more toward our building a relationship with God, putting our hearts in the right place so that the Spirit may abide within us. Because He First Loved Us focuses on sharing our spiritual strength with others.

I wish I had taken notes on it, because now that I’m done, I don’t remember a whole lot of specifics from the beginning — guess I’ll just have to read it again! But here are a few gems (all from the last few pages, which I remember):

"The good word of the Lord with which we must nourish is the simple doctrine of the gospel. We need not fear either simplicity or repetition." (p. 188)

A great thought for gospel teachers who fear that nobody will like the lesson because it’s so basic, something we’ve all heard before.

And I love encouraging quotes on parenthood, so this was wonderful to read:

"You may have confidence in the Lord’s service. The Savior will help you do what He has called you to do, be it for a time as a worker in the Church or forever as a parent. you may pray for help enough to do the work and know that it will come." (p. 206)

I particularly enjoyed the entire last chapter, entitled “Gifts of Love.” It ended in a discussion of gifts we might give the Savior:

"Knowing what we know, how much more do we want to give Him something? But He seems to have everything. Well, not quite. He doesn’t have you with Him again forever, not yet. I hope you are touched by the feelings of His heart enough to sense how much He wants to know you are coming home to Him. You can’t give that gift to Him in one day, or one Christmas, but you could show Him today that you are on the way. You could pray. You could read a page of scripture. You could keep a commandment. If you have already done these, there is still something left to give. All around you are people He loves but can help only through you and me. One of the sure signs that we have accepted the gift of the Savior’s atonement is that we give gifts to others." (pp. 221-222)

A great collection of very-readable talks that seem to flow into one another — but stand-alone wonderfully, too. I recommend both this and its predecessor.

[Josef Miyasato · Rating 5 out of 5]

The more I read this the more profound it becomes.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first 40% of the book is the plan of salvation. I love Henry Eyring's stories, and I missed them in the first of the book. He writes about new convert's coming into the church, and the callings they are called to serve. He said that all of our callings are giving to us by our Heavenly Father, to help us stretch and grow. The membership of the church are to watch after the new converts, and help them.

He has a section on teenagers, and tells us the dangers of this time in the lives of those children. The church has seminary, and other programs to help teenagers through this difficult time of their lives. He wrote about young men and woman going on missions for the church.

There is a section on visiting teaching, and things we can do to improve those teachings, and serve our sisters. We are to pray, and observe the needs of our sisters, and then act on those needs we find.

This is a fairly short book, but it has some powerful messages for us. One other thing is to pray, and ask for forgiveness at the end of each day. We need to evaluate our day, and look at those things we need to eliminate from our lives, and ask for forgiveness.

[Larsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many of us in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints know President Henry B. Eyring to be a tender-hearted teacher/speaker who frequently sheds tears. This book taught me more of his love for our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ and also about his being human. Chapter 15 "Leading Our Families to Christ" began with an example of his learning from his tiny son -- showing that President Eyring at times has limited patience like the rest of us. This example caught me by surprise, and I may share it with our adult sons and daughters. Perhaps it might influence them to be more forgiving of my lack of patience. Certainly it teaches us all more of our sacred, limitless responsibility for children. Chapter 20 "Debt Management" also caught me by surprise. President Eyring dropped physics to study business management, but Chapter 20 has nothing to do with finances. It is about our debt to our Savior Jesus Christ and His Father which can never be fully paid. Every chapter inspires, teaches and leads one on to the next.

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always struggled to connect with the author’s talks and speeches over the last many years. There always seemed to be a strong sense of caring but no strong sense of topical organization. Or maybe his style of presenting ideas just isn’t the way I learn. But this book is more refined and focused than many of his talks or other writings and his unique perspective and transcendent wisdom just leaps off the pages. Some points hit home deeper than others, but this book finally puts on display the utterly unique and majestic perspective that this man has of the world and of the divine. This book make me appreciate his spirit and words much more than ever before. If you seek wisdom, this man has a lot of it to give.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay, but it might have been my mode or fast pace reading that made the book have a lesser impact on me. I thought it was going to be more about our Savior's love for us and maybe our love for others, but it was more of interesting thoughts, tid bits, nuggets of truth. There is some good truths and points in there. I just didn't love it. It was okay. Another reviewer said , "This is the kind of book you read slowly and take it to let it have an affect on you". I think they might have been right. I was listening to it and ripped through it in a day while taking a lazy day for myself.

[Travis Standley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a favorite book of mine. It is classic Elder/President Eyring teaching: clear, relevant, and spiritually insightful and inspiring. I’ve long admired his humility and his wisdom. Teachings like the law of diminishing returns, child of promise, always, and other messages of service, sacrifice, and giving. Just good stuff here! I’ll likely read this again down the road and will reference it again for sure.

[Megan Olds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Felt the Spirit.

The first handful of chapters are the best ones: how to help build and raise up youth with love. Promises from honouring the priesthood, (& inviting others with love.)

Definite truths throughout the book, & “the pull to be better instead of seeing all of this as a miserable illusion like the adversary would want” (paraphrased.)

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

President Eyring always gets the Spirit to rise up in me. A great daily read to inspire mindfulness and courage in the face of opposition, even to the the point of knowing when to be still and let the Lord relieve our burdensome

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compilation of Henry B. Eyring's top talks. Best to listen to the original talks as there is more emotion and passion in the original rendering.

[James Biser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Henry B. Eyring is an amazing speaker. This is a collection of many of his brilliant speeches.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

13 different talks by Brother Eyring. I listened to the audio version of this. I liked that each talk was under 30 minutes, so I could do it in segments. What a blessing to have these available.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not new material. Just a collection of some of his talks and devotionals.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

President Eyring has always been one of my favorites!

[Daryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book! Wonderful read! And of course, Wonderful author, Henry B. Eyring.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It made a good supplement to my scripture reading.

[Lkaehall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a collection of talks from Henry B. Eyring. He has a way with words and thinking of his gentle voice made them pleasant to read.

[Dail Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I really enjoy Brother Eyring’s conversational writing style.

[Deseret Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

"This book really brings home the fact that our Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ love us. The greatest incentive to be obedient is our love for our Father and Savior." --Customer Review

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book , it has lifted me up through very hard times!

[David Barney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Talk President Eyring has given throughout his ministry. Good to read them over again.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

7/21/8 It's amazing to hear the love and sincerity Elder Eyring sharing these very personal stories and lessons in his own voice in my audiobook copy on my MP3 player as I commute to and from work each day. Today I listened as he shared regarding a lesson he learned when his patience was reaching it's limit with his two-year-old son and I was chastened along with him as the Lord, through the simple faith of brother Eyring's son, gave him insight into his own weaknesses. There is a direction and a series of precepts that build line upon line through the book toward the Savior's great Sacrifice. The real value for me is the personal and sincere touch of the life-learning of this statesman Apostle who shares with me because he first loved us.

7/30/8 - Just finished it today. When Elder Eyring tells personal stories, he gets just to the edge of crying and I find that I choke up right along with him. Some of the bigger concepts I'm taking from this book are the importance of investing our time, the need to prepare to give good gifts (to our great grand children and to our marriage and to our Heavenly Father, someday). The only difficult thing about this book is that it's so rich, I have had to go through each part of it several times and am really asking myself if I've done a very good job getting the book into me - showing it in my day-to-day life and in my seeking to serve the Master and all of God's children. This book and this man make me want to be better!

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a 'collection of discourses by Henry B. Eyring' of the First Presidency of the LDS church. I always enjoy hearing his talks, because he speaks so clearly and with such feeling. I actually remember him giving some of these talks, but it was great to read them all collected like this. I have two favorites in here, one called "Do Not Delay." This was a reminder that life is swift and uncertain, and if we want to make changes in our lives, the time to do it is now. I also really enjoyed the talk, "Always," where he talks about a young man he knew as a bishop who was killed in a climbing accident a few years later. It was a great story and I found myself tearing up.

The other talk in here that stuck with me was one called, "Because of Your Steadiness." It was about persistence, in everything worthwhile generally, but specifically as it applies to home teaching. I have a son who is 12, and I told my husband that I think it would be great to read and discuss this talk with him when he gets his first home teaching assignment. It would also apply for visiting teachers too.

Very inspirational and such great writing.

[Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first chapter caught my attention so completely that we found an audio version of it, and we listened to it as a family.

This is a selection of talks by Henry B. Eyring. Some of them were familiar, and were a delight to reread. Many of them can be found on www.lds.org. This book brings together many meaningful discourses.

Contents (are in three sections):
TURNING OUR HEARTS
A Life Founded on Truth
Do Not Delay
Child of Promise
Making Covenants with God
Prayer
Always
Finding Safety in Counsel
That We May Be One
A Law of Increasing Returns
LEADING OTHERS TO CHRIST
The Power of Teaching Doctrine
"A Voice of Warning"
Witnesses for God
True Friends
"Write upon My Heart"
Leading Our Families to Christ
BLESSING OTHERS IN LOVE
"Watch With Me"
"Feed My Lambs"
"Because of you Steadiness"
"Watch Over and Strengthen"
Debt Management
Gifts of Love

As of this writing, we have two copies of this book. I'm sure that we will find somewhere to share the second one.

[Amy Halbern · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love President Eyring. He is one of my favorite Apostles. I love the stories and examples he shared from his life and the life of the Savior. I loved how he helped us better understand the plan and love that Heavenly Father has for each one of us. I loved how President Eyring helped see how we can improve our lives by serving and loving others unconditionally. Finally I loved at the end how he talked about gift giving and the different theories behind it. This also gave a different perspective of gift giving and what it truly means. There are so many lessons we can take from this wonderful book and apply it to our lives daily. I highly recommend this book.

[Benson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to this in the car and really enjoyed it. There are so many principles he discusses that are immediately applicable to my life. I plan to listen to it again soon. Although I recommend it to anyone, I find it particularly helpful to new husbands/fathers because he told so many stories about interactions with his father and with his own children. It struck me how great a man must be to raise his son to eventually become an Apostle.

[Jeslyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of talks by Henry B. Eyring is a wonderful read.
Touching on faith, fellowship, the giving and receiving of gifts, etc., each chapter stands alone while also contributing to the inspiring whole of the book. One of my favorites, 'Debt Management', was actually the shortest, underscoring Eyring's gift of generating a thought-provoking impact even in minimal pages. Henry Eyring is an exceptionally inspiring person - the way he writes/speaks definitely resonates with me.

[Brynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

as a speech and language pathologist, i've developed a love for communication and the human voice. i have always loved president eyring's voice and the way you can feel his testimony and love for the Savior in not only his words, but also in his voice. i listened to this book, read by the author, which made it especially powerful. president eyring taught gospel principles that gave me a new perspective of the principles. i love this book.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! It's a compilation of several of Pres. Eyring's talks given over the years. I love how the talks are grouped, the way they all flow together, and how uplifted I felt with every page. Honestly, this is probably the best parenting manual I've every read. It's nothing new: just live the gospel to your best ability and share your testimony. But, as a mother I found so many helpful things for raising righteous, happy, and loving children.

[Celeste · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book. I love Henry B. Eyring's ability to make me want to be a better person and how he concentrates on Christ. This is the type of book where you can read a chapter and it's like a reading an article in the Ensign, so you don't have to keep reading it straight through, you can just pick it up when you need a lift. Good book.