Brent Ferrin Ashworth was born January 8, 1949, in Albany, California, to Dell Sheperd and Bette Jean Brailsford Ashworth. He grew up in Provo, Utah and graduated from Brigham Young High School as student body president in 1966-1967. He graduated cum laude from Brigham Young University in 1967, with a BA in history and political science in 1972. He served in the United States Army Reserves, and was called to active duty at Ft. Ord, California in 1969. He met Charlene Mills at Brigham Young University and they were married on December 16, 1970, in the Salt Lake Temple. They have nine children.

Ashworth received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Utah College of Law in 1975. He served in Price, Utah as Assistant Carbon County Attorney from 1975 to 1976, and briefly practiced law with the firm of Frandsen & Keller from 1976 to 1977. He served as Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Nature's Sunshine Products, Provo, Utah from 1977 to 2003, was Vice President and General Counsel of Neways International, Springville, Utah from 2003 to 2004, and has been a legal consultant for Shaklee Corporation in Pleasanton, California, and to several other Utah corporations and clients. In 2006, he started B. Ashworths, Inc., a Provo business dealing in rare documents, books, art and collectibles. Ashworth founded the George E. Freestone Boy Scout Museum in Provo, Utah, in 2000. He was honored in February 2013 by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for his additions to the archives over the years, amounting to almost 9,000 documents. As of 2013, Ashworth was working for the Historical Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.