Life Eternal

I think I inherited Life Eternal by Lynn A. McKinlay from my Grandpa Wanlass, but I'm honestly not sure. The copy I have was printed in 1954, and it is plain to see the wear and tear on the book. Anyway, I own it, so I read it. Right away, I was struck with deep respect for the author. This book is actually a series of four lectures he gave to a group of young adults in Bountiful, Utah. At the very beginning of the first lecture, he states that he wants to stick as close to the teachings of the prophets as possible without giving his opinion. He declares on the very first page that he will strive to not say anything that cannot be supported by scripture and teachings of the prophets, and invites correction if he makes a mistake.

I enjoyed the author's teachings about the Fall, the commandments given to Adam and Eve both before and after, and how those commandments and prophecies are fulfilled even to this day. I also loved how the author really tries to give us a glimpse of how much we honored and respected Michael before this earth life, and when his descendants rose up and called Adam Michael in Adam-ondi-Ahman, the veil was most likely taken away and they remembered Adam for the wonderful man he was, and therefore felt a great respect and reverence for him. This was a really neat to me, and I had never thought about the story that way before.

When an angel appears to Adam and Eve and commands them that all they do should be in the name of the Lord, the author makes a point that "all the things that Adam did were to be done in the name of the Son--not just a certain few selected things that did not interfere with his private wishes." If we truly did everything in the name of the Son, we'd probably be doing more of the right things.

In talking about the things we gain from our experiences and callings, the author points out that even when one is released, that person does not lose everything he/she gained from the calling. Callings are given to enhance us, and the gifts and learning we receive from accepting those callings stay with us forever, even if our responsibilities are changed. This reminded me of Elder Holland's talk from last October's conference.

This book was very informative and well-researched. It was a little hard to get through it at some points, simply because the style of the book is a lecture. Although I cannot promise an engaging read, I can promise that it will be informative and enlightening.