Books that Helped me Grow

By Robert Coleman

January/Febraury 1985

The books that have been most helpful to me in my spiritual walk are: The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, Pensées by Blaise Pascal, and Christian Perfection by Francois Fenelon.

The Pilgrim’s Progress has a realism about it with which I could identify. While simple in style, the allegory has insights that speak with profound eloquence. l have read it at different times in my spiritual pilgrimage and always have found something fresh and beautiful to ponder.

A book reflects an author’s values and aspirations. Perhaps that is why Pascal’s Pensées  has gripped me. It shows an insight into human experience that reflects an extraordinary sense of priorities. Coming from an author who was probably the greatest intellectual of his time, the simplicity of Pascal’s conclusions are the more invigorating. No one can gainsay the platform from which he speaks, both in his scholarship and Christian commitment.

The essays by Fenelon on Christian Perfection have a depth that one seldom finds in literature. I think it was this quality that most challenged my interest. Reading the book made me see greater dimensions of spiritual reality to which my soul aspired. Other books which have had real impact upon my life include, among others, Jonathan Edwards’ Treatise on Religious Affections, the Sermons of John Wesley, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence, and The Holy of Holies by Andrew Murray.

Robert Coleman is director of the School of World Mission and Evangelism at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. His books include the best-selling The Master Plan of Evangelism, and Dry Bones Can Live Again.