In the house in Dallas, Texas, where I spent my childhood, there were always copies of it lying around. Like many Evangelical children, I was raised to trust Utmost, and to read it as part of my daily “quiet time” with God. Giving copies to their family members and friends, they have passed Utmost down through the generations, establishing it as a trusted spiritual guide. That honor belongs primarily to the millions of readers who have incorporated the book into their daily time of devotion. Bush has spoken often of his love of the book.īut it isn’t just the famous names that account for Utmost’s lasting popularity. The association with prominent Evangelical figures would continue through the decades: Jerry Falwell is remembered as a devotee, and George W. Bill Wilson and Bob Smith, the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous, started early group meetings by reading from the book. Among the book’s earliest readers were Billy Graham, Bill Bright, and Henrietta Mears. Yet Utmost swiftly won a following among American evangelicals-and not just any following. Its author was an obscure Scottish preacher who had died young-nearly 20 years earlier (this year marks the 100th anniversary of his death)-and who was mostly unknown and unpublished on American soil. When My Utmost for His Highest first appeared in the United States, in 1935, few could have predicted that the little book of daily readings would become a defining text of American evangelicalism.
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