Bunyan Throughout history, the world has seen the affections of great men who have made it their life's goal to promote the word of God. There have been pastors traveling around their country preaching in every church they can find. There have been pastors who have had to hold religious services in secret or be imprisoned for the rest of their lives. There were missionaries who risked their lives to bring the Gospel to the most remote places in the world. There have been amazing Christian authors, writing some of the most compelling books to ever hit the best-seller list. However, there is one man who took part in all these extraordinary tasks; a man whose entire life revolved around the Bible. Not only was he known in his hometown of Bedford, London, but throughout Europe and throughout Asia. (In fact, one of his books sold 200,000 copies in the first three days in China alone (Sadler).) This man, John Bunyan, influenced the lives of many people around the world. Indeed, John Bunyan's life, works, and struggles have proven to be among the most influential in Christian history up to this point; his writings also pioneered theological allegories. John Bunyan was born on November 28, 1628 in Elstow, England. Very little is known about his childhood until he joined the Parliamentary Army. His father was a tinkerer and a very poor man. John Bunyan had very little education and was thought to be just a tinkerer. However, when he was just a boy, his mother died; and his father remarried just two months later. John Bunyan was so shocked by his father's timely remarriage that he left to join the Parliamentary Army (Latham). There is very little that is known... middle of paper... you don't read the novels on the shelves today. John Bunyan was on his way to a meeting when he stopped to settle a dispute between father and son. Because of this, he was caught in a thunderstorm. He became violently ill and died shortly afterwards, on 31 August 1688, aged 59 (Douglas). John Bunyan's life was nothing short of exemplary. He devoted himself to God's work until his last day. He grew up poor and had virtually no education, but he didn't let that stop him; God used him in more ways than that of a typical missionary or a typical preacher. John Bunyan's story will undoubtedly live on for centuries, surpassed only by his writing. He was truly a man after God's heart. "I love to hear about my Lord, and wherever I have seen the imprint of His shoe on the earth, there I have desired to place mine also." -John Bunyan. (John Bunyan.-Christian)