Martin Luther is often thought of as a world-shaking figure who defied papacy and empire to introduce a reformation in the teaching, worship, organization, and life of the Church. Sometimes it is forgotten that he was also a pastor and shepherd of souls. Collected in this volume are Luther's letters of spiritual counsel, which he offered to his contemporaries in the midst of sickness, death, persecution, imprisonment, famine, and political instability. For Luther, spiritual counsel was about establishing, nurturing, and strengthening faith. Freshly translated from the original German and Latin, the letters shed light on the fascinating relationship between his pastoral counsel and his theology. Theodore G. Tappert taught Church History at Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He also translated Pia Desideria by Philip Jacob Spener and The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

If you want to follow a daily discipline of devotional reading -- but want to be challenged daily to grow in faith and knowledge of the Lord and want that knowledge to have heart too -- welcome to daily doses of wisdom from the greatest minds in Christian history. These letters help reorient readers from generalizations to particulars, from conventions to specific actions, from theory to practice, and from the profession of faith to the pulsating, living, inner, and intimate expressions and experiences of "walking with God," and indeed, of "being open before God." Features and Benefits A rare collection of devotional nuggets that will challenge the mature believer. Letters are from great Christians throughout history such as Augustine, Leo the Great, John Newton and C. S. Lewis. Each letter concludes with a Scripture Meditation, Thought for the Day, and Prayer.