This is an excerpt from the third chapter of By Water and the Word: God’s Gift of Baptism for You by Brian Thomas (1517 Publishing, 2026), pgs 52-60.
Even when the bitter places sink down deep into our bones, the Restorer never relinquishes his grip on you.
To Live Well is therefore not a general advice book, but a message suffused with the gospel.

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However knowledgeable you may become by reading Buddha or compassionate after following Gandhi, you will never find forgiveness in anyone else other than Christ alone.
The world rushes forward, lighting up screens and decking out storefronts in a mad sprint toward the next thing, but Advent pulls us back.
In Scripture, laments are raw expressions of grief, but they always point to hope. What if our culture’s obsession with holiday lights is an unconscious way of crying out, “We need good news, and we need it now”?
Below is an excerpt from the personal devotional included in this year’s 1517 Advent Resources.
Thanksgiving is never out of place for the Christian.
Show me a sinner, and I’ll write you a story of a God who saves them.
Salvation doesn’t hang in the balance of a voting booth.
Jesus Christ is relentless. He does not give up. And with him comes the certainty of redemption.
Jesus came for little children, and that is what we are. We are children of God.
Let your soul grieve, yes, but don’t let it be eaten alive by worry.
God’s creatures on four legs are some of the greatest storytellers of the Scriptures.
This article is part of Stephen Paulson’s series on the Psalms.