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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What is it to be an heir of the Reformation? It is to look outward to Christ bleeding and dying on the cross as Great Rescuer of sinners—of me.
Where Jesus speaks to us, takes ahold of us, and gives Himself to us.
Whether we realize it or not, all these online, self-editing actions are nothing more than our admission that we believe that we are so deeply flawed that no one will love us just as we are.
When I was about 10, I went on a hike with a boys brigade. We were all racing down this path at lunchtime when I decided to beat everyone to the bottom by deviating from the path.
I’ve always been a very passionate person. Adventure is my favorite thing.
The Lutheran Reformation was a reformation of the Christian imagination alongside its theology.
The Reformation handed over the crystal-clear Gospel of Jesus Christ on to the next generation.
So bondage meets freedom, and God becomes our Master through Christ.
We are forgiven for Christ’s sake. Losers set free to trust in God’s promises.
My parents will be the first to tell you, I can really put my foot in my mouth. I often don’t say the right thing.
When we are unsure of who God is, it’s to Christ that He tells us to look.
Luther contends that even our best spiritual, theological, and moral efforts are insufficient to save us.