Monday, October 21, 2013

Grace is Free, But It's Not Cheap

Like a cheap suit, cheap grace does not look good on you! Dietrich Bonhoeffer once defined "cheap grace" as the justification of sin without the justification of the sinner. He saw preachers preaching forgiveness without requiring repentance, priests offering absolution without personal confession, disciples proclaiming to follow Jesus without a willingness to take up their cross. This, he said is cheap grace. Bonhoeffer’s life became a living mirror of costly grace. He was arrested for helping some Jews escape Nazi Germany and later was implicated in a plot to assassinate Hitler. He was hanged just three days before the Allied forces arrived. Bonhoeffer was willing to take up his cross and follow Jesus, not matter the cost.

What then is grace? Grace is unmerited favor. Unmerited favor does not give believers freedom to live life however they choose, freely committing all manner of sin. Grace is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Grace is the imputed righteousness of Christ in our lives through His death on the cross and the power of His resurrection. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, instituted the new covenant, a change from living by the legalism and the Law to living by the grace and the Spirit. This means Christians are not bound by rules and regulations, observing traditions, dietary restrictions, special days and the like in our relationship with God. The bible says in John chapter 1, “the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” Paul states, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and it is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (Ephesians 2:8-9). God paid a the ultimate price for our freedom in Christ, the life of His one and only Son. We are to do good works, therefore, not to be saved, but because we are saved. So, Paul rightly asked, "What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning, that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer (Romans 6:1-2)? Pentecost instituted the covenant of grace and God wants it understood that grace is free, but not cheap!

Friday, September 20, 2013

Happenings on the Jesus Saves Social Network - September 20th

Min Angela Interviews Gospel Artist Fred Hammond, Coming to Louisville Friday, October 4th
I had the awesome opportunity to interview Fred Hammond on the "Mr. P In the Afternoon" radio show on Thursday, September 19th on PraizePower 1350 WLOU and the New Praize 104.7. Not only is Fred Hammond one of the greatest cutting-edge gospel innovators of our day, he is passionate in his call to share the gospel of Jesus Christ through medium of gospel music. He shared about how his mentor, Bishop Marvin Winans "took him to school" very early in his career, on being the originator of urban praise and worship in introducing the praise team concept to the black church (previously prevalent only in white churches), his method of rearranging classic traditional gospel songs, and reintroducing them to this generation, and how he step out on faith to establish his production company after being inspired by and having seen what producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and Prince were doing with their companies. He spoke to high divorce rate in the church as inspiration behind the project, "God, Love and Romance."
One of our callers asked about Hammond's relationship with Bishop T.D. Jakes as Hammond is often spotted in the audience sitting on the third row on The Potter's House television program. Hammond moved from Detroit to Dallas and has been attending The Potter's House for eight years. Oh, and Fred, I feel like we are on first-name basis now (LOL!), shared that his father is originally from Louisville and that he is related to some of the Hammonds from Louisville. There was so much more I wanted to talk about but time just wouldn't permit. Needless to say, we are in for an awesome worship experience on Friday, October 4th when Fred Hammond and the United Tenors come to Louisville. Keep listening to WLOU for the exciting details!

It's A "September to Remember" at the Life Conference Suite

It's a September to Remember this month at The Life Conference Suite, our newest facility for small group gatherings, as more ministries and small group come on board to host their services, meetings and events with us, including New Destiny of Faith Church, Male High Class of 1973, Hope In The Word Bible Study, the Miller/Stevenson Debate, and St. Jude Childrens' Research Hospital Pastor's Brunch.
On Thursday, September 19th, New Legacy Reentry Corporation, Giesla Nelson, and Tarsha Semakula, stopped by to tour our facility and lend support to Jesus Saves Ministries. New Legacy is a faith-based community organization that is committed to breaking the cycle of chronic recidivisim for male ex-offenders who were previously incarcerated for nonviolent, nonsexual crimes. Contact Min. Angela Lee Price, 502-415-1001 to schedule a tour and reserve space for your upcoming event.

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The Life Conference Suite Flyer.pdf

Here's what's happening on the Jesus Saves Network. We invite you to share your responses to our Top Content:
Rank
1 Praise worthy television

Praise worthy television

Posted by Joyce E. Vaughn on September 4, 2013
2 Thank You for Your Acts of Kindness and Prayers During Passing of Masie Lee

Thank You for Your Acts of Kindness and Prayers During Passing of Masie Lee

Added by Min. Angela Lee Price on September 9, 2013
3 Another Prayer Request

Another Prayer Request

Posted by Joyce E. Vaughn on June 13, 2013
4 He has plans for us

He has plans for us

Added by Joyce E. Vaughn on September 4, 2013

New This Week: Blog Series, The Sin Nobody Talks About
Examining Paul's concept of sin in Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians and Colossians.
The Sin Nobody Talks About, Part 3
The Sin Nobody Talks About, Part 2
The Sin Nobody Talks About, Part 1

Celebrating Birthdays in September:
Happy Birthday to These Members: Valerie Cox, (photo with Angela Lee Price, the grand prize winner last year of the Jesus Saves Ministries' John P. Kee's Life and Favor Tour gift basket) Paula Loving, Keith Love, Mattie Smith, Charles Kellogg, and Carolyn McKinney. Belated birthdays to Rev. Robert Drake, Tonya Miller and Min. Barbara Trammell. Happy Birthday from Jesus Saves Ministries!

Bishop Paul S. Morton in Louisville at Canaan Christian Church
We got there very late after having left our home church, but we arrived nonetheless in time to hear the end of a powerful sermon and closing song from Bishop Paul S. Morton, one of my husband's favorite national gospel singers. Bishop Morton for the guest speaker at Canaan Christian Church on Sunday, September, 15th, closing out special services for 30th Pastoral Celebration for Pastor Walter and Sandra Malone.

 
Post Your Church's or Your Ministry's Events on the Jesus Saves Network

Post your church and ministry events on the Jesus Saves Social Network! We will blast them out to all network members at no charge this month. To invite Min. Angela Lee Price to speak at your church, conference, or gospel event, e-mail her at jesussaves1@insightbb.com or call 502-415-1001.
 

Sunday, September 15, 2013

The Sin Nobody Talks About, Part 1

Though nobody talks about it much these days, the Apostle Paul had a lot to say about sin. The next few posts will examine Paul's concept of sin from several of his New Testament letters beginning with the book of Romans.
What is sin? Sin has been defined as "missing the mark." Sin leads to complete separation from God. Paul declares, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23). In the broadest sense, sin entered the world through the first man Adam in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:6). As a result of the fall of man, all of mankind is born with a sin nature, or is shaped in equity (Rom. 3:23 and 5:12).
In a narrow sense, there are two kinds of sins in the Bible, sins of commission and omission. A sin of commission is doing what one knows is wrong, or willfully breaking the law. Paul states “Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.” Conversely, sin of omission is not doing what one knows is right to do. The Bible declares, “Anyone, then who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” (James 4:17).
Paul’s concept of sin in the book of Romans points to faith in Jesus Christ as a free gift of grace from God as the answer for forgiveness of sin. Paul has more to say on sin in Romans than in any other Pauline epistle. The following Scriptures are a few of many in Romans on sin:
  • What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one;” Rom. 3:9-10
  • Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. Rom. 3:20
  • But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Rom. 5:8
  • For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners; so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Rom. 5:19-21
  • What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Rom. 6:1-2
  • For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Rom. 6:6-7.
  • Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Rom. 6:12
  • For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. Rom. 6:14
  • For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. Rom. 8:3-4.
Our problem is SIN

We don’t have a skin problem. We have a sin problem. We are...
S Selfish
I Incorrigible
N Negative
Jesus saves us from the...
1. Penalty of Sin (Romans 6:23)
2. Power of Sin (Romans 3:23)
3. Presence of Sin (John 3:16)


How can you be saved and go to heaven?
I'm glad you asked. Here is some alphabet soup, the A-B-C's of salvation:
A - Ask Jesus to forgive your sins.
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23
"If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart God has raised Him from the dead you shall be saved." Romans 10:9
B - Believe that Jesus died on the Cross to take the punishment for your sins.
"God demonstrated his love for us in this, while we were sinners Christ died for us." Romans 5:8
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23
C - Call on Jesus to save you.
"For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:13, Acts 2:2.1, John 3:3.

RELATED POST: JESUS, YOUR TICKET TO HEAVEN

Have you ever committed a sin you couldn't bring yourself to talk about with anyone except God? Wait until you hear what was going on in the church at Corinth in the next post, "The Church at Corinth, Corrupt to the Core" in The Sin Nobody Talks About, Part 2.

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Millennials and the Church, Part 7

By:  Angela Lee Price

Part 7:  Conclusion

The Millennial Generation presents the church with a vast opportunity for discipleship.  This generation believes it will do great things and is motivated to serve society.  Whereas the Boomers and Generation X  were the “seen and not heard” children, Millennials are both seen and heard by parents who present them to the world as trophies of achievement through pictures, videos, pageants, sports, and contests.   They are special not only because of the attention attributed them but also because they are the largest and most ethnically diverse of all generations.  They are more likely to have close friends and family members of other ethnicities.

 Millennials are similar to Baby Boomers in that both generations are large and they have offered groundbreaking relationships with people of other races.  Boomers grew up segregated but were the first generation to integrate with other races later in life and right wrongs of the past through Civil Rights and affirmative rights legislation.  Because they did not grow up segregated, Millennials have taken Boomer diversity achievements one step further.  Rainer states, “…68% of the Millennials grew up in places that had significant diversity.”  Booke, a 29-year-old research study respondent stated, “I can’t ever remember a time when I was not in a mixed racial crowd.  I’ve heard my parents talk about the segregated world they grew up in, and it just seems weird.  It’s hard to believe that was common in the United States just a few years ago” (Rainer, p. 85).  This population, therefore, is much more likely to have friends and family members of other races and to marry interracially.  Although they are highly educated, they are largely “unchurched,” and rarely do they read the Bible or meet with others to study the Bible.  Approximately 70 percent of young adults agree that the American church is irrelevant, and only 24 percent attend church weekly.  This means that the church must disciple young adults differently, parents and mentors must be involved with the church in the discipleship process, and the church must prepare to disciple a more ethnically diverse congregation.
Works Cited Include:

Excerpts from my research paper, The Millennials, will be posted August 26th-31st as a seven-part series. This paper was written in partial fulfillment of course work for the Masters of Theology program at Campbellsville University, June 2013. All rights reserved.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!  Jesus Saves Ministries Celebrating 8 Years of Lifting Up Jesus Christ!
 


 

Friday, August 30, 2013

The Life Conference Suite, Where Believers Come to Meet




The Life Conference Suite, Where Believers Come to Meet, is West Louisville's newest meeting facility for small group gatherings. Centrally located at 2001 West Broadway directly across the hall from the WLOU Studios, The Life Conference Suite is a new multi-studio, multi-use facility, an ideal meeting location for retreats, conferences, bible studies, workshops, seminars, start-up church services, book signings, forums and business meetings. At The Life, our mission to help more people live the abundant life that God so richly desires for us. Consider hosting your next life-giving event at The Life Conference Suite. To schedule a tour of the facility, call Bill or Angela Price, 415-1001 or e-mail jesussaves1@insightbb.com or jesussaves838@gmail.com. " The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy," but Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." See you at The Life Conference Suite, Where Believers Come to Meet!


The Life Conference Suite Celebrates Grand Opening



Find more photos like this on Jesus Saves Ministries

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Millennials and the Church, Part 6

Part 6:  Ministry Implications In Discipling Millennials, cont'd

Theories differ on how one arrives at a fully discipled church.  Lecturer Pastor Rick Howerton stated in the presentation, “Building an Intergenerational Church Through Small Groups” at a Campbellsville University Intergenerational Ministry conference held in Louisville on May 7th that intergenerational small groups are the key to the next generation connecting with a local church (Howeton, 2013).  Intergenerational groups eliminate ministry divisions that exist with current ministry models, and this model lends itself to a unified and relational disciple-making experience.  However, Mercadante expresses the cautionary sentiment held by many pastors and experts, “It would be a mistake to take this observation to an extreme by slashing all youth gatherings and only offering intergenerational activities. Young people want and need to be gathered with one another. It’s not about switching out the youth ministry menu as much as expanding it by adding some intergenerational variety (Mercadante, 2008, p.7).

The powerful influence that Christian Baby Boomers and Generation Xers have on their Millennial offspring should give Christians hope for the future even though most Millennials do not attend church or feel church is relevant. That is because a vast majority look to their parents as their primary source for guidance and advice, as stated previously nearly ninety percent.  Moreover, Rainer states, “Millennials whose parents demonstrated some fervency in their Christian faith are likely to become even more fervent…These Millennials will likely be few in number but may very will demonstrate the greatest Christian commitment of any generation in America’s history.”

Christian mentoring might also be an answer to retaining Millennials in the church long enough to disciple them.  More than 40 percent of adult Millennials currently have a mentor in their lives (Rainer, p. 41).  They are teachable and willing to learn.  Churches could pair Millennials with Baby Boomers since these generations are more politically aligned or  their peers more mature in the faith.  Mentors should be technologically savvy and easily accessible.



Finally, churches will need to realize that effective discipleship strategies to Millennials will likely yield more diverse congregations.  Findings from the Rainer research revealed that approximately 70 percent of Millennials acknowledged a friendship with someone of a different ethnic or racial background (p. 86); 70 percent say they have friends of different religious beliefs (p. 87); and a higher number, 80 percent said their circle of friends included people with different “lifestyles,” although the term was not specifically defined (ibid).  The implication is that church leaders must receive diversity training since the 11:00 am hour on Sunday morning has historically been known as the most segregated hour of the week.   Mark Deymaz states in the book, Building A Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church, Mandate, Commitments, and Practices of A Diverse Congregation, “The good health of any church, then, is established by leaders who have an objective view of themselves – of who they are, who they are not, and who they desire to become…Therefore, local church leaders must become again the learners if, in fact, we are to succeed in establishing diverse congregations of faith” ( (Deymaz, 2007, p. 98).


Excerpts from my research paper, The Millennials, will be posted August 26th-31st as a seven-part series. This paper was written in partial fulfillment of course work for the Masters of Theology program at Campbellsville University, June 2013. All rights reserved.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!  Jesus Saves Ministries Celebrating 8 Years of Lifting Up Jesus Christ!


 

Millennials and the Church, Part 5

Part 5:  Ministry Implications In Discipling Millennials
One implication for discipleship is that churches must do more to make Millennials feel wanted, valued, and appreciated.   Assimilation teams should consider intentionally showering their new believers with attention from the moment they accept Christ.  This includes emphasizing baptisms as special moments of celebration in worship services, not rushed add-ons at the end of service. This gives the congregation a chance to get to know new believers through shared backgrounds statements and their statements of faith.  This also encourages new believers to continue in obedience to the word of God. New members should be given the right hand of fellowship before the congregation and recognized for completing new believers’ and special discipleship studies.  Additionally, assimilation teams might consider providing special seating arrangements for them at holiday services, church picnics, youth festivals, lock-ins, concerts, and outings in order to help them get acclimated to church culture. When new believers feel comfortable, they are more likely to invite their family members and friends to evangelistic outreach events, such as church picnics.  Finally, assimilation teams should see that new Millennials are featured in ministry videos and provide them with frequent opportunities to get plugged into small groups and ministries since they are service-oriented.  Mercado states,
The implications of this way of thinking are profound. The church has to look a lot more like Jesus in order to attract postmodern Millennials. Evangelization, practiced as the proclamation of Jesus, may have to give way to “immanuelization,” where our communities of faith are the presence of Jesus to the world. This is why so many young people are attracted to service. Teens profoundly encounter Jesus through identifying with his mission and through the eyes of those they serve—almost reversing the conventional order of spiritual growth. (Mercadante, p. 11)

Discipling differently not only means that the cart might be placed before the conventional horse where growing in knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is concerned, but it also means that churches and ministries must rethink how the gospel is taught, preached and communicated.   Tim Elmore states in the book, Generation iY, The Last Chance to Save Their Future, “Forget the lecture, unless it is accompanied by an experience that enables them to remember the point you are making.  This means they want to see something, or do something, not just hear something.  Communication, in other words, must be more than two-dimensional.  It must include other senses” (Elmore, 2010, p. 173).   Borrowing from Leonard Sweet who first coined the acronym, Elmore states that communication must be EPIC,  Experiential, Participatory, Image-rich, and Connected.  Artistic communication will need to implore more story, metaphor, and film.  The more technology is utilized to capture their attention, the better.  Preaching and teaching will need to be transparent and relational without compromising the integrity of the Gospel.
 


Millennials are very close to their parents and thrive on relationships.  Not only have “helicopter parents” hovered over their children and given Millennials special attention and sheltering, they have created great relationships with their teens and young adults.  Churches can capitalize on these strong family bonds by extending youth ministry to include outreach to parents.  Churches need to see parents as the primary spiritual educators of their youth and take more definitive steps to equip parents to disciple their young adults.  Frank Mercadante , in the article, “The Millennial Generation, Postmodernism and the Changing Face of Catholic Youth Ministry,” states,  “It means working together to better evangelize the entire parish community. It means not doing youth ministry in an adolescent vacuum. Instead of building disciple-making youth ministries, we need to work collaboratively to grow a disciple-making parish community.”  (Mercadante, 2008, p. 8)  His point is that the whole church, and not the youth or young adult ministries, must make discipleship a priority.  While speaking for the Catholic faith, his statement holds great validity for Protestant Evangelicals as well.
 

Excerpts from my research paper, The Millennials, will be posted August 26th-31st as a seven-part series. This paper was written in partial fulfillment of course work for the Masters of Theology program at Campbellsville University, June 2013. All rights reserved.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!  Jesus Saves Ministries Celebrating 8 Years of Lifting Up Jesus Christ!


 

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Millennials and the Church, Part 4



Part 4:  Personal Interest – Employment and Investments
Millennials view money as a major motivating force in their lives.  They may ascribe noble reasons for wanting to acquire income and wealth, but obtaining and saving money are huge issues for them.  A new study released in May 2013 from Merril Edge indicates that Millennials are beginning to save for retirement earlier than any other generation.  An article published in the Courier-Journal Newspaper entitled, “Millennials More Likely to Get Early Start on Retirement Savings,” states that many are investing by age 22 compared to Baby boomers who started on average at age 35.  The study on mass-affluent Millennials, those with $50,000 to $250,000 in assets, reveals that on average, this age group has $55,000 saved for retirement.  Merrill Edge Director Alok Prasad states this is “quite impressive,” and adds, “They are a lot more disciplined in terms of thinking ahead and being proactive about saving for the future.”  The penchant for saving was formed after living through two economic downturns, the dot-com bust and Great Recession, and watching their parents struggle because of high unemployment and economic uncertainty. 

A Prudential survey released in December 2012 revealed that lower-earning Millennials are participating in 40l(k) plans at significantly higher rates than Baby boomers their same age.  Approximately 70 percent of workers age 21 to 29 eligible for 401(k) plans who earn less than $50,000 participate in the plans compared with 40 percent participation for boomers.  That number increases to 91 percent for Millennials making more than $50,000. 
Excerpts from my research paper, The Millennials, will be posted August 26th-31st as a seven-part series. This paper was written in partial fulfillment of course work for the Masters of Theology program at Campbellsville University, June 2013. All rights reserved.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!  Jesus Saves Ministries Celebrating 8 Years of Lifting Up Jesus Christ!
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Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Test Your Knowledge of the 1963 March On Washington

Test your knowledge of the August 28, 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.  The answers to the questions are provided from the book, Like a Mighty Stream, The March on Washington, August 28, 1963, by Patrick Henry Bass.

1. What year was the Civil Rights Bill passed? 19642. Who was A. Phillip Randolph? Originator of the March on Washington idea. He organized the first march in 1941, The March On Washington for Participation in National Defense. He was also president of the Pullman Porters. Randolph called off the first march due to President Roosevelt's issuing of Executive Order 8802 which forbade racial and religious discrimination in war industries, government training programs and government industries.
3. What two events in 1955 gave birth to the Civil Rights Movement? The death of Emmett Till in Money, Mississippi, and the arrest of Rosa Parks for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama bus.
4. Who was Anna Arnold Hedgeman? She was the lone woman on the Central Administrative Committee of the March on Washington, the planning committee. She was responsible for Daisy Bates' Tribute to Negro Women Fighters for Freedom being added to the March on Washington program schedule.
5. Name one of three women who provided musical numbers at the March on Washington? Marian Anderson, Eva Jessye and Mahalia Jackson.
6. What church assembled more than 80,000 cheese sandwiches, and packed each bag with a sandwich, marble cake and an apple? Three hundred volunteers at the Riverside Church in New York City. They put all those sandwiches in a refrigerated truck at 4:00 a.m., the morning of the March.
7. Who was Medgar Evers? Mississippi NAACP leader and first martyr of the Civil Rights Movement. He was murdered outside his home in Jackson, Mississippi on June 11, 1963.
8. Name the six black organizers of the March On Washington? A. Phillip Randolph, Martin Luther King, Jr., Roy Wilkins, John Lewis, Whitney Young, and James Farmer.
9. Name the four white organizers of the March On Washington? Mathew Ahmann, Dr. Eugene Carson Blacke, Rabbi Joachim Prinz, and Walter Reuher.
10. Name the four women recognized by Daisy Bates at the March on Washington? Diane Nash Bevel, Rosa Parks, Gloria Richardson, and Mrs. Herbert Lee.

Source:
Like A Mighty Stream: The March On Washington, August 28, 1963 by Patrik Henry Bass.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!  Jesus Saves Ministries Celebrating 8 Years of Lifting Up Jesus Christ!
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket
 

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