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To know Him

Many moons ago there was a Group called the Teddy Bears and they had a hit song called ‘To know him, is to love him’. I said many moons ago – it was 1958! I sometimes think of the lyrics in the context of knowing God: “To know, know, know him is to love, love,…

KISS pt 2

Sorry this took longer to publish. I’ve had a really busy week and been helping someone move house too. Allow yourself 15 minutes to read this and perhaps longer to digest it. This follows on from the previous blog, and both really need to be read together. I want to focus on how we do…

KISS

I’ll start with two items from my youth. The first is a song. “The times they are a changin’ There, that dates me straight away! Here are the words of the first verse Come gather ’round peopleWherever you roamAnd admit that the watersAround you have grownAnd accept it that soonYou’ll be drenched to the boneIf…

Tsunami

I want to write a short piece about where I think we (the Church) are in terms of the plans and timing of God As we all know, many countries of the world (but by no means all) chose to take a draconian response to the appearance of the Sars 2 virus. The result for…

Time to catch up

In quite a few different places I have come across the notion recently, that the Church is a remnant – that we are a small but pure remnant group that God has kept for Himself whilst the rest of the world carries on in its own sweet way, oblivious to the message of the gospel.…

Unhelpful teachings…Important note

I realise that for some, the idea that we, the Church go through the time of tribulation does not sit well because they understand that time to be a time of punishment for unbelievers. Tribulation is pressure, not punishment. It is pressure designed to bring people to their senses and open their hearts to their…

Unhelpful teaching – part 1 of 2

Very shortly after I became a Christian I went to the Middle East to work for nearly 5 years. Whilst there I made friends with quite a number of other believers, some from the U.K. and some from the States. We spent much time listening to cassette teaching tapes (it was the 80’s!) and discussing…

Revival – What is the truth?

Happy New Year to everyone. This is slightly longer than usual – about a 10 minute read. I hope it’s thought provoking as we enter the year ahead. Get yourself a cuppa and sit down….. Wherever I go in Christian circles these days I hear talk of revival. I have titled this blog ‘Revival -…

Graded grains

If you’re of a certain age you will know the rest of that strap-line…. “Graded grains make finer flour”. It’s from a series of adverts run by Homepride Flour some years ago. You can find them on YouTube if you want to look. In the dark ages, BH, (Before Homepride), flour had to be sifted…

To Blend or not to Blend…

I’m currently having a little break in Romania. A different country, a different culture and different ways of doing things – even the ordinary things. When you travel to another culture you tend to keep your eyes open to see how things are done. At the petrol station – do you wait for someone to…

Word and Spirit

It’s a while since my last blog, partly because I have been very busy with other things, and partly because I think the nature of the blog will shift slightly. When I started I had the aim of encouraging people on two levels. One level was simply to help to keep people connected to God…

The start of harvest…

I had planned to write a little about the place of Word and Spirit side by side in the coming move of God, but as I thought about it I realised that I needed to write first about Holy Spirit. This coming Sunday is Pentecost Sunday when believers remember and honour that day when Holy…

Basic Training

About a month ago a friend said to me that the trouble with sharing the gospel is that he felt that he needed to start at the Creation and be able to tell the whole story from start to finish. That comment was repeated to me today. Recently, a lady I know said about the…

I’ll make my heart a home.

In 2 Chronicles we can read about how King Solomon built the first Temple, in Jerusalem. It’s an extraordinary story of how a King who loved God had the honour of building a dwelling place for Him and how when it was completed, God manifested His Glory and Presence there. The temple itself was unique.…

There is more to do

When I was young I was sent to one of the top academic schools in the North East. I was there for 10 years of my school life. I left no mark. I coasted through. I left without any great distinction. It was a wonderful opportunity, and I squandered it. I still receive the school…

A tale of two Kingdoms…

It’s a couple of weeks since my last Blog and this one is a bit longer than usual Even so, it will only take you about 8 minutes to read. It is a message I gave last week and I hope you find it helpful and encouraging. I want to look at the fact that…

Lake or River?

I wanted to focus a little on Holy Spirit in us, and how if we listen to our feelings too much we can limit what He wants to do in us and through us. I’ll start by saying that the normal experience for a Christian is to be filled with Holy Spirit. Whether that happens…

His Glory will be revealed in you

This blog carries on from last week, so if you haven’t already done so, it would make sense to read last weeks blog first. We are looking at the Church as the Bride of Christ, and since we are all individual parts of the Body that makes the Church, whatever applies to the whole Church…

Time for the Bride to get ready

I have been thinking a bit about the fact that we (the Church) are the Bride of Christ. Then I listened to Frank Viola talking about it and then the subject came up in our prayer meeting on Wednesday night. One of my friends started praying about it, and she was obviously feeling something very…

It’s one or the other

It’s half term this week and I took the opportunity to go away for a few days. One of those days, I was sitting in a coffee shop and I just started thinking about how we should be in attack mode as believers and churches, but often end up being defensive. As I thought about…

Rebuilding is in progress.

I heard recently from a friend that the house that I was brought up in is about to be demolished and the site will be redeveloped. Our house was a three bedroom bungalow with two reception rooms, a kitchen and a bathroom. It was just an average size house, but it was built on an…

Taking the plunge

This is the third and final part of a series of blogs to encourage us to be carriers of the presence and the power of God to those we meet. Somebody once said that the Holy Spirit in us is meant to be a river, not a lake. Jesus said that rivers of life giving…

Starting the journey

Two weeks ago, I wrote these words: “There is a job to do. It is time for the full presentation of the gospel. It is time to represent Jesus well and properly. Time to take His presence and power with us wherever we go. Time for healings, miracles, deliverances , setting people free – and…

Going through the door

Last week I wrote about the door that was open before us, and that it was time to go through that door and represent Jesus well, taking His presence and power with us. There is a world to be reached, there are millions even in the U.K. who have never heard the gospel, never felt…

Open door

Writing from a U.K. perspective, it feels as if a door of opportunity has opened before us, the Church. Government restrictions are in the process of being lifted. There is a hope for things to begin to return to normal. The first question we need to ask is ‘What is normal?’ Normal is not what…

Comfort might not be your best friend.

Recently I was talking to an older man who had been a young boy during the Second World War. He was telling me some of his memories. He was brought up in Kent, and the place where they lived was directly under the flight path used by the German bombers that were on their way…

Get ready

I just want to start this first blog for 2022 by saying that my hope for you for this year is that you fully experience what it is to walk with God this year; that you know how close He is to you, how much He cares for you, how much He has invested in…

The main thing….

I was thinking about death-bed conversions, as you do, and that led me on to thinking about how we often try to centralise the gospel around us as individuals with “heaven or hell” being the decisive choice that has to be made. So, the mission of the Church becomes that of saving people from hell.…

The Wall

Have you ever run into a wall? It would be painful, right? I once walked into a plate glass door. I was working late in a church building. It was late and well after dark. I turned off the lights and put on the alarm ready to leave. I walked across the auditorium towards the…

Ready for the battle…

This week’s blog continues from last week. Take a few moments to read last week’s if you haven’t already. It will help. In the Film the Director and all his crew had to keep Truman Burbank from finding out who he really was and what he could do if he found out that the Director’s…

Get the right story

I’m not a great watcher of films. I’ve slept through more than I’ve actually watched. So, when I mention the film “The Truman Show” you need to understand that I haven’t actually watched it. I have seen the last few minutes of it and I remember the feeling of outrage inside me as my daughters…

Get ready

This might be the shortest blog I have ever done. It’s just a very simple thought, but important. I woke up thinking about Matthew 6 v 33, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need”. At times in the past, I have approached this…

And now for something completely different

Quite a few years ago, before I was married in fact, I used to have a small business repairing motorcycles. In those days it wasn’t complicated to repair bikes, not like now. I had a small workshop and by today’s standards fairly basic tools. One day I had a machine parked up outside to work…

As close as close can be

There was a lovely short song by Incredible String Band called ‘Air’ which I used to love. It’s about the air that we breathe and it has this line, “You come right inside of me, as close as close can be….” (It’s on YouTube if you want to look it up). I have been running…

It’s not complicated

You know what it’s like when someone that you know quite well dies, and after the funeral people are sharing stories about the person. Some of the stories you know. You might even be the one telling some of the stories. You might hear a story about something the person once did and it’s something…

The Plan

“His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,”‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭3:10‬ NIV I keep coming back to the subject of The Church In these blogs. The title of this Website is about the Church being ‘out there’. By that…

Part 2, The Beautiful Bride

Welcome back to the second part. This follows on from last weeks blog, so if you haven’t read that, read it quickly now. Here is the link for it, “The view from the other side” which is a quick overview of God’s unfolding plan and purpose from the perspective of the enemy. “….in order that…

The view from the other side

We know that we are on the winning side, don’t we? We have seen the end of the book. There is NO doubt. We win. Actually we don’t just win at the end, we are winners on the way to the end too. We know that in all things, we are more than conquerors through…

This week is a bit different

…and it is different because I haven’t written a blog! I normally like to do a blog about this time every week but this week hasn’t been as smooth as I had hoped, so I haven’t been able to write one. HOWEVER….. THERE IS A YOUTUBE VIDEO THAT I would really like to share with…

Where are we now?

I don’t know if you’ve noticed or not, but one of the signs of the season changing is birdsong. as spring turns to summer, the month of May is quite full of lively birdsong. It all goes a bit quiet in June and July as they have young to look after. It picks up a…

Firestarters – reminder

MONDAY 13 SEPTEMBER, 7.30 PM VENUE: MY HOUSE. Email me on williamskev2020@gmail.com to confirm a place, check the address and ensure there are enough biscuits to go round. Course will be for 5 consecutive Monday nights from 7.30 till 9.00pm. At the end of the course there will be an option to go out for…

Kingdom come or kingdom go?

I might annoy one or two of you today – I hope not, but bear with me and go back to the Bible and dig for truth yourselves if you need to. What I am about to write is for all believers, but especially so for those who lead Church, whether it’s established church or…

Firestarters course – reminder

MONDAY 13 SEPTEMBER, 7.30 PM VENUE: MY HOUSE. Email me on williamskev2020@gmail.com to confirm a place, check the address and ensure there are enough biscuits to go round. Course will be for 5 consecutive Monday nights from 7.30 till 9.00pm. At the end of the course there will be an option to go out for…

Use the Yeast

When I was young, my sister and I used to make bread. Nothing fancy. Quite the opposite. This bread had no yeast. It was just flour and water made into small buns about the size of a golf ball, baked in the oven and only edible if eaten when hot. To be honest, the only…

Looking for Church

Last Sunday I went to visit at a church that I had not been to before. Afterwards I went back to the home of a couple of friends who are part of that church family and was treated to an excellent lunch and a very pleasant afternoon. As I sat in the church meeting, I…

It’s time to be flexible

You probably know the famous words in Isaiah chapter 54: “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; …. Isaiah 54:2-3 NIV One version has it like this: “Increase is…

SPLANCHNIZOMAI….(splash-need-zum-eye)

There we are. I’ve said it. Splanchnizomai! Something Jesus had in abundance. Something we could do with in abundance. What is it? It’s compassion. But as we shall see in a moment, it’s compassion with a twist. How did I get to be thinking about this, you may ask. Well a train of thought started…

Not time to settle down

“Where in the world did the Church so often get the idea that from then on (from when we became Christians), it was all about being part of a nice Christian community, becoming nicer people and helping others” I wrote that sentence in last weeks blog. it is not a critical statement but a factual…

Choose the right Tree

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed this or not, but the gospel of John is a re-write of the book of Genesis. The first three words of the gospel are a clue- “In the beginning….” We start with Sovereign God intervening in the world that He has made. The result of that intervention is a…

Moving the pieces on the board

We are entering a new season. In the church, the whole church landscape, not simply the local expression that you might be connected to, things are changing. God is making the changes. Because He wants His Church back, to do with it what He wants. The days when we have Church for our benefit and…

A second attempt….

Here’s a popular job interview question – “if you could live your life over again, what would you change?” The interviewer is hoping for a moment of honesty, where the candidate might share about something that went wrong in their (working) life and how they addressed the issue and how that reflects on their suitability…

There is a Name….

When you read the title you maybe filled in the phrase with the words “that is higher than any other name” or perhaps some other words from the bible or from a song that you know. The Name of course is Jesus. I met Him when I was 28. I had heard about Him, but…

Crushed before your cornflakes

Have you ever had this happen to you – you wake up in the morning and within minutes a memory of an event in your life flashes across your mind. The event is not a positive one. You linger on the memory for a moment and the video begins to play. In a millisecond you…

The rubber hits the road

Ok then; you’re walking down the road and you pass a church. There’s a big notice board outside with a brightly coloured poster with the following message…. NEXT WEEK’S MESSAGE: HOW THEN SHOULD WE LIVE? – DON’T MISS IT What’s your reaction? “I wouldn’t miss that for the world; that’s going in my diary now”…

Gospel = Good News = Freedom

If you haven’t read last weeks blog. Understanding the gospel more…. it would help you to do that quickly now because this one follows on. You will remember that I asked you to imagine a family that were friends of yours, with 4 children living in a 2 bedroom dilapidated house, and to imagine that you…

Understanding the gospel more….

Imagine that a family that you cared for a great deal lived in an small and cramped house. They have 4 children and only 2 bedrooms, one bathroom and an outside toilet. The house is old, dilapidated, needs re-wiring and modernising. The roof leaks, there is no central heating and the garden….well….we’ll come onto the…

I didn’t understand the gospel fully!

The truth is that for years I never understood the gospel properly. I was in the position that countless Christians are in; they are saved, they love Jesus, but they don’t fully understand the gospel and all of what Jesus has done for them. Let me tell you about my experience. When I was 28…

Too good to be true…

“If it’s too good to be true, then it probably is”. That phrase simply says that what’s being offered cannot be as good as it seems to be because “you don’t get something for nothing in this world”. And if someone you have no connection with is offering you a deal that is too good…

Don’t forget….the fire is not the problem

Last week I wrote about the experience of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when King Nebuchadnezzar had them thrown into a furnace because they refused to bow down to an idol, a false god. (Read in Daniel chapter 3). The furnace was so hot that even the soldiers who threw them in became instant toast. And…

The Fire is not a problem

Interesting bit of history in the Book of Daniel. Three men were thrown into a furnace at full heat, had a chat and a stroll with Jesus and then came out totally unharmed. You can read the story in Chapter 3, but here is the bones of it. There was a vast empire in the…

Steve’s family…

Steve and Fiona (she prefers to be called Fi) met about a year ago at the beginning of lockdown. They live quite close to each other, but Steve is a long way away from where he grew up. Despite the awkward rules of lockdown, their relationship has developed and become quite close. In more normal…

The Last Temple

My attention was drawn to the significance of the Torn Veil the other day. The Veil was a curtain in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem in the days of Jesus. The Temple was divided into a number of different areas and at the West end of the site stood a massive building, 15 stories high.…

Are you imagining things?

A question like that generally could make us feel defensive …. “No of course I’m not” is often the reply. I think the truth is that at times we should be imagining things. Let me try to explain. Last week I read a piece where someone had written that too often we misuse our imagination,…

The Chair Story.

My father was a Solicitor. He worked in an office on Grey Street in Newcastle for many years. His office was piled with files and papers on every available surface. Every now and then Secrataries would come in and sit down while he dictated a letter to them, which they would take back to the…

V.S. Day

In this country, and in Europe we still remember VE Day, Victory in Europe – the day the Allies defeated Germany in the Second World War. That day marked the end of a very dark time, and the crossing of the threshold into a more promising and hopeful future. Easter Sunday is VS day. Victory…

Tasteless fruit

Have you ever bought strawberries from the supermarket out of season? They are available all the year round these days. They always look beautiful – large, deep red, plump and very inviting. But do they taste like fresh strawberries in season? Absolutely not. In fact you could probably be given one whilst blindfolded and not…

Where’s Jesus?

Are you familiar with the “Where’s Wally?” books? If not, Google it to get a good idea of what the books are. The artist has created a character called Wally, (Waldo in the US) and drawn him in red and white striped clothes always with glasses and a pom pom hat, and then set him…

He is your Father

I have known about the Fatherhood of God since I was a little boy in Primary School. I knew He must be Father because we were taught to say “Our Father, Who art in Heaven…..”. The Lords Prayer as taught by Jesus. The whole school said it together every day in Morning Assembly. That’s all…

Would you believe it?

I have been doing a Freedom in Christ Course with a couple of people and encouraging them to think about what they believe; about themselves and about what God thinks about them. Often we have a mismatch – God thinks one thing and we think another. Guess who needs to change, or needs helping to…

Life hacks and Baking Soda

Just in case you didn’t know, a Life Hack is defined as a technique or a strategy to help you do life more efficiently by knowing short cuts, helpful tips and useful hints. You don’t have to go to far on the internet before you find some clever soul offering you their Life Hack wisdom…..…

Complete love, complete provision.

When my two daughters were young, about twenty years ago, they used to play a computer game called The Sims. In the game, they would create a house from scratch, and perhaps alter it until they got just what they wanted. They would create an environment to set it in, gardens and so on. Then…

Which Car?

I managed to crash my car the other day ☹️. Going (slowly – honest!) round a corner in the snow, the back end slipped uncontrollably and the car slid slowly and remorselessly into a parked car. The rear passenger side door on my car took the full impact and was severely dented. The parked car…

Have you got a slate missing?

It sounds like a rude question; it implies that you are a bit eccentric or ‘not quite all there’. The correct answer to the question is that you have got a slate missing, and no I am not saying that you are odd or losing your grip! The truth is that we all have a…

Don’t worry, I’ve got this.

Imagine that God spoke to you, a bit out of the blue. You knew for certain it was Him. No doubt about it. He said “No one will be able to stand against you, all the days of your life.” NO ONE! Think about it…. It actually happened to someone once. He said it to…

What’s not to like here?

When Jesus was baptised, three major things happened in the same moment. The heavens were opened The Holy Spirit descended and rested on Jesus Father God spoke from heaven – “you are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” How is that for affirmation? Wouldn’t that just give you confidence in…

When He called you He planned everything

You do know that it was God who found you? Right? He searched for you. He found you. He pursued you. He set His affection on you. He still does. He wants you. He knows everything about you. He has weighed it all up and made His final decision. He wants you. He has committed…

I just put this up on Facebook…

I just put this up on Facebook. If you like it you might want to copy and paste it onto your FB page if you have one. What God did in response to prayer is quite remarkable… Enjoy the read and be encouraged 🙂 PRAYER, NEWCASTLE UNITED, O.F.T. & CORONAVIRUS AND A REMARKABLE STORY FROM…

Don’t waste your sufferings

Ok. So it’s January. It’s cold. It’s wet. It gets dark early. We’re in lockdown again. It’s Monday, and here comes Kev with a cheery thought – “Don’t waste your sufferings” 🙈 Stay with me folks. This could be invaluable I was chatting with a friend this morning about how God uses stress, pressure, adversity…

Coat hooks and prayer

As this pops up on your screen you’re probably thinking “it’s not Monday already, surely?” Well no, it’s not, but I felt provoked to put this out as an extra because I think it’s important. It’s to do with where we are as a nation, and particularly as believers in this nation. I’ll try to…

He leads me through…

Years ago when I first started out my Building business, I augmented my income by digging graves at Ovingham. It was very hard work, all done by hand and the site was quite rocky. January was always the busiest month of the year and most of the burials were for the very old. What I…

He Wins!

So, I had the title in mind for this blog, and then I wrote it but it was all a bit impersonal and probably theological. I felt challenged to go back and think again. What was in my heart to say was that no matter what is going on, no matter what happens – God…

Let it be so now

I had been reading and thinking about how Jacob planned to marry Rachel, but ended up married to Leah first. As I was doing that, this phrase “let it be so now” came to mind. At first I wasn’t sure if it wasn’t just a random thought, and perhaps not worth thinking about. After a…

Boiling frogs

This needs to start with a warning ⛔️ Don’t try this at home! Apparently if you drop a frog in boiling water it will leap out. If you put it in tepid water and slowly raise the temperature it will not realise the danger until it’s too late. [Expecting lots of angry emails from frog…

Aliens and Smash…

I want to start off this blog by looking at an advert, which will amuse you, and then we’ll look at a scripture verse that is sometimes misused. Click on the advert and it will play He must increase, but I must decrease. John 3v10 The NIV translates this as “He must become greater, I must become…

Late afternoon at Jesus’ house

I was thinking about the time when people were bringing their children to Jesus, and the disciples got all upset about it. The picture I used to have was of Jesus sitting down in a village square with all these mums queuing up to have their children blessed by Jesus. Perhaps it had been the…

Better together

This might be a slightly shorter blog because I have been spending all my time finishing my Article called “Women in the Church, getting it right” which you can find on this site in the Articles section. There are helpful summaries at the end of each section if you just want to get an overview.…

Clock design

I went to visit my daughters last weekend, and I came home with a mantelpiece clock which belongs to Ruth. It’s not working and I offered to see if I could fix it. I removed mechanism, dismantled it completely and put it back together. It still doesn’t work, but I am learning and I will…

Carts and horses

If you look at the picture at the head of this blog, the horse is pulling the cart. Good. Because as we all know, putting the cart in front of the horse doesn’t work. But, how often do we Christians try putting the cart before the horse? So what’s all this about? I was looking…

A week later

I have been reading through the gospel of John, and there are some lovely moments in it. I love the way Jesus heals on the Sabbath, like He hadn’t noticed. “Sabbath? Really? I hadn’t clocked that. Ah well, I’ve healed the man now. Can’t really un-heal him and then heal him again at the start…

Lord, if only you had been here….

Ever been late? Late for a bus or train; late for a meeting, getting the kids to school, meeting a friend? How many of these emotions do you recognise as part of being late: anxiety, fear, regret, worry, panic, embarrassment. Sometimes we are late and it’s not our fault and there’s nothing we can do…

As You Go

Have you ever felt stuck? Are there times when things in your relationship with God feel stale, or even stagnant? There was a time when you knew Life and now things just feel a bit flat. At times like that we can just withdraw a bit, hunker down and hope that sometime soon God will…

Cows

Yep. That’s right. We’re talking Cows. Fat cows, crated cows and free cows. So here goes…. But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture. Malachi 4v2 The first thing to do…

Am I a good Christian?

How many of us when we read that question start running a quick internal check of how we are doing at “being a Christian”? Am I behaving nicely? Am I up to date with the things a Christian is expected to do? I’ve heard people say “I’m not a very good Christian” or “I try…

Time to fight back

The present situation in which we find ourselves, partially locked down again with possibly more to come, freedoms lost, normal life horribly circumscribed, uncertainty, confusion and fear all around – all this can leave us with a swirl of negative emotions. Anger, disappointment, hurt, frustration and fear, just to name a few – and I…

I haven’t been this way before….

Last week I was explaining to a 6 year old boy what life was like before we had mobile telephones. How we would use the house phone if we had one, or go down the street to use the phone box. (Showing my age now….but I remember going into phone boxes and pressing Button B…

Walking the ridge – with Joseph

The picture is of the ridge of the mountain chain called the Cuillin, on the Isle of Skye. It’s one of those mountain ridges that is clearly defined, often no more than 18inches wide with the mountain sides falling steeply away on each side. The ridge joins up a series of nearly 30 mountain summits…

We are saved through His life [in us]

When the first English settlers arrived in America, they established a small Fort, right where they landed. Later on it developed into a town called Jamestown. Things did not go brilliantly for them. The water supply was a bit salty, they struggled to provide food for themselves and there were many problems. Some did not…

Infection Control

Someone mysterious had a master plan. To infect as much of the human race as possible. A handful of people were infected and allowed to move freely. At first they just stayed in their own city, but the infection spread like wildfire through their small country. Then they, and others carrying the infection, travelled to…

There is more…..

In Matthew’s gospel Jesus talks about us being salt and light, about not hiding our light from others. We are to let our light shine before others so that they may see our good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven. (Matthew 5).What does this mean? For years I hid behind this passage in an…

Yesterday ended last night

So its Friday night, at the end of a pleasant summer’s day in August and the sun has just gone down over the horizon, though it is still light and pleasantly warm. It is definitely the end of the day though, and as I watch the sky slowly losing its brightness I am reminded of…

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