Author: Rev. Wells

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South St. Petersburg, FL 33712
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com

Date: Feb. 12, 2023
Scripture Lessons: Deuteronomy 30:15-20 and Matthew 6:24-34
Sermon: SAY YES
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Unless you live under a rock, you know that Valentine’s Day is ahead this week. You are probably getting ads in your email or from your social media feed about the perfect gift for your Valentine. And then in the daily newsfeed, there are suddenly articles about relationships like, “Money ruins marriages. It doesn’t have to,” or “3 ways to deepen your relationship.” There are Valentine’s decorations in the waiting room at the doctor’s office. Then there are the shelves of candy in the stores. One chocolate bar I like has poems on the inside of the wrapper. Now they are all love poems. And there are heart-shaped boxes of candy. And, of course, the classic – Conversation Hearts, maybe helping you say what you have a hard time saying.

Conversation Hearts have always fascinated me. Words on the candy. Sayings. Really short. That pack a punch. I like that. But then I liked alphabet soup with the little letter noodles. And I like the chocolate bars with the poems on the inside of the wrapper. So, I’ve got a weakness for food with messages, evidently.

But Conversations Hearts, they really have a lot to say. BE COOL. CALL ME. HOT STUFF. WOW. CRAZY4U. HUG ME. SWEET. WINK WINK. And then there is SAY YES!

Both of the scripture lessons we heard today involve making a choice. Giving an answer. Choosing an option. In the story from Deuteronomy, Moses puts it right out there. Choose this day. And in the story from Matthew the choice is also made clear: You can’t serve God and money. Choose God. So, the Conversation Heart tempts us. SAY YES. SAY YES to God. To Divine Love. To the way of the gospel.

SAY YES in the Deuteronomy story means choosing the way of the God that promises peace, prosperity, well-being, a good life, and blessing. It is saying yes to a new paradigm of social and economic relationships based on providing for everyone and honoring the dignity of everyone. It is saying yes to obedience to God that leads to the well-being of the whole community in such a way that other communities will be drawn to the justice and peace and abundance that are evident. SAY YES! Moses encourages. Don’t be taken in by other gods or by systems of manipulation and power in the new land that lies ahead. Commit to God. Now. Ensure your well-being. SAY YES.

And in Matthew, there is recognition of how we so easily become fragmented and over committed and conflicted which produces anxiety and stress. We know about that. So Jesus puts it out there – God or money. You can’t serve two masters. He adjures his followers to SAY YES to the way of God. SAY YES to God who will provide and protect beloved humanity just as we see in nature – a carefully balanced adaptive interdependent system that promotes life. SAY YES.

Both of these stories invite us to SAY YES to Divine Love; to the eternal, universal, unconditional love that is at the heart of reality and at our heart. These invitations are like Conversation Hearts from God: BE MINE. FOREVER. I LOVE YOU. SOUL MATE. REAL LOVE.

And when we SAY YES to Divine Love, we experience the goodness, blessedness, and abundance of life. This commitment, including the commitment to obey in Deuteronomy, is not a burden but a gift. It is the way to a good life. To a life of meaning and purpose. To a life of wholeness and community. SAY YES.

Does SAY YES mean we will not have another care in the world? That we will not experience pain or heart break? That we will never be sick or die. No. It means that in the context of this human life on Earth, we can experience purpose, peace, joy, and well being.

SAY YES means having God, Divine Love, or however we may image God, at the heart of our lives. This is the most important filter for defining our reality. No two masters. No love of money. No serving other gods like: Success. Power. Gain. Status. Ideology. Only one center. One master. God. Love. The gospel. Jesus. One core. One commitment. And everything else flows from that leading to peace, well-being, and freedom.

These two stories remind us of the complications of multiple ‘ultimate’ commitments. It doesn’t work. We are divided. We strain. We fray. We concoct involved rationalizations to justify things. The glue doesn’t hold. It is enervating and exhausting.

Instead, as we heard today, we are given the faith option, to which we can wholeheartedly SAY YES, and then settle in to trust knowing that we are being upheld by Divine Love.

SAY YES. We are promised that saying yes to Divine Love ensures a good life. And we see that in our relationships. While relationships are often the most beautiful, mysterious, and satisfying part of our human journey, they can also be fraught with stress, anxiety, and heartache. We know this from experience. We see it in the relationships of those around us. We see it in our society.

What we find is that when we devote ourselves to God, when we SAY YES to Divine Love, well, things tend to go better in our relationships. Our commitment to love of God positions us to be more loving and committed to those who are important to us. Instead of creating polarization and a tug of war, when we SAY YES to God, we are headed one direction, the way of love. And we seek to express that love in all of our relationships. Instead of perhaps experiencing a pull between our faith commitment and our commitment to those we love, we find that our faith commitment helps us to better fulfill our commitment to those we love.

Saying yes to the love of God means saying yes to love of self, love of neighbor, love of enemy, and forgiveness. Let’s look at each of those for a moment and how they may impact our primary relationships including our romantic love relationships.

An awareness of love of self and self care helps us to be more healthy so that we have more capacity and energy to love and help others including those in our families. Love of self makes us more accepting of others. We are more capable of infectious joy from which those around us benefit. It increases our generosity of spirit. Love of self engenders empathy for others and a desire to help others care for themselves so that they can be more loving. Love of self makes us more able to be loving of others including our partners, families, and friends.

Love of neighbor increases our understanding, empathy, and generosity. For people next door, people around the globe, and our families and significant others. The impulse toward being generous and helpful benefits not only the random public and society at large but those in our household and in our families. And we can find common ground working together to help others which strengthens our bond to each other. So love of neighbor helps to strengthen our primary relationships as well as making the world a better place for all.

And love of enemy. Well. I was recently in a clergy discussion group that talked about a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. about love of enemy. In the comments, people talked about loving those who hate them. They were from historically oppressed groups. Besides being a woman, I am not part of such a group and have not experienced hate directed toward me personally for who I am. But love of enemies? I have experience with that. There have been times when, if I had a gun, I could have taken out my husband. And then my kids. And then, probably, myself. It is only the grace of God that prevented that – grace that translates into devotion to pacifism, to not having or wanting guns, to not being left to my own devices, to trust in forgiveness. Love of enemies does have an impact not only in society but also in families. It keeps hate out of the home so that love can thrive.

And when we think about our choice to SAY YES to God, we know that we are making a commitment to forgiveness. We are told of Jesus teaching forgive 70 times 7. And of Jesus forgiving his killers from the cross. So commitment to God involves trust in forgiveness. Knowing that we have an infinite capacity to forgive. And forgiveness can transform human relationships in society, in the boardroom, in the classroom, and in the bedroom.

Two years ago, when Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary, Carter was asked about advice for a long and happy marriage. The oldest-living American president said there are only two secrets to a long and successful marriage: “First of all, choose the right person to marry. And every night, we try to make sure we’re completely reconciled from all the arguments during the day.”
[https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/07/jimmy-carter-and-rosalynn-carter-married-for-75-years-success-tips.html] Maybe the Carters gave the Clintons some relationship advice.
Forgiveness. Reconciliation. Working out the kinks and the knots and the jams. Forgiveness is one of the most powerful manifestations of love. A commitment to God, to Divine Love, makes it possible. SAY YES.

So when we SAY YES to Divine Love, when we choose this day, when we select our master, we are saying yes to embodying Divine Love in all of our relationships. To living from the image-of-Godness within us. To letting our light shine and our salt savor. And that makes us better people: better citizens, better friends, better family members, and yes, better partners, spouses, significant others, and better lovers.

Every day we have the choice. Choose this day. Whom you will serve. When we SAY YES to God, to the gospel, to the way of Jesus, we become God’s valentines to the world. We are God’s Conversation Hearts saying SMILE. BE HAPPY. MISS YOU. YOU ROCK. ASK ME. YOU SHINE. DREAM BIG. BEAUTIFUL. BE GOOD. TRUE LOVE.

Choose this day. Choose every day. Not just Valentine’s Day. The way of love. SAY YES! Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Greetings and welcome to Corona Sabbath.  This is one of the ways the church is endeavoring to offer spiritual support during these challenging days of COVID-19.    We appreciate your feedback and suggestions.

We listen to John 1:1-14 read by Sue Sherwood.  This passage includes the prologue to the gospel of John.  No angels or stars here, but a sweeping statement of the import of the birth of Jesus.  

 
 
             In the beginning
                         there was the Word;
             the Word was in God’s presence,
                         and the Word was God.
             The Word was present to God
                         from the beginning.
             Through the Word
                         all things came into being,
             and apart form the Word
                         nothing came into being
                         that has come into being.
             In the Word was life,
                         and that life was humanity’s light -
             a Light that shines in the darkness,
                         a Light that the darkness has never overtaken. 

Then came one named John, sent as an envoy from God, who came as a witness to testify about the Light, so that through his testimony everyone might believe.  He himself wasn’t the Light; he only came to testify about the Light – the true Light that illumines all humankind.

The Word was coming into the world -
was in the world-
     and though the world was made through the Word,
     the world didn’t recognize it.
Though the Word came to its own realm,
     the Word’s own people didn’t accept it.
Yet any who did accept the Word,
     who believed in that Name,
     were empowered to become children of God-
children born not of natural descent,
     nor urge of flesh
     nor human will -
but born of God.
And the Word became flesh
     and stayed for a little while among us;
we saw the Word’s glory -
     the favor and position a parent gives an only       child -
             filled with grace,
                         filled with truth. 

Reflection from Kim

Christmas Eve is over.  Christmas Day has passed.  Maybe it was different for you this covid year.  Maybe you had to adapt your traditions.  Maybe the holiday involved a Zoom.  Maybe you were on your own for the first time.  Maybe you missed the usual celebrations with food and family and friends.  But we can all take a deep breath.  Sigh.  Relieved.  We made it!  Christmas is over.

So, now there is the putting away of Christmas.  Taking down the lights.  Undecorating the tree.  Putting away the creche scene.  Storing the garland.  Until next year.  When, hopefully things will be back to normal as far as Christmas is concerned. 

But Christmas is the celebration of a birth.  It is a beginning.  It is the start of an adventure.  As with the birth of any baby, there is more.  There is the unfolding of all that is to come.  The stages and changes and transitions and growth and struggles and adventures that mark a life.  So, Christmas is a beginning.

In the beautiful lesson that we heard from the gospel of John, we are told that in the life of Jesus we are shown grace and truth.  The grace and truth of God.  Of Divine Love. 

What if as we put away Christmas for this year we leave out the grace and truth.  What if we don’t box them up for next year but leave them out?  Grace and truth.  What if we try to hang on to the grace and truth that we see in Jesus and let that be our light in the days to come?  What if we really try to fundamentally integrate that grace and truth into our lives? 

Grace is about realizing all that we are given.  It’s about forgiveness of ourselves and others.  Grace enables us to treat others with compassion and understanding instead of judgment and hostility.  Truth is about affirming that the way of Jesus really does work.  Building community, pursuing reconciliation, living with compassion, ending oppression, creating a society that is anti racist and anti violent.  Declaring Good New to the poor.  This as not about a food bank.  This is about a living wage, affordable housing, good public transportation and healthcare. 

I spoke with someone recently who belongs to a conservative evangelical church.  I was told that they’re is a lot of upset in those churches right now over the race situation in America.  Many, especially pastors, believe that the church, to be true to the grace and truth of Jesus, must promote anti-racism in America today.  But there are many in the pews who do not share that commitment. 

We can think about Jesus teachings with regard to race, yes.  But there is more.  His teachings about money and wealth.  Seldom adhered to.  His teachings about forgiveness and reconciliation.  Often ignored.  Teachings about equality and justice.  We pick and choose. How about love?  Of neighbor?  Stranger?  Enemy?  Self?  When it suits us?   Here we want to remember the grace and truth.  Keep it at the forefront.  Not box it up.  Put it away.  Store it.

In the book The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History by Michael H. Hart Jesus is number three not because his message isn’t valued but because his followers do not adhere to his teachings.  Others have noted that the teachings of Jesus are wonderful but so seldom lived out.  Taken seriously.  The way of Jesus actually embodied.  Apparently his followers are known for lacking commitment to his grace and truth. 

In recent months in our country there has been much talk about voting rights and redistricting and the census.  We want to see sanity and integrity in government.  Of course!  So, we want to think about the same kind of consistency and integrity when it comes to our faith.  We want to think about living out the grace and truth that we see in Jesus. 

There is a story about a poor young Eskimo girl .  She didn’t have enough to eat or clothes to keep warm.  One day, a newspaper reporter came into the village where the little girl lived.  He saw the girl’s situation and decided to interview her.  In the course of things, he asked her, “Do you believe in God?” 

“Yes, I do,” said the little girl. 

“Do you believe God loves you?” asked the reporter.

Again the girl said, “Yes, I do.”

“If you believe in God and believe that God loves you, then why do you think you don’t have enough food or enough warm clothes to wear?”

The little girl answered, “I think God asked someone to bring me these things.  But someone said no!” [From Advent, Christmas and Epiphany:  Stories and Reflections on the Sunday Readings, by Megan McKenna, p. 237.]

If you are watching this or reading this, you have likely been on your journey of faith for some time.  Maybe you have already committed yourself to the way of Jesus.  It may already be your intention to try to live out Divine Love in your life.  So, for you, Christmas may just be a reminder.  An opportunity to re-commit.  To open yourself once again to birthing Divine Love in your life.  And blessing the world in your own way.  So as we put away the decorations may we remember that the Word, full of grace and truth, is seeking to become flesh in us.  Amen.

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Greetings and welcome to Corona Sabbath.  This is one of the ways the church is endeavoring to offer spiritual support during these challenging days of COVID-19.    We appreciate your feedback and suggestions.

We listen to Luke 1:26-45, 56 telling us of the angel Gabriel’s visit to Mary and Mary’s visit to her kinswoman, Elizabeth.  Mary finds affirmation of the presence of God, Divine Love, in her life.  

Six months later, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a young woman named Mary; she was engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David.  Upon arriving, the angel said to Mary, “Rejoice, highly favored one!  God is with you!  Blessed are you among women!”

Mary was deeply troubled by these words and wondered what the angel’s greeting meant.  The angel went on to say to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary.  You have found favor with God.  You’ll conceive and bear a son, and give him the name Jesus -‘Deliverance.’  His dignity will be great, and he will be called the Only Begotten of God.  God will give Jesus the judgment seat of David, his ancestor, to rule over the house of Jacob forever, and his reign will never end.” 

Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have never been with a man?”

The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you – hence the offspring to be born will be called the Holy One of God.  Know too that Elizabeth, your kinswoman, has conceived a child in her old age; she who was thought to be infertile is now in her sixth month.  Nothing is impossible with God.”

Mary said, “I am the servant of God.  Let it be done to me as you say.” 

With that, the angel left her. 

Within a few days Mary set out and hurried to the hill country to a town of Judah, where she entered Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth.

As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  In a loud voice she exclaimed, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!  But why am I so favored, that the mother of the Messiah should come to me?  The moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy.  Blessed is she who believed that what Our God said to her would be accomplished!” . . . Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then returned home. 

Reflection from Kim

The scene between Mary and the angel Gabriel is well known and celebrated.   Do not be afraid.  And Mary’s response – Let it be.  These words and images are familiar from art and music and popular culture.

But this year, in this season, I find myself drawn to the story of the visitation between Mary and Elizabeth.  Maybe this is because in this covid year, we are lacking in such visitations.  We are not seeing our kin – our aunts, uncles, cousins, grandchildren, grandparents, and other kin.  So we are struck once again by this beautiful story about Mary and Elizabeth. 

We are told of Mary going to visit Elizabeth.  Mary clearly had some need.  Maybe Mary knew Elizabeth to be wise and discerning.  Someone who could be trusted.  Whatever her need and her reasons, we are told of her journey to visit Elizabeth.  And this visit is prolonged.  And these two pregnant women, both in unusual circumstances, find solidarity with each other.  Elizabeth was stuck at home with her husband, Zechariah, who was struck dumb.  So maybe she was feeling lonely and isolated and appreciated the visit of her relative, Mary.  And maybe Mary was feeling alone and isolated in her pregnancy.  Maybe she needed support and affirmation that she was not getting at home.  So we are told of this visit in which each woman finds support and celebration as they bear love into the world. 

In this beautiful story we see the importance of community and relationships in the journey of faith.  We see how we need others to help sustain us as we seek to live the love we are to share in the world.  We see how we are needed to encourage and support others as they seek to live out their call to love.  We human beings are not meant to be solitary.  We need each other for support and for accountability and celebration.

I remember one year as part of our stewardship initiative here at church we had people talk about how the church is important to them and why they come to church.  One comment has stayed with me:  I come to church because I never know how I might be needed.  Just showing up, we don’t know.  We don’t know what conversation, what encounter, what comment, we may have to offer, is desperately needed by someone.  We come not knowing what support and encouragement we will give.  And we may leave church on Sunday having no idea how we have touched someone’s life.  We also come not knowing how we will be visited:  How we will receive something from someone that will shed light on how we are being called to bear Divine Love in the world.  We don’t know what exactly may happen, but we know that the faith community is a context that is ripe for such interactions and theophanies. 

In the book, All About Love: New Vistas, bell hooks says this:  “Communities sustain life – not nuclear families, or the ‘couple,’ and certainly not the rugged individualist.”   [p. 129]  Communities.  Hooks reminds us that we need each other.  We need each other in the faith community to sustain full, flourishing, abundant life and love.  We are not meant to make the journey alone.  We all need a communal context in which to learn to give and receive love.  As the African proverb reminds us, It takes a village.

But modern society, despite social media, is in some ways more and more isolating.  In some ways, our relationship circles have gotten smaller.  Hooks makes this keen observation about that: 

“Capitalism and patriarchy together, as structures of domination, have worked overtime to undermine and destroy this larger unit of extended kin.  Replacing the family community with a more privatized small autocratic unit helped increase alienation and made abuses of power more possible. . . By encouraging the segregation of nuclear families from the extended family, women were forced to become more dependent on an individual man, and children more dependent on an individual woman.  It is this dependence that became, and is, the breeding ground for abuses of power.”  [p. 130]

This analysis reminds us why the church may be more important in our lives now more than ever.  We need the people with whom we have a shared view of reality and with whom we share fundamental values to help us to be who we are created to be.  We need our faith community to help us listen for the callings in our lives.  We need each other to affirm that we are here to birth love into the world, each in our own way. 

The society around us is going to try to make us into economic components, inputs, in the economic system that drives our country.  But our faith tells us that we are not here to make money, we are here to make love.  To love and be loved.  To be part of the unfolding of universal, unconditional love. 

The scene between Mary and Elizabeth is a powerful image reminding us that we need each other to bear up and carry out our calling to embody Divine Love in the world.  We hear many stories in these covid days of the toll of isolation and lack of social contact.  It is real.  I know many from our church are simply missing each other.  When we finally had a masked, physically distanced outdoor service for Thanksgiving, everyone was simply filled with joy to see each other.  For the interaction: the social contact with this precious faith community that sustains us.  For we know that just being together at church may be the locus for that word, that comment, that conversation, that helps us to see more clearly how we are being called to love.  In this covid time, we are realizing that to be without church, it is almost like feeling starved or thirsty.  Cut off from the sustaining support and encouragement that we need to help us hear our call to bear love into the world.  You may be someone’s angel Gabriel.  Someone may be your Elizabeth.  You may be someone’s Mary.  While it is harder to be physically together at this moment, may we remember that we have our faith community to sustain us and may this time apart remind us of the importance of our being together.  May this covid time be the advent of new life for us and for our faith community.  Amen. 

(Click HERE if you wish to see the post containing the video of this text.)

Greetings and welcome to Corona Sabbath.  This is one of the ways the church is endeavoring to offer spiritual support during these challenging days of COVID-19.    We appreciate your feedback and suggestions.

We listen to Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11  reminding us of of God’s good news for all people, good news of healing, wholeness, and justice.  This good news brings joy.  In this Advent season, we seek to rekindle our dreams of joy.  

“The Spirit of Exalted Yahweh is upon me,

for Yahweh has anointed me:

God has sent me to bring good news to those who are poor;

to heal broken hearts;

to proclaim release to those held captive

and liberation to those in prison;

to announce a year of favor from Yahweh,

and the day of God’s vindication;

to comfort all who mourn,

to provide for those who grieve in Zion –

to give them a wreath of flowers instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness instead of tears,

a cloak of praise instead of despair.

They will be known as trees of integrity,

planted by Yahweh to display God’s glory.

They will restore the ancient ruins,

and rebuild sites long devastated;

they will repair the ruined cities,

neglected for generations.

‘For I, Yahweh, love justice;

I hate robbery and sin.

So I will faithfully compensate you,

and I will make an everlasting covenant with you.

Your descendants will be renowned among the nations;

and your offspring among the people;

all who see you will acknowledge

that you are a people blessed by Yahweh.’

I will joyfully exult in Yahweh,

who is the joy of my soul!

My God clothed me with a robe of deliverance

and wrapped me in a mantle of justice,

the way a bridegroom puts on a turban

and a bride bedecks herself with jewels.

For as the earth brings forth its shoots,

and a garden brings its seeds to blossom,

so Exalted Yahweh makes justice sprout,

and praise spring up before all nations.’”  

Reflection from Kim

Maybe you are feeling a little less joy this season than you normally would.  Well, without the usual parties and activities, without the family gatherings and meals with friends, without the usual church goings on, it may be hard to feel the joy that we normally associate with the Christmas season. Maybe you are missing the concerts and plays and arts events that you associate with this season that bring joy.

Then there are the stunning death tolls posted each day due to covid.  That certainly gives pause.  And many of us have friends and relatives suffering from covid.  So much suffering and grief.  And our hearts also go out to those in the healthcare sector who are stressed to their limits responding to this crisis.  

Yes, there are the complications of this covid Christmas.  And there are other things that may dampen the spirits this season.  Maybe you are remembering someone who died at this time of year.  Maybe you are thinking about sad memories associated with past Christmases.  Maybe economic issues are taking the sparkle out of life for you at this moment.  Maybe concern for others who are having difficulties has you down.  The shortened days and long nights can subdue the spirit. 

In this season of lights we simply may not be feeling merry and bright.  But the words of the prophet Isaiah remind us of the deeper significance of this season.  The prophet celebrates one who will embody the commitment of God to justice, right relationship, and healing.  And as Christians we see the embodiment of that commitment in Jesus.  There is a story early in the ministry of Jesus that refers to this very scripture.  We are told of Jesus declaring in the synagogue that he has come to bring good news to the poor, to heal broken hearts, to proclaim release to the captives, and liberation to those in prison, and to announce the year of God’s favor.  That is a clearing of the slate relating to financial debt.  

Jesus comes to bring justice and deliverance and healing.  He comes to put things right.  To free us from the systems that entrap us and comfort our hurt and pain.  

The ministry of Jesus is a witness to the commitment of God to the well-being of humankind.  Jesus shows us how to care for each other and the Earth.  He shows us how to forgive each other and ourselves.  He invites us to relationships that are life giving.  Jesus invites us to a world where people are truly valued and not abused or taken for granted or seen as economic inputs that are expendable.  

The birth of Jesus is about the birth of a new reality in which everyone and all of Creation is cherished and has the opportunity and resources to flourish.

So, no matter what is dampening our spirits this covid Christmas, may we find joy in the coming of Jesus.  May we rejoice in the justice he brings.  May we celebrate the new reality that he calls forth and that is continuing to emerge today.  

This is a season to remember that God is with us.  The God who cares that people are made poor, that people are grieving, that people are in pain.  The God who offers comfort, solace, and new life.  The birth of Jesus and the holy day of Christmas are to remind us of God’s intention that all lives be filled with joy.  May your joy be rekindled this season.  

Amen.

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