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Tag Archives: prayer

Warning: Legalism is Addictive

17 Mar

PillsIn my last post, I talked about hearing from God and receiving vision for your life and ministry.  This is important, because under the New Covenant, believers need to be hearing from God.

I’m so glad that whenever I pray, God hears me in Christ.  But I also need to hear Him when He speaks.  I don’t think it’s as much God not speaking, as it’s me not listening.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus made a startling statement that many have overlooked.  But first, let’s look at the context.

“And no one pours new wine into old wineskins.  If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined.  No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins.”
Luke 5:37-38

In this parable the old wineskins stand for those who walk in legalism.  Once wineskins were used, they became empty, used up, dry, and unyielding.

That’s a good description of many of the Pharisees Jesus had to deal with.  They had nothing on the inside to give that would bless others.

In the natural, new wine is unfermented grape juice.  As it becomes wine, it produces gasses that pressurize the skins.

Old, dry and unyielding wineskins would burst under that internal pressure.  You can’t live for God like that.

A New wineskin – one that’s unstretched, oiled, soft, and pliable – is ready to be used in this process.

As we get that new wine of the Holy Spirit in us, it starts to ferment.  There is a spiritual pressure that builds up.  That’s what brings growth.

Now you’re hearing from God and something is being poured into you.  The pressure is building.  You have something to give and pour out into someone else.

Listen to Jesus’ next statement.

“And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’”
Luke 5:39

Once you get a taste for legalism, you don’t want the new work of the Spirit.  Why is that?  Simply put, legalism is intoxicating and addictive.

Legalism strokes my ego.  “Look at what I’m doing for God.  I read my Bible and pray every day.  I go to church every week.  I’m better than most.”

This “intoxication” with self-righteousness will put us to sleep, spiritually speaking.  We don’t feel the need to hear from God.  We can live the way we want as we perform our minimal church obligations.

Basically, we can live for God without being changed by the Spirit.  That’s the deception of legalism.

I want to be prepared to hear His voice.  This requires that I allow the Holy Spirit to work His change in me – to stretch my outer man sometimes.  It may feel uncomfortable, but it’s worth it to see the Lord working through me.

Question: How far are you willing to be stretched by the Holy Spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on March 17, 2014 in Legalism, Prayer

 

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Leadership and Serving the Word

10 Mar

Fine DiningWhat are the main responsibilities of church leaders?  Is it preaching, visiting the sick, running the church program; or is there something more important.

In this generation, many leaders are ignoring the most important aspect of their ministry.  To the extent that we miss this, the church suffers.

This concept was well known by the apostles in the early church.  It was something they wrestled with.

So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.”
Acts 6:2

They literally said that it would not be right for them to leave the Word of God.  There was a ministry that needed to be done, yet was being neglected.  How often do pastors scoop up those things without a second thought?  After all, there’s no one else to do them.

This is a question that needs to be answered in Christian circles.  It causes so much strife.  Church people think it’s the pastor’s job to do everything.  Yet in doing these jobs, that the church people are supposed to do, the leadership is missing the very things that would cause growth.

That’s one of the hardest issues to resolve in church ministry.  Does a minister choose to please God or men?  You may think that’s an easy choice.  But, as someone who’s been there, I can tell you that it’s an unyielding pressure.

The congregation that pays your salary wants to see you working in the church.  Many times prayer and seeking God are seen as “slacking off.”

“Pastor, you need to do more around here.”

All the while we ignore the fact that it’s the church member that’s called by God to do the “nuts and bolts” of the ministry.

“Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom.  We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
Acts 6:3-4

The apostles came to the conclusion that it was more beneficial for them to be constantly diligent toward prayer and serving the Word.  That’s the choice.  Serving tables, doing all the things not getting done by those who should be doing it, or serving the Word.

Being a servant to the Word of God is our greatest calling.  That means listening, hearing, and obeying the Word of God spoken to us.  This is the most important aspect of ministry and must not be ignored.

Question: How much of your work for God is doing what God has spoken to you?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on March 10, 2014 in Ministry, Prayer, The Church, Word of God

 

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The Greatest Roadblock to Revival

07 Mar

Give UpLet me start by apologizing.  I don’t usually want to air my dirty laundry in these posts.  But since the goal of this blog is to promote a revival in our generation, I felt that I needed to say this.

So, I’m sorry for letting my emotions get the better of me, but today’s post is coming from a heart that desires to see change.  The body of Christ needs to wake up, from the leadership on down.

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”  So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.
Acts 13:2-3

This verse talks about a prayer meeting that was held at the church of Antioch.  During this meeting, Saul (later to become Paul) and Barnabas were called into a missionary work.  Their work changed the world forever.

This morning I was at a prayer breakfast hosted by an association of churches that we are involved with.  It was called because of some needs and transitions that our churches are experiencing.  It was to be an hour of prayer, with a half hour of breakfast provided beforehand.

There are just over 100 churches in our association.  All of the pastors and leaders were called and invited to the meeting.  What do you think the response was?  There were 8 of us there to pray.

Just 8.  Of those 8, 4 of them were on the committee that hosted the prayer.  At this point, I have to say that it was a wonderful time of prayer.  Those who attended were there to seek God.  We had a great time in the spirit.

But on the way home, I had to think about what we’re missing.  We need revival in our land.  We know that.  We talk about it.  When someone brings it up we all nod our heads in agreement.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t give birth to revival.  Prayer brings it about.

In the above verse, Saul went to this meeting.  I’m sure he had other things to do.  At that point he was vocational.  He was a tent-maker who taught at his local church.  What if he decided that he was too busy to get to that prayer meeting?

I hear pastors complain all the time about the prayerlessness of their people.  “We can’t get them to come out to the prayer meetings we call.”  Where are these pastors when they are called to pray?

To be fair, I understand that many have vocational jobs during the week and they can’t take the time off.  I understand that others may have some transportation or health issues.  I don’t have a problem with these.

But 8 – out of all the pastors and leaders of 100 churches.  Where’s the revival we seek?  It’s in our hands.  We must remove the roadblocks.  One of the biggest is the lack of prayer from the top down.

Again, I ask your forgiveness for my ranting in this post.  But my heart’s desire is to see a move of God sweep this nation in my lifetime.  Whatever it takes.  Even the “sacrifice” of prayer.

Question: How often do you pray for revival in our nation?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on March 7, 2014 in Prayer, Revival, The Church

 

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Meeting God in the Wilderness

05 Mar

BeamI don’t mind saying that with all the snow and cold that we’ve been getting in my part of the country, I’m ready for spring!  Then I can start one of my favorite pastimes again.  I’m talking about spending time in the woods hiking, praying, and meditating on the Word.

It’s always a lift to my spiritual life.  I believe that every Christian who’s physically able should try it.

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.  After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
Matthew 4:1-2

Since I’ve started hiking I have a new respect for the Lord’s physical condition.  Being able to survive in the wilderness for forty days, living on only water is quite a physical challenge.

At one point I tried a two-day fast while hiking a section of the Appalachian Trail.  I remember barely making it. The hunger was intense.  I felt weak.  It got to the point where it hurt just to put one leg in front of the other.

I promised myself I would never do that again.  I can only imagine what Jesus felt like after 40 days.

There is a hunger, however, that I want to hike with.  That’s a hunger of the spirit.  If we can go into the wilderness with a hunger for the presence of the Lord, then we’ll come back from our journeys a changed person.

If we can see the outdoors as a meeting-place between God and us, we’ll take our wilderness activities to a whole new level.

The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Matthew 4:3-4

Once you decide to use the wilderness to achieve spiritual goals, it will transform your whole experience.  The outdoors will become a place where you must sometimes face your own personal demons.  In Jesus’ case it was from the outside.  In our case it’s usually from within.

The wilderness gives God a chance to confront us on His terms.  There’s nothing to fall back on; no distractions to hide our thoughts.  God can throw a light on all the issues we’ve been sweeping under the rug for so long.

What I’ve found is that there’s no place to hide.  I can’t “remember” that phone call I need to place.  There is no TV program that I have to watch right now.  God can have my undivided attention.

It’s an awesome thing to go into the wilderness to hear from God.

Be prepared.  It’s not always what we expect.  He’ll set the agenda, and there’s no way out.  Change will happen in our lives, if we give the Lord an opportunity.

Think about spending some time in a wilderness setting with the Lord.  I guarantee that it will be life-changing.

Questions: Have you ever spend time praying in the woods?  What did you take away from that time?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on March 5, 2014 in Prayer, Times in the Wilderness

 

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The Language of the Spirit #prayerinthespirit

28 Feb

JumbleI’ve been posting about Prayer in the Spirit.  The last point I mentioned is that when you pray in tongues, you are not hearing the actual prayer.  It is the spiritual communication with God that’s the important thing.

Remember that until Adam sinned he didn’t hear God with his ears.

For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful.
1 Corinthians 14:14

Paul goes on to say that not even your mind understands what is being communicated in the spirit with God.  This is an intimate conversation between your spirit and the Spirit of the Lord.  All of this is great, but what does it have to do with the power of God in my life?

Let’s get back to where we left off in that discussion.  When you’re saved, the Holy Spirit comes and lives inside of you.  You are now connected to God’s wireless network.  You have everything you need to access the power of God for your life.  However, there’s still something you need in order for the connection to function properly.

Look at it this way.  You may have a state of the art computer with a cutting edge wifi or 4G adapter, but there’s still something it needs.  That’s because the internal language of your computer in incompatible with the language of the internet.

In order for the computer to talk to the internet, it needs a piece of software called a browser.  It’s the browser that translates the internal language of your computer into the language of the internet allowing it to access everything that’s available.

It’s the same in the spirit.  In order for you to use God’s network you need a “download” from the Holy Spirit.  Your spirit needs to learn the language of the Holy Spirit.

You’ve spent you whole life never speaking to God on His level, in the spiritual realm.  The gift of the Holy Spirit is the language of the spirit.  As a matter of fact the word tongue is the old English word for language.

The gift of the Spirit is really the gift of language.  The baptism in the Holy Spirit is the download of the spiritual language you need to access the power of God’s network.  This is why I usually call it the gift of language or the heavenly language.  I want to take the emphasis off of the physical (the tongue) and place it on the spiritual where it belongs.

Think about it.  According to language experts, what’s the most effective way to learn a new language?  They call it the immersion method, where they literally immerse you in the language you are trying to learn.  What’s the Biblical term for immersion?  It’s the word baptism.

It’s amazing how perfectly God chooses the words that He uses to describe His gifts.  The Baptism of the Spirit is your immersion into the language of the Spirit.  Unlike a natural language which may take months and years to learn, God can do the supernatural work in an instant.

This gift, the Baptism in the Spirit, opens up a new walk of power in the Holy Spirit.

Question: How has the Baptism in the Spirit blessed your life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 28, 2014 in Power of God, Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit

 

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Shut the Door and Hear from God #prayer

27 Jan

DoorAs a pastor, I’ve been asked from time to time; how do you hear from God?  Is that a question in your life?  Is it something you’re struggling with?  This post may help you overcome in that area.

Cell phones have changed the way our society works.  We no longer have to wait until we’re home to place a call or check our messages.  In one way it makes things a little easier for people to connect.

But there are some downsides as well.  Have you ever gotten a call from someone who’s standing on a busy street corner?  They’re trying to have an intelligent conversation with you, but all you can hear are traffic, sirens, and the roar of people in the background.

It’s gotten to the point where I’ve had to tell them, “Wait until you’re inside with the door shut, then try calling me back.”

What does this have to do with hearing from God?  Everything!!!

“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.  Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
Matthew 6:6

This was how Jesus operated.  On many occasions in the Gospels, we see Him going to a secluded location and spending time in prayer.  He’s our example.  There’s no question that the Lord heard and obeyed the voice of the Father.

That brings to mind an interesting question.  The Son of God had to close the door on distractions in order to hear from the Father.  What makes us think that the distractions all around us will have no effect on our prayer life?

Jesus had no cell phone, internet, TV, or IPad to distract Him.  With all these things, screaming for our attention, we have to find a quiet place.

You’re inability to hear from God might not be so much about spiritual deafness as much as it’s “listening overload.”  There might be so many things coming at you all the time that you can’t recognize which is the voice of God.

You need to close the door on distractions if you want your prayer time to be productive.  Learn to spend quality time in the presence of the Lord.  Then, just be quiet for a while and hear what the Holy Spirit is speaking to you.

Questions: Where do you go to spend time with the Lord?  How do you close the door on distractions?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on January 27, 2014 in Prayer

 

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8 Keys to Receiving Answers from God (Part 2) #answeredprayer

18 Nov

PhoneThis is the second of two posts about how to receive answered prayers.  The Scriptures say that we can ask anything from God.  But few people know the requirements to these passages.

In my last post I talked about the first 4 requirements.

5. Your asking must be in the name of Jesus.

And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.  You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
John 14:13-14

Too often we think of this in terms of a spiritual formula.  We pray whatever we want, then say “In Jesus’ name” at the end.  Nothing can be further from the truth.  We’re representatives of Christ.  This means that we’re asking on behalf of Christ.  We are praying what He would be praying in the same situation.

6. You must remain in Christ.

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
John 15:7

This one is all about relationship.  Many want to know how to get all their prayers answered while living for themselves.  That will never happen.  The closer my relationship with Christ is, the more I pray according to His will.  Then I see the answers because they’re in His will.

7. You must be bearing spiritual fruit.

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
John 15:16

Spiritual fruit are a sign of maturity.  The more of the Word of God we plant in our life, the greater the harvest.  It’s the same in the natural.  I don’t know any children who get everything they ask for.  Maturity breeds answered prayer.

8. Your asking must be with a clear conscience.

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.
1 John 3:21-22

Too often we know what God is calling us to do, but we ignore it.  When our conscience is not clear before God, we are open to the enemy’s accusations.  It’s hard to trust God when we are under the cloud of a guilty conscience.  That’s why a repentant life is so important.

When we operate in the calling of God it’s His good pleasure to supply what is needed to complete our destiny.  That’s the true secret to seeing our prayers answered.

Question: What’s the relationship between the will of God and answered prayer?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
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Posted by on November 18, 2013 in Prayer

 

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8 Keys to Receiving Answers from God #answeredprayer

15 Nov

SONY DSCIt’s hard to believe that the stores are gearing up for Christmas already.  We’re getting close to the time of year where many people are asking for things.  As believers, we understand that it’s not about things, but Christ.

Still, there are things that I’ve asked God for.  One question that many people ask is; how do you receive answers to prayers?  Many look to God like a big Santa Claus in the sky.  We pray for things, and then get upset if we don’t get what we prayed for.

I believe that God wants to give good things to His children.  Over and over in the Bible it says to ask anything and it will be given to you.  Actually, if you read the Scripture, there are 8 requirements to asking anything and receiving what you asked for from God.

1. Your asking requires faith.

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
Mark 11:24

This is the one we all seem to know about.  You need to trust that God is able to perform what you’re asking.  This is not an “I hope so” kind of faith.  It’s knowing that God is big enough to take care of your need.

2. Your asking requires the right motives.

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
James 4:3

This is an important point.  Why am I asking God for this?  Many times it’s because I want the pleasure it will bring.  Life is not all about me.  I live for God.  It’s about pleasing Him, and fulfilling His call on my life.  Is that my motivation?  To get answers to prayer, I need to check my attitudes and desires.

3. Your asking requires lining up with God’s will.

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us — whatever we ask — we know that we have what we asked of him.
1 John 5:14-15

This one is only met with maturity.  I need to be seeking God’s will.  This will only come by time in the Lord’s presence.  I have to lay my will on the altar and seek His ways.  Allowing the Holy Spirit to work in me is how I have the assurance that I’m asking according to His will.

4. Your asking requires agreement.

“Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.”
Matthew 18:19

This is an important part.  I’m not talking about getting someone to agree to pray with you.

“You pray with me for a new house and I’ll pray with you for a new car.”

It doesn’t work like that.  It means coming together in unity with others who know the Word of God.  Then, based upon the Word, they agree with you on the above three points.  They see by your witness that you have the faith to trust God for it, your motives are correct, and it’s God’s will for your life.

In my next post I’ll give the final four keys to answered prayer.

Question: Do you have some testimonies of answered prayers?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
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Posted by on November 15, 2013 in Prayer

 

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America Needs Forgiveness #prayforrevival

28 Oct

TreeI’m posting about the link between revival and forgiveness.  In my last post we looked at II Chronicles 7:14, which said that God’s people have the responsibility to pray and seek the face of God.  Then God would hear, forgive, and send healing and revival to our land.

Yes, revival really is up to us.  The Bible says, “If my people, called by My Name will do what’s necessary.”  Then we would see the healing of God on our land.  This is an important concept for us to learn.

The land and God’s people are linked.  This has always been true.  When Israel was going into captivity, God told them pray for Babylon to prosper.  If things go well for the nation that we live in, then they’ll go well for us.

It’s a very selfish thing for us to only seek God’s blessing for ourselves.  We need to care about the people around us.  We are the only ones who can intercede for our nation.  That’s where revival starts.

We need to understand the principles of how forgiveness relates to revival. Daniel understood the concept.

“Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name.  We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.  O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive!  O Lord, hear and act!  For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”
Daniel 9:18-19

This kind of repentance takes humility. Daniel was righteous. He wouldn’t eat the king’s meat and he kept himself pure. Of all Israelites, Daniel had the least to repent of. Yet he is crying out for forgiveness. We have to understand that he wasn’t asking for people to be forgiven, but for the nation.

Nations need forgiveness. I’m not talking about the people, but the nation itself. Throughout the Bible we see that God treats nations like people.

Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves.
Romans 14:22b

Nations are judged by what they allow or don’t allow.  Just because a nation says something is legal, doesn’t make it right.  So if my nation is allowing things to be done that are evil, then God’s people need to intercede for forgiveness.  This is where true revival is birthed.  It comes to pass when we take responsibility for our nation.

It’s up to God’s people to pray for forgiveness for their nation.  This is where the battle for the USA will take place.  It’s in the place of prayer.  We need to be interceding for our nation.  Then we’ll see the hand of God moving on the hearts and lives of those around us.

Question: What do we need to repent of for our nation?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
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Posted by on October 28, 2013 in Prayer, Revival

 

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Are You Positioned to Receive Spiritual Power? #powerofthespirit

04 Sep

PlugI’ve been posting about how Christ walked and ministered in the power of God.  It’s all about how He positioned Himself to receive it.

A good example of this is found in a parable that the Lord told to His disciples.  We usually call it the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax-collector.  They were both in the temple praying next to each other.  The Lord lets us in on what they were saying.

The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.”
Luke 18:11-12

We read this, but we don’t take it to heart.  We know how it ends and who the Lord commends.  But do we really listen to the prayer of the Pharisee.  If we look closely at it, it sounds like a prayer that a modern Christian would offer up, filled with good confessions.

“I thank you that I’m the head and not the tail, above only and not beneath. I thank you that because I tithe you will rebuke the devourer and open the windows of heaven so that I cannot contain your blessing.”

His prayer was filled with good confessions and it was all true.  He was different than the tax-collector.  He did fast and tithe.  The problem was that he had no power.

But the tax collector stood at a distance.  He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
Luke 18:13

Which prayer produced life changing power?  Christ was clear about it.

“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God.  For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 18:14

It’s obvious, from the Lord’s perspective, that the person who dealt with relationship tapped into God’s power.  The Pharisee was focused on self.  The tax-collector was dealing with that which separated him from God.

Is the power of God about what I’ve done or what the Holy Spirit wants to accomplish in and through me?  When I go before God, my telling Him what I’ve done doesn’t impress Him.  It will never move Him to work through me.

It’s only as I work on my relationship with Christ that I’ll see the changes necessary.  If you want to flow in the power of God, then your relationship with Him is the positioning agent.  It’s not about what you’ve done, but what He is able to do in you.

Questions: How well are you positioned for the move of the Holy Spirit?  What do you need to do to make it better?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
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Posted by on September 4, 2013 in Ministry, Power of God, Prayer, Revival

 

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