Latest / Your Daily Portion with L. David Harris / 10 24 2024 The Witness of Nicodemus

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10 24 2024 The Witness of Nicodemus · Your Daily Portion with L. David Harris

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  Speaker 1: Most of us eat every day, some of us too much,
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  Speaker 1: because yesterday's food is not enough to supply energy for
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  Speaker 1: today's needs. Why then, do some of us expect yesterday's
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  Speaker 1: portion of heavenly manna the word of God to keep
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  Speaker 1: us through today's challenges. On this program, we are going
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  Speaker 1: to change all of that. Let's experience God's words today
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  Speaker 1: and receive the power we need to live healthy, vibrant lives.
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  Speaker 1: Welcome to your Daily Portion with your host, author speaker,
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  Speaker 1: Elle David Harris.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, Good morning, Good morning. It is Thursday, October
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  Speaker 2: twenty four, twenty twenty four. This is El David Harris.
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  Speaker 2: I am your host, and this is your Daily Portion
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  Speaker 2: where we give you God's Word every single day, and
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  Speaker 2: today is no exception. We are continuing in our lesson
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  Speaker 2: study series themes in the Gospel of John, and our
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  Speaker 2: caption for today is the Witness of Nicodemus. The witness
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  Speaker 2: of Nicodemus a very interesting character, to be true. We'll
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  Speaker 2: get into that in just a moment, but first I'd
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  Speaker 2: like to say welcome to you and ask you to
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  Speaker 2: in the world at your Daily Portion dot com. This
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  Speaker 2: is one of the ways that we continue to build
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  Speaker 2: faith and fellowship. Listen, transform your mind, transform your life.
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  Speaker 2: That is my motto. Let's go ahead and pray, and
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  Speaker 2: then we will get underway. Father in heaven, thank you
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  Speaker 2: for giving us this new day and for getting us
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  Speaker 2: so far into the week. Father, please teach us how
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  Speaker 2: to be born again and help us to yield our
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  Speaker 2: will to you like Nicodemus did in Jesus name. I pray, Amen,
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  Speaker 2: men again the witness of Nicodemus. I want to go
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  Speaker 2: to partially, partially the end of the story. It may
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  Speaker 2: not be the end, but toward the end of the
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  Speaker 2: story from John chapter nineteen and verse thirty nine, because
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  Speaker 2: sometimes people give Nicodemus a bad rap. They make it
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  Speaker 2: seem as if he did not have the gumption to
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  Speaker 2: follow Jesus. But let me just jump to this in
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  Speaker 2: case we miss it. Okay. In verse thirty nine of
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  Speaker 2: John chapter nineteen, the Bible says, and there came also Nicodemus,
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  Speaker 2: which at the first I want you to hear that qualifier,
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  Speaker 2: which at the first came to Jesus by night and
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  Speaker 2: brought a mixture of mr and allos about one hundred
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  Speaker 2: pound weight. This is after Jesus had been crucified. Just
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  Speaker 2: like the women were coming day on the first day
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  Speaker 2: of the week, going to embalm the body of Jesus,
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  Speaker 2: even though of course Jesus wouldn't be there. And of course,
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  Speaker 2: just like the woman with the alabaster box of spikenard,
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  Speaker 2: the Bible says Jesus speaking that she is preparing for
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  Speaker 2: my body the burial. Okay. And so they were giving
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  Speaker 2: their offerings, if you want to say, spiritually speaking. And
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  Speaker 2: so John is recording where Nicodemus actually had been born again,
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  Speaker 2: he actually was no longer fearful of reprisals from his
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  Speaker 2: fellow leaders. Okay, Yeah, let me just go ahead and
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  Speaker 2: begin reading in verse one of John chapter three. Okay,
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  Speaker 2: And so now we see the beginning of the story.
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  Speaker 2: There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus. You
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  Speaker 2: remember Paul was also a Pharisee. Uh huh. His name
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  Speaker 2: was Nicodemus, a ruler of God's people. The same came
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  Speaker 2: to Jesus by night and said, unto him, Rabbi, we
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  Speaker 2: know that thou art a teacher, come from God, and
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  Speaker 2: so he's making his confession here his profession. We know,
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  Speaker 2: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest,
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  Speaker 2: that accept God be with him. And Jesus said, unto him, verily, verily,
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  Speaker 2: I say, unto you, except a man be born again,
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  Speaker 2: he cannot see the Kingdom of God. Now we are
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  Speaker 2: seeing Jesus cut right to the actual matter at hand.
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  Speaker 2: You know, sometimes people ask me the question. They're like
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  Speaker 2: Dave eld Elder Harris, whatever they call me. They say,
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  Speaker 2: if somebody says X, how do you respond to them?
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  Speaker 2: And speaking about spiritual discussions or some people might call
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  Speaker 2: them religious discussions, what would you say to them? I'm like, well,
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  Speaker 2: I don't know. And it's perplexing to some people because
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  Speaker 2: they know I'm full of the Bible, Thank God, I'm
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  Speaker 2: full of inspirational quotes and writings in my mind. I know,
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  Speaker 2: and I have a lot of experience. I've spoken to
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  Speaker 2: hundreds of thousands of people over this over my ministry, right,
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  Speaker 2: and it's like, of course you have the answer, and
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  Speaker 2: I'm like, I don't know what I would say because
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  Speaker 2: I pray first. Because I pray first, Could I give
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  Speaker 2: you an answer straight from the Bible based on what
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  Speaker 2: you just asked of me? Of course I can, But
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  Speaker 2: that is not what we're after. When God is giving
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  Speaker 2: us real, live experiences with the Nicodemus of the nicodemuses
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  Speaker 2: of this world, he would want us not to take
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  Speaker 2: thought of what we'll say beforehand, but to listen for
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  Speaker 2: God's voice and say, God, this man, this woman is
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  Speaker 2: right in front of me. These people, they are right
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  Speaker 2: in front of me, this council, these people from the
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  Speaker 2: political arena, these individuals in law enforcement or whatever, these
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  Speaker 2: people at my job, these people in my family. They
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  Speaker 2: are saying X, what would you have me today say?
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  Speaker 2: In response? They are doing why? How would you have
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  Speaker 2: me to respond to that reality? Jesus, what do you
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  Speaker 2: want me to say or do or not say or
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  Speaker 2: not Do you see? We need to be instant in season,
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  Speaker 2: ready to hear from God. Because Jesus did not even
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  Speaker 2: deal with his preamble. He just shot right to the
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  Speaker 2: thing and said, this is what you need, This is
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  Speaker 2: the challenge you have. You need to be born again,
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  Speaker 2: and this is your reality. Then Nicodemus saith unto him
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  Speaker 2: verse four, Well, how can a man be born when
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  Speaker 2: he is old and enter the second time into his
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  Speaker 2: mother's womban be born? And Jesus said, verily, verily, I
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  Speaker 2: say unto you. Except a man be born of water
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  Speaker 2: and the spirit, that is the Holy Spirit, he cannot
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  Speaker 2: enter into the Kingdom of God. So unless we enter
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  Speaker 2: through the water that is a representation, a symbol of
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  Speaker 2: us dying to sin, yes, and by the Holy Ghost,
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  Speaker 2: that is the power of God to teach us to
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  Speaker 2: live according to God's principles, you can't enter into the
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  Speaker 2: Kingdom of God. We cannot enter into the Kingdom of
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  Speaker 2: God in the same way that we were born. We can't.
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  Speaker 2: That which is born of flesh, the Bible says in
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  Speaker 2: verse six, is flesh, and that which is born of
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  Speaker 2: the spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I say unto you.
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  Speaker 2: You must be born again. And Nicodemus is saying, but
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  Speaker 2: I don't understand how this is, like, I don't know
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  Speaker 2: what this means. And of course Jesus is saying that
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  Speaker 2: the mystery surrounding the power of the Holy Ghost is there.
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  Speaker 2: But Jesus answered in verse ten and said, unto him,
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  Speaker 2: aren't you aren't you the master, a master of God's people?
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  Speaker 2: And you don't know these things? Verily I say, unto you,
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  Speaker 2: we speak that we do know, and testify that which
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  Speaker 2: we have seen. And then, of course he can continues
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  Speaker 2: to teach Nicodemus from start to finish, soup to nuts.
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  Speaker 2: He is teaching Nicodemus in the most complete way that
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  Speaker 2: we have ever seen. Jesus teach how a person can
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  Speaker 2: be saved, and verse after verse, verse after verse, verse
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  Speaker 2: after verse, and then he speaks after he speaks of
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  Speaker 2: how God so loved the world that he gave his
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  Speaker 2: only begot to son that whosoever believeth in him Ah
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  Speaker 2: will be saved, will not perish, but have everlasting life.
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  Speaker 2: And now Nicodemus is having to face himself and ask
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  Speaker 2: himself the question and then also answer, do I believe
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  Speaker 2: in Jesus or do I just say he is a
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  Speaker 2: rabbi who a rabbie who has so much power to
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  Speaker 2: transform people's lives? Or is he saying I want to
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  Speaker 2: to be transformed, that I am willing in this moment
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  Speaker 2: and from this moment forward to be yielded to your will. Jesus,
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  Speaker 2: I believe in you and everybody who as an encounter,
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  Speaker 2: even you brothers and sisters. Nine minutes into this broadcast,
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  Speaker 2: you and I both have to make the decision. Am
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  Speaker 2: I going to yield my will to the one who
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  Speaker 2: gave himself for me? Am I going to be transformed
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  Speaker 2: by the renewing of my mind? I have so much
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  Speaker 2: more to say to you, but I think we're going
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  Speaker 2: to have to come back to it tomorrow. There's a
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  Speaker 2: quote I'd like to read to you and also give
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  Speaker 2: you some insights and some steps in reality on how
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  Speaker 2: to apply what Jesus did. So pray for our strength
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  Speaker 2: so we can come back tomorrow. But the witness of
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  Speaker 2: Nicodemus is that we can be transformed. The question is
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  Speaker 2: will you make it a great day? Peace?
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  Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us listening. Friends. Always remember we cannot
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  Speaker 1: live by bread alone, but by every word that comes
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  Speaker 1: from the mouth of God. This has been your daily
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  Speaker 1: portion with El David Harris. Make it a great day. Yeah,