Latest / Dwelling Place: The Bible for Moms / #150. Be Still and Know: God's Faithfulness Through History | Chronological Bible Podcast (2 Kings 19 + Psalm 46, 80, 135 + Isaiah 49–50)

Transcript

#150. Be Still and Know: God's Faithfulness Through History | Chronological Bible Podcast (2 Kings 19 + Psalm 46, 80, 135 + Isaiah 49–50) · Dwelling Place: The Bible for Moms

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  Steph: This is The Dwelling Place from Entrusted Ministries.
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  Steph: I'm Stephanie Hickox.
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  Steph: Today, as we encounter 2 Kings 19, Psalm 46, 80, 135, and Isaiah 49 through 50, we will marvel at God's preservation
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  of Israel.
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  Steph: As students of the Word, of history, and of current events We understand that Israel has faced never ending enemies, but we can be amazed that the Lord has continued to bless the offspring of Abraham and that they still
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  Steph: exist to this day In Second Kings 19, we re-encounter a story with Hezekiah.
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  Steph: Now, in full disclosure, I rely on a very reputable chronological plan.
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  Steph: I've sought out several reliable sources and all of them put Second Kings 19 here.
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  Steph: But if I were to make the plan, I would've put this chapter previously where Isaiah and Chronicles also told this story.
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  Steph: But I'm thankful we get to read it again because there's a part that I didn't have time to dig in too much with you As a refresher, this is when the Rabshakeh, a messenger from Assyria, is taunting King
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  Steph: Hezekiah's messengers.
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  Steph: they bring back word to Hezekiah that Assyria is not backing down.
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  Steph: Many of the Judean cities had already fallen, but Hezekiah was determined that the city of David, the city of Jerusalem, and the location of the temple was not to fall as well.
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  Steph: Immediately, he goes to the house of the Lord and prays, and God tells him, "Don't be afraid.
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  Steph: Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, will not come against you.
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  Steph: I will return him to his own land, where he will die by the sword."
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  Steph: But Sennacherib writes a boastful letter to Hezekiah.
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  Steph: Which we'll begin reading in nineteen ten.
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  Steph: Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.
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  Steph: Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, devoting them to destruction.
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  Steph: And shall you be delivered?
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  Steph: Have the gods of the nations delivered them?
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  Steph: The nations that my fathers destroyed?
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  Steph: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden who are in Telassar?
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  Steph: Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, The king of the city of Sepharvaim, the king of Hena Or the king of After Hezekiah receives this boastful letter from Sennacherib, he goes back into the house of
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  Steph: the Lord and prays, and he ends his prayer, So now, O Lord our God, Save us from this hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone What strikes me as
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  Steph: I read through Sennacherib's boastful list of defeated nations is that I don't know any of those nations today.
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  Steph: I've done a pretty thorough study of geography with my kids while helping them memorize how to draw the entire world, and none of these names came up in our studies of geography today.
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  Steph: And it astounds me because the comparison speaks to the preservation of Israel Israel has faced nearly continual war and battles.
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  Steph: The Holocaust alone certainly could have ended them.
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  Steph: If we look historically at the different enemies Whether it was Haman or Titus or Hitler or Stalin God has preserved a remnant of this nation, and it stands to this day.
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  Steph: The famous scientist Blaise Pascal wrote that the perpetual preservation of the Jewish nation was a living, unique miracle confirming the truth of scripture.
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  Steph: Without God's intervention, this small group of people surely would have perished from the earth.
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  Steph: This is miraculous.
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  Steph: the Book of Romans confirms that Israel is still God's chosen people.
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  Steph: God did not give up on them, but instead He grafted us in.
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  Steph: When you read Romans eleven, it's very difficult to believe in replacement theology, which means that the Christian Church has replaced Israel.
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  Steph: Instead, scripture points to the fact That God has a plan to redeem Israel back to Himself, and that Christians those embracing the new covenant have been grafted into the family of God This testimony of Israel's existence points to
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  Steph: the sovereignty of God, and the Lord used them to bring the Messiah that would be good news for all people.
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  Steph: As Hezekiah himself prayed, that they would be a testimony to all the nations on the earth.
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  Steph: And I believe his prayer was so in line with the heart of God I have a friend who is proudly of Assyrian descent, and of all the nations that we mentioned today, Assyria is the only one I'm aware
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  Steph: of.
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  Steph: Even though modern-day Assyria does not exist as its own country, the Assyrians still maintain their ethnicity, and there are about three to five million of them today.
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  Steph: What I find most fascinating And inspiring is that most Assyrians alive today would claim Christianity as their religion.
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  Steph: Even though we have seen God judge this nation he still maintained the goal of turning every tribe, tongue, and nation to love and acknowledge him.
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  Steph: And I rejoice that many of my brothers and sisters in Christ can claim a Syrian heritage It speaks to the redemption of God In Psalm 35, we continue to read about God's power over the nations and kings.
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  Steph: Verse eight begins, He it was who struck down the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and of beast, who in your midst, O Egypt, sent signs and wonders against Pharaoh and all his servants, who struck down many nations
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  Steph: and killed mighty kings, Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan, and gave their land as a heritage, a heritage to his people Israel.
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  Steph: Your name, O Lord, endures forever.
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  Steph: Your renown, O Lord, throughout all ages.
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  Steph: For the Lord will vindicate his people and have compassion on his servants."
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  Steph: Once again, we can say, where are these nations?
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  Steph: We don't know of them for a reason Whenever we look back at some of the very vile and wicked practices of these nations, we can understand why the Lord cut them off so they would not continue to procreate,
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  Steph: teaching their children their sinful ways Let's turn now to Psalm 46 because it reveals God's power over the nations in a different way.
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  Steph: The superscript says, "To the choirmaster of the songs of Korah, according to Alamoth, a song."
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  Steph: Alamoth is a word we haven't encountered yet.
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  Steph: Some Greek translations render it hidden things, but in the Hebrew, it normally has to do with young ladies.
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  Steph: It's very likely that this was written to be sung by female voices alone, and I think it brings a unique perspective to the reading of this psalm.
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  Steph: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
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  Steph: Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
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  Steph: There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
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  Steph: God is in the midst of her.
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  Steph: She shall not be moved.
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  Steph: God will help her when morning dawns.
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  Steph: The nations rage.
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  Steph: The kingdoms totter.
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  Steph: He utters His voice, the earth melts.
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  Steph: The Lord of Hosts is with us.
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  Steph: The God of Jacob is our fortress.
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  Steph: Come, behold the works of the Lord, how He has brought desolations on the earth.
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  Steph: He makes wars cease to the end of the earth.
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  Steph: He breaks the bow and shatters the spear.
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  Steph: He burns the chariots with fire.
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  Steph: Be still and know that I am God.
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  Steph: I will be exalted among the nations.
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  Steph: I will be exalted in the earth The Lord of hosts is with us.
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  Steph: The God of Jacob is our fortress.
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  Steph: There are a few really familiar verses here.
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  Steph: First of all, the opening.
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  Steph: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
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  Steph: You probably have many testimonies of waiting on the Lord, perhaps way longer than you thought possible.
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  Steph: But do you also have a testimony where God showed up the moment you called to Him?
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  Steph: If you don't Ask him And though it's coming up on many Christian T-shirts, when it says God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved This was written of Jerusalem.
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  Steph: And yet we can find comfort in verse 10.
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  Steph: Be still and know that I am God."
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  Steph: It's not just a comforting thought for the believer, but it's a reminder that God is working all of the events of history so that He will be glorified And because this verse follows the phrase, "He makes wars cease
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  Steph: to the ends of the earth" It can give us deeply rooted peace in His sovereignty.
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  Steph: But it doesn't absolve us from responsibility.
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  Steph: Rather, it calls us to take part in His plan that is millennia older than us to be His witnesses In Psalm 80, the psalmist writes something surprising beginning in verse four.
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  Steph: O Lord God of Hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers?
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  Steph: You have fed them with the bread of tears and given them tears to drink in full measure.
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  Steph: You make us an object of contention for our neighbors, and our enemies laugh among themselves.
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  Steph: Restore us, O God of Hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved."
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  Steph: Surprisingly, this psalm opened quite tenderly.
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  Steph: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like the flock."
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  Steph: There are times when God leads us in gentleness, and there are times where He knows that our stubbornness requires suffering to be sanctified As we're teaching our kids We can remind them that there are times where the Lord
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  Steph: may not feel like a very present help to us, but we can trust that this tender shepherd and loving Father knows exactly what we need, even if it means waiting upon His answers to our prayers Let's turn now
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  Steph: to the Book of Isaiah.
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  Steph: Chapters forty-nine through fifty-seven describe the suffering of the servant of the Lord.
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  Steph: In this portion, the word servant is used about twenty times, and it describes an entirely different element to the king they knew was coming.
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  Steph: It also reveals his mission was not as they expected And though Jesus's call would have many difficulties, Isaiah 50:7 says that He set His face like a flint This means he had a resolute determination.
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  Steph: Jesus kept his goal in mind, and he remained unswayed and focused on his mission In chapter forty-nine, beginning in verse thirteen, we read, Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth.
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  Steph: Break forth, O mountains, into singing, for the Lord has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his afflicted.
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  Steph: But Zion said, The Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.'
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  Steph: Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?
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  Steph: Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.
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  Steph: Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; Your walls are continually before me.
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  Steph: I love to share these verses with you because who could this mean more to than a mother?
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  Steph: Whether you've chosen to breastfeed or bottle feed, whether you've had biological children or not, you know the power of a mother's love And God is saying, "Yes, there are even some mothers that would abandon their children, but I
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  Steph: would never abandon you."
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  Steph: Have you ever written a little note on your hand to remember something?
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  Steph: You wrote it on your hand because this is a part of you that you always see.
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  Steph: And when it says that God has engraved us on the palms of his hands, and that our walls are ever before Him, it means that there's no way He could forget us But if we were to see the
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  Steph: hands of Christ right now We would recognize that the scars of his crucifixion remain and they are continual evidence of his love for us in verse 13, "For the Lord has comforted His people and will have compassion on
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  Steph: His afflicted," sometimes that word compassion is translated mercy, and it literally means to love from the womb.
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  Steph: MacArthur says that this word depicts the tender love of a mother for her own helpless child, and there's a depth of emotion that God loves His people with a deep compassion and love that is almost beyond description.
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  Steph: This is the same word God used when He passed before Moses and said, The Lord, the Lord God merciful and gracious, he loves you so perfectly, the way a father loves their child and the way a mother loves
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  Steph: their child.
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  Steph: And as we read in Hosea, the way a husband loves his bride So I'm going to close today praying a portion of Psalm 50 over us that we would embrace the example of Christ And because of God's perfect
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  Steph: love for us, that we would be quick to obey His voice Heavenly Father, we ask that you would give us the tongue of those who are taught.
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  Steph: May we be students who eagerly listen and receive what you want to teach us We pray we would know how to encourage others and to sustain them with a word when they are weary.
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  Steph: We thank you that morning by morning you awake us and we pray we would be diligent to hear Our Shepherd's Voice Lord, open our ears I pray that our children would not be rebellious and not turn backward.
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  Steph: May they submit themselves to authority We thank you, Lord, that when we honor and obey you, we will not be disgraced because you are the one that vindicates us We can stand through all things because of your presence
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  Steph: and because you are the God who helps us.
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  Steph: So we pray that you would help us and help our families to be innocent in all situations.
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  Steph: May our fear and reverence of you help us to honor and obey the servant king.
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  Steph: Thank you, Jesus, that you set your face like a flint and that through all of your suffering, you kept the end in mind.
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  Steph: May we do the same as we fix our eyes on eternity with you.
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  Steph: It's in your name we pray.
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  Steph: Amen.