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I attended a conference this weekend entitled, “Pressing Forward” with Randy DeMain. He talked about Amos 4:3-8 and how Jesus, the Lion Of Judah, is about to release a roar over us and when we hear it, He … Continue reading
A leap year is a year containing one additional day in order to keep the calendar year synchronized with the astronomical or seasonal year.[1]a calendar that had the same number of days in each year would, over time, drift with respect to the event it was supposed to track. By occasionally inserting an additional day or month into the year, the drift can be corrected. A year that is not a leap year is called a common year. Similarly, in the Hebrew calendar, a 13th lunar month is added seven times every 19 years to the twelve lunar months in its common years to keep its calendar year from drifting through the seasons too rapidly.
The definition of leap (v.) is to jump or spring a long way to a great height or with great force; (n.) a forceful jump or quick movement. Our leap year happens to fall in the twelfth month of the Hebrew calendar, which is the month of Adar. The month of Adar is considered a month of good fortune by the Jewish people. It is the month when Purim is celebrated. Purim is a holiday that commemorates the deliverance of God’s people from the sinister plot of an evil man, Haman, who wanted them all dead. The book of Esther tells the story and we learn that even though we don’t see God mentioned in the text, we do read, see, and hear, the silent love language of our Father.
In the book of Esther we watch as a seemingly insignificant girl is given favor that miraculously positions her to bring freedom to her people. We see that the discernment of her cousin, Mordecai, by not divulging her identity right away, set her up to bring freedom for her and her people at a later time. Also, his good deed of exposing a plot to kill the king, was positioning him for this promotional favor as well, again, at a later time.
Behind the scenes, Queen Vashti’s disobedience was rewarded with demotion and the king was made all the wiser to look for humility in his next queen. Haman’s pride and selfish ambition resulted in his death, leaving his position open for Mordecai’s advancement. Esther listened to the still small voice and remained faithful to who she knew to be and the essence of God manifested in her and her true identity was birthed.
Esther had no idea what was to become of her when the king’s appointed agents came around gathering virgins. She went through twelve months of purification, which included six months of being soaked in oil and myrrh and six months of being soaked in perfumes and ointment. Being soaked in oil conditions the skin (flesh). It prepares the skin for desert (hot and dry) conditions so it doesn’t become brittle and cracked. Being soaked in perfumes and ointments assures pleasurable fragrance wherever we go. So, even when we walk through some transitional times (some shift), we come out smelling like roses! Rest assured that God knows what it takes for our own purification process to ensure that we are prepared to walk out our path imparting His fragrance and not our own.
Esther and Mordecai went through a shift, a transition: theirs was a metamorphosis from commoner to royalty. They were catapulted over cultural, economic, religious, and racial barriers in one leap! A year that is not a leap year is called a common year and this is the leap year that God is going to shift us from commoner to royalty just like He did for Esther and Mordecai. Last year, 2011, was the year of transition. I believe that we have been positioned for promotion. And if you are feeling like you have drifted off course from where God wants you to be, it is not too late. Leap year was designed to correct the drift. You cannot drift beyond shift! God is in control and that is why He made U-turns.
This is the season when our true identity, through Christ, is about to be exposed! Esther had two names, one of which, Hadassah, meant hidden. So if you feel you have been overlooked, held back, or out of sight, just think of Esther. When she came out, she came out a Queen! This is a season of divine alignment, strategic positioning, supernatural grace and unmerited favor. We are going to leap into our destiny and all evil attempts trying to prevent us from it, will be impaled on the very gallows constructed for our demise! It is a season of joy, power, prosperity, and celebration. It truly is a New Season!
I grew up in a wonderful loving family. I never wanted for anything and I was taught to love God. I grew up with trust in my heart and I loved life. The simple things were the important things. I had a vivid imagination and I loved to play outside. Climbing trees was one of my most favorite things to do. I could climb a tree and play in it all day long. I had great friends and we were always pretending and coming up with new things to play. We used our imaginations and we had great adventures. I have very fond memories of my youth.
As we all do, I grew older and “put away childish things” because it was time to take my place in the “real world”. The “real world” was not a kind place for a fun loving, trusting, little girl. It was like a horror house that I couldn’t seem to escape. Fear and intimidation became by best friends. I lost trust and became bitter. I pretended everything was good but deep inside I was broken. I pretended so much that I didn’t know who I was anymore. I had disappointed my family and my shame kept me from the safety of their love. I was filled with regret and my life, which once was so precious, was now my enemy.
The good news is that God saved me from myself! His grace and mercy kept me alive when the enemy had me on a road to destruction. God awakened the love and innocence inside of me and I started craving that so badly that I was able to find my way home. God completely turned by life around and revealed to me how He had always been with me. He had never left me and He never gave up on me.
I often think back to when I was a child and I could use my imagination to turn a tree into a 5-bedroom house, or a stick into a horse that I could ride to the moon. My friends had imaginations too and they believed with me and we had fun! We didn’t care when the older kids came along and made fun of us. We didn’t want to be like them anyways. They were just old sticks in the mud that forgot how to have fun.
Just last week, I kept thinking I was hearing this buzzing noise but I didn’t know where it was coming from. Today I realized what it was. God is awakening my imagination again and the buzzing is my doorbell ringing! God has sent new friends and they want me to come out and play!
I can’t tell you how excited I am that I get another chance to get this right. I am getting a divine do over and the sky is the limit. I am going to use my God given imagination to take me everywhere He wants to take me and there is no fear, no intimidation and no striving to be something I am not. What I am is a daughter of the Most High God and He loves me unconditionally and I do not have to conform to this world. He loves my imagination and zeal because He is the one who created me.
Romans 12:2 And be yet not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Psalm 8 O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! Who hast set thy glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which this hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: all sheep an oxen, yea, and the beast of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the path of the seas. O lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth.
Do you hear the voice of your Father? Do you hear Him calling you to come up higher? He wants to reveal things to you, about you, who you are, whose you are. He wants to reveal the truth to you and the truth is that He is in continual pursuit of you, always. He will never cease drawing you closer to Him and all bets are off that you will ever be able to escape Him. This is good news beloved. We will never stop being loved and chased by our Heavenly Father, who also happens to be our Bridegroom and our King! Get excited! This means you aren’t the one who does the chasing! All you have to do is accept His love and accept what that means for you. It means you are free of the man pleasing spirit of works and acceptance. No more, if I could just get this right, or if I do this, no more, if I were more like so and so or if I could just learn to do things the ways I am told they are to be done! Be free beloved! Walk in the freedom Christ provided you by His completed work of the cross. No more spirit of slavery! Feel what it feels like to be free! Take a deep breath, breathe in the liberty and freedom Christ has given you. He says, “freely I give to you and freely you can receive!” Oh, this is the good news! This is the truth, the true gospel! Let the bonds of religion fall off and feel the joy that comes with knowing you are no longer a son or daughter held captive by the restraints of religion. You are free! You are seated with Him in heavenly places! Right now at this very moment, you are being robed in priestly attire! This is the other side of the cross and it is Heaven on earth! Realize it is not in our ability, know it is not in our striving, not our works, not our strength, not even our love that makes this possible. It is only by Christ and the finished work of what He accomplished on the cross that gives us the ability to walk this walk of faith. It is only by God’s grace that these things are possible. All we have to do is believe. It is our faith that activates His grace in our lives.
Beloved, God is asking you to rise up and see yourself as He sees you. Allow Him to remove the lens of manmade philosophy you have seen yourself through. Ask Him to circumcise your thoughts about yourself and about Him so you can see for yourself that you are not a failure, you are not minuscule! You are a child of God! Arise and take your place, with righteous boldness! There is a shift happening right now and I want to encourage you to believe what God is speaking to you at this moment. Take refuge under His wings. Get into that secret place with God and let Him reveal to you where He is taking you. No man can ever know what God has planned down the road for you. Let it be encouragement to know that you will always be in training for what is next. You will always be in preparation for the next thing He is preparing you for. When Moses died, Joshua was in despair. God told Joshua to be strong and courageous. God was motivating Joshua to be who God made him to be. God always knew that Moses would not take the people into their promised land. He knew it would be Joshua. Do not let anyone tell you when you are ready to go if God is telling you to go! Those that love you and love God will always say, “go”! We are being taken to a place where we no longer rely or depend on flesh, others or ourselves. The Word tells us that where there is no vision, the people perish so we can safely say that where there is vision, the people flourish! Just ask God to renew, to restore your vision. Ask God for His revelation and wisdom for your life and BE that, be who He created you to be.
Habakkuk tells us to write out our vision plainly for all to read. Here is mine…
We are moving into a place of learning where the “wild things” are! (Insert joy and laughter) We are going into the entire world with the knowledge of who we are and the price that was paid for all of us. My prayer is for the orphan spirit to be broken off of every single person on this planet! God is raising up a generation of sons and daughters, adopted by His grace, to spread His love, like a warm, fuzzy blanket, over the next generation. We will live in the joy and peace that was freely given to us. I believe I have entered into a new realm of grace and I believe if I go about telling others of the truth that has been so graciously revealed to me, signs and wonders will follow. I am moving forward into what God is showing me and I believe, because He told me so, that this is where the wild things are!
About three weeks before Christmas, I came down with walking pneumonia. While I was recuperating, the Lord began to speak to me about rest. We can get so caught up in doing things for the Lord, or church, that we get off track. He told me to take a break, a vacation, and spend time with my family and loved ones and enjoy the Christmas season. He impressed on me the feeling of family. He told me to feel the love, security, warmth, peace, and unity. He told me we should be expressing our feelings to our family about how we feel about them. I spent the rest of the Christmas season doing just that! It was an incredible time of laughter, love, and appreciation for those God has placed in my life.
In reflection on the past year, I see that God has been setting us up to be in a place of rest in Him. This separation from positions and people has not been easy, but I have constantly heard His voice saying, “ I did not bring you into this place of transition to leave you here, I brought you here to take you somewhere, to where you are going.”
We are only six days into the New Year and I have witnessed two miraculous restorations of family and just last night, I saw the beginnings of a third. God is taking His children into the past, to places of attacks, where roots of bitterness and deep wounds are being healed instantaneously! He is restoring what the enemy stole and family is the first target. God is actually transporting us back to the place, revealing it to us, and rewinding time as if it never happened! He is amazing! He is good! He is faithful! God is about to free up some counselors to work out of some of their other giftings, because He is the all-time great Counselor!
The Lord has impressed on me three times an instrument my husband is about to be in need of. This time it was a shofar. Now if you know my husband, you will understand that He didn’t want a normal sized shofar, he wanted the biggest! The morning after Christmas I was in prayer and I asked the Lord to show me what He wanted to reveal to me about 2012. I opened my Bible to Joel and began to hear His voice, “Sound the alarm! Blow the trumpet!” My husband was a trumpet player in high school so I asked the Lord what it meant to blow the trumpet and He revealed to me that it was prophetic preaching.
No one knows the hour of His coming but the Father, but Jesus told us to pay attention to the times and know what time we are living in. God is about to make room for the prophetic. He is passing out GPS (God’s perception spiritually). He is calling forth a remnant and preparing them so we can prepare the unprepared. 2012 will be a year that the prophetic gifts will be poured out on any of His children that will receive it. He is also resurrecting this gift in His children, as some have been discouraged in the body, feeling there was no place for them, because there was no place for their gifting. He is also raising up apostolic leaders to guide, equip and encourage this gifting.
This will be a year of the best of times and the worst of times. I would encourage every believer to get as close to the Father as possible and take shelter under His wings. It is time to get into His word and get to know Him intimately. It is a time to lay down some of our busyness and seek His heart in prayer. It is a time for intercession. Intercession is simple: we simply pray to Him what He tells us to pray! We, as a nation, have broken our covenant with God. We, the church, are the first line of defense for our nation. God assures us that if we come to Him with prayer and fasting, weeping and mourning (repentance), He will heal our nation.
NOW is the time for PRAYER! We can read exactly what we are to do in the Book of Joel. Sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders (leadership), call all the people, and cry out to God. I would encourage all to take this as serious as it is. If we do not alert the people to the times we are in, they will not know. If you call a fast, they will not come. If you call them to prayer, they will not come. We have to read the writing on the wall and we have to speak it loudly so others will hear. When they hear, they will come! Where there is understanding, there will be unity. Unity: The state of being united or joined as a whole. Harmony or agreement between people or groups. We are going to have to embrace each other’s differences and uniqueness. Remember, Jesus chose a donkey to usher Him in, as King, into Jerusalem.
There are sons and daughters of the Living God being raised up that are not afraid to go against the norm and be passionate about what Christ did on the cross. He gave us 100% and this generation will give Him 100%! This IS the generation that will see the end of this apathetic demonstration of Christianity! No more will FEAR OF MAN and LACK OF FAITH dictate what is acceptable worship, acceptable praise, and acceptable devotion. There is new breed rising and they will be unstoppable!
The Bible is full of accounts of right and wrong, good and bad, obedience and disobedience, love and hate, faith and doubt, righteousness and sin, trust and disbelief, hope and despair, judgment and justice. These are words of opposition. The definition of opposition is (adj.) altogether different, as in nature, quality, or significance, (n.) one that is opposite or contrary to another. This means we are either right or we are wrong, we are either good or we are bad, we are either obedient or we are disobedient, and we either love or we hate. How about this one, “We are either living for God or we are not!”
The Word tells us that God is just and that righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. We will all be judged in exactly the same manner. God is merciful but He is not going to bend the rules! Sin is sin and God will never condone sin. He made a way through Jesus for the atonement of our sin. We get forgiveness for our sin through the cross and the price Jesus paid for it. Once we accept Jesus into our heart, we begin living a life that reflects the price he paid for us to have freedom from sin. Why do we make excuses to continue living in sin? We cannot have it both ways! The definition of sin is anything against God’s will. God’s grace is sufficient for us to live without sin. Sin is sin and sin will not enter in!
About two years ago, the Holy Spirit warned me that we had to learn to overcome the evil as in the days of Noah or it would overcome us. He also gave me a vision of me and my husband on an ark in the middle of our city. A tidal wave had just come through and the town was flooded. There were people treading water everywhere. It looked like the scene when the boat sank from the movie Titanic. We were pulling people out of the water and putting them on the ark. There were angels flying overhead plucking people up out of the water and putting them on the ark. All of the people on the ark were on their knees praising God because they had been rescued. I asked the Lord what the flood meant and He told me that this was a wave named mercy and that it would be the last great wave of mercy. The scene changed and I saw our city from above. I was looking down on a beautiful valley and there was a mountain chain surrounding it and God, our Father, was sitting atop the mountain. He told me our city would be a sanctuary for His children.
I believe there are cities of refuge being established across this nation representing arks for God’s children. Although we do not know what the future holds for our nation, we can see that our economy is in dire straits and severe weather events are becoming common occurrences. Natural disasters and civil unrest may produce horrific scenes in our land in the years to come. Those who put their trust in the Lord shall not fear but this doesn’t mean we sit back and wait for Jesus to come get us. We have an obligation to be the body of Christ. The events that are soon to unfold will produce a great harvest of souls and we are the harvesters.
Just as in the days of Noah, evil is rampant in our times. Every kind of evil that existed then, exist now. Noah made a decision to make a stand and follow God at all cost, no going back. The time has come for those of us who truly know our Savior and King to lay it all down and start preparing the way of the Lord. It is time to make a choice, either follow God or His will for our lives or not.
Matthew 24:37 to 39: ‘As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, until the very day when Noah went into the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and swept them all away — so will be the coming of the Son of Man’.
Luke 17:26 to 30: ‘As it was in the days of Noah, so it will also be in the day of the Son of Man. People ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, until the day when Noah went into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. As it was in the days of Lot. People ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the very day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. That is the way it will be on the day that the Son of Man is revealed’.
Two weeks ago the Lord gave me a vision of a pyramid. It was carefully being taken apart brick by brick and being rebuilt on a new foundation. The old foundation was cracking and giving way. I asked the Lord what this meant and these are some of the things He has shown me.
Matthew 7 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
The next week I attended a group meeting and I shared this vision with them. Someone suggested that the blocks were living stones. 1 Peter 2:5 And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.
Later that same evening someone asked if we had ever questioned why Jesus cursed the fig tree. Someone else in the group stated that the fig tree withered from the roots up. I sat and listened while the others discussed what the Lord had been revealing to them and I realized we were all different parts of the body and we were learning to function in our different giftings together and different was good.
I decided to study up on the withering of the fig tree and I found it in Mark 11. There is a lot happening in this chapter, but hang in there with me as I try to write out how it all ties together in what the Lord is showing me.
Mark 11:1-8 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’” They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields.
These verses made me wonder why Jesus asked for a colt (donkey)? Now would you expect to see a King riding into his kingdom on a colt, (donkey)? Jesus could have asked for the finest stallion in the land and it would have been his but instead he chose a “hee haw”. The definition of a donkey is 1. A domesticated hoofed mammal (Equus asinus) of the horse family with long ears and a braying call. 2. A stupid or foolish person.
I think the Lord used a donkey because it is an obedient, sure-footed warrior that has a unique discernment and a distinct voice. I think it is time that we embrace each other’s different perspectives. We need to open our minds. Now is not the time for judgment or critical thinking. The Lord is awakening his children to hear him. He is calling us to an intimate relationship and He is speaking to those that are listening.
If you perceive that some people are doing or saying things you think are stupid or foolish, it may be time to check your own perception. In Numbers 22, God caused a donkey to speak because the donkey perceived the supernatural when the man could not.
1 Corinthians 1:27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
The Lord is about to pour out a new wine and our old wineskins cannot contain it. Mark 2:22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins.” Joel 2:28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.
Mark 11:9-10 Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!
This is a picture of a generation after His heart. Some were running ahead and proclaiming his coming and some were following behind supporting them. I think about Israel when they made it into the promise land and God was taking care of their every need. He was right there with them and they wanted to go back to the way it was. You cannot move forward with Jesus and the new thing He is pouring out on us, if you are constantly holding on to what was. Familiarity and comfort aren’t words generally associated with change.
Mark 11:11. Pay attention to where we are on the calendar. November 2011.
Mark 11:11 Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.
I think Jesus is looking at His church and He is going to cleanse it of all things not of Him!
Mark 11: 12-14 The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “ May no one ever eat fruit from you again. And his disciples heard him say it.”
Just because we look like a church, call ourselves a church and act like a church doesn’t mean we are the church we should be. If we aren’t producing fruit for the hungry, we are not a church. He saw the fig tree with leaves on it the word says it wasn’t the season for fruit. I asked the Lord why would He expect fruit when it wasn’t the season for it and I heard this in my spirit, “2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage with great patience and careful instruction.”
Mark 11:15-17 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
I believe that the church, as we know it, is about to be dismantled stone by living stone. She is being moved (emotionally and spiritually) to be rebuilt on a new foundation (The rock) as the church Jesus intends her to be.
Ephesians 2: 19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
It only took one day for the barren fig tree to wither from the roots up so I believe we are going to see some quick works not only in our individual lives but also in the body of Christ. The chapter ends with reminders to pray believing and to walk in love, forgiveness and repentance. It is time we lay down our spiritual pride and receive all He has for us and don’t be surprised if you see or hear some “hee haws” along the way!
Mark 11: 19 When evening came, Jesus and his disciples[e]went out of the city. 20 In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. 21Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!
”Mark 11: 22“Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly[f] I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
Mark 11: 27 They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. 28“By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?” 29 Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 30John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!” 31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.) 33So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.” Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
In August of this year, the Lord said to me, “Watch for rain in Texas, it will be as water breaking in childbirth.” In the birthing process, the water breaks prior to the onset of labor. I have been reading up on … Continue reading
Welcome! I created Valerie’s Vineyard as a place to share the insights (grapes) given to me from the Holy Spirit (the vine) that are intended to produce new revelation (wine) into your life. I have been journaling for some time and … Continue reading
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