To: Stephen Howlett
From: Caleb Hall
Subject: Practicum Report 4
Time: (SS-1 hour, Service-1 hour)
Preparation: I did not have to do anything to prepare for this week’s lesson in terms of getting a lesson ready. I did however spend some time in prayer, specifically for Kevin as he taught. I think that praying for the teacher and the Bible study are both very important. This encourages the teacher, by doing this you are inviting God to come into the lesson and work in the hearts of the people.
Lesson: There were only four of us that showed up at the Bible study this week, which is a few less than usual. We opened this week in prayer, to invite the spirit to fall on us, and for him to speak to us during the Bible study. After the time of prayer there was a problem with Adam, as he fell asleep in the corner of the class room while Kevin was trying to introduce the topic. We quickly woke him up so that he could pay attention to the lesson. The topic for this week was out of Luke16:19-31, which is the passage that talked about the rich man and Lazarus the beggar. I read this passage aloud for the class, and after the scripture reading Kevin then asked for some General reactions to the passage. Most of us agreed that we all need to be more aware of the people who have physical needs, and how we need to go a little bit out of our way to help the people that are in need. Kevin then asked a series of questions out of the serendipity Bible to try to engage us into deeper discussions. The first question that Kevin asked was if we fell into a lot of money, what would we end up doing with the money? Most people said that they would spend some, save some, and give some away. The one thing that I noticed was that nobody was willing to give away all of the money, or even half of it. Kevin then asked who we felt sorry for in this passage. Most of them said that they felt sorry for Lazarus, because he was a poor man. I however said that I felt bad for the rich man because of how miserable the rich man’s life was, and that even though Lazarus was poor, that he was a happy man.
Questions:
1.) Would it be more beneficial to do the Bible study at a later time so that we are more awake?
2.) How do we get deeper reactions and conversation?
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Practicum Report #6
To: Stephen Howlett
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #6
Time: 3 hours (1 Prep, 1 SS, 1 Service)
Preparation: Preparation for the Bible study was relatively easy. It was simply a matter of pulling up the list for the series we are doing and looking ahead to the next passage we are studying. I read the passage, thought about what it meant to me and then looked at the questions that went with the study. After doing that I rethought the passage and searched my study Bible for footnotes about the passage. This gave me some different views on the passage and helped prep me for leading the study.
Study: To start the study, we opened in prayer with the few people we had in attendance. It was only Caleb, Adam, Rebecca and I that showed up. After opening in prayer, I introduced the topic as Adam quickly started to fall asleep in the corner. The study for the week was about Luke 16:19-31. This passage is about the rich man and Lazarus, the beggar. Caleb read the passage aloud and then I probed for general reactions. Typically, the reaction was that we need to be careful about caring more about the physical world and that we need to help each other. So I continued to probe for further examination of the passage by asking a series of questions. The first question I asked was what would you do if you suddenly came into a lot of money? Most people said they would do a combination of spending it, saving it and giving some away. No one said they would give it all away or even more than half. Then I asked who they felt sorrier for in the story. At first, they felt sorry for Lazarus, but seeing that things turned out well for him, it is hard to feel sorry for him. As for the rich man, in some ways it is hard to feel sorry for him because of how he acted. Yet it is hard to dismiss his misery and regret as well as his care for his family. That seemed to be a consensus answer. Rebecca gave it pretty quickly while Adam just shook his head in agreement. Caleb said he felt bad for the rich man because of how miserable he was and how concerned he was about his family. I continued to probe for answers and by the time I was done, the group looked at things a little differently. They saw the need to listen to Jesus in the story. The facts have been given to us. It is up to us to be like Lazarus or the rich man in our faith and daily lives. We then closed in prayer.
Questions:
1. How do I get more people to come to Bible study on a regular basis?
2. What should I do when someone falls asleep during Bible study?
3. Should I add activities to the study to keep it more lively and engaging?
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #6
Time: 3 hours (1 Prep, 1 SS, 1 Service)
Preparation: Preparation for the Bible study was relatively easy. It was simply a matter of pulling up the list for the series we are doing and looking ahead to the next passage we are studying. I read the passage, thought about what it meant to me and then looked at the questions that went with the study. After doing that I rethought the passage and searched my study Bible for footnotes about the passage. This gave me some different views on the passage and helped prep me for leading the study.
Study: To start the study, we opened in prayer with the few people we had in attendance. It was only Caleb, Adam, Rebecca and I that showed up. After opening in prayer, I introduced the topic as Adam quickly started to fall asleep in the corner. The study for the week was about Luke 16:19-31. This passage is about the rich man and Lazarus, the beggar. Caleb read the passage aloud and then I probed for general reactions. Typically, the reaction was that we need to be careful about caring more about the physical world and that we need to help each other. So I continued to probe for further examination of the passage by asking a series of questions. The first question I asked was what would you do if you suddenly came into a lot of money? Most people said they would do a combination of spending it, saving it and giving some away. No one said they would give it all away or even more than half. Then I asked who they felt sorrier for in the story. At first, they felt sorry for Lazarus, but seeing that things turned out well for him, it is hard to feel sorry for him. As for the rich man, in some ways it is hard to feel sorry for him because of how he acted. Yet it is hard to dismiss his misery and regret as well as his care for his family. That seemed to be a consensus answer. Rebecca gave it pretty quickly while Adam just shook his head in agreement. Caleb said he felt bad for the rich man because of how miserable he was and how concerned he was about his family. I continued to probe for answers and by the time I was done, the group looked at things a little differently. They saw the need to listen to Jesus in the story. The facts have been given to us. It is up to us to be like Lazarus or the rich man in our faith and daily lives. We then closed in prayer.
Questions:
1. How do I get more people to come to Bible study on a regular basis?
2. What should I do when someone falls asleep during Bible study?
3. Should I add activities to the study to keep it more lively and engaging?
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
3rd Blog
To: Stephen
From: Caleb
Subject: Practicum Report 3
Time Spent this Week: 3 Hours total (SS=1; AM worship=1; preparation=1)
My class this week
Preparation: This week I taught the Bible study, so I had to do some preparing for the lesson. For the lesson I prepared to talk about Saul on the road to Damascus, and getting his name changed to Paul. This was relatively easy to do because of the study that Kevin and I have chosen to use for our Bible study. This lesson was pretty much straight out of a serendipity Bible.
Lesson: This week I taught on Saul’s journey to Damascus to persecute the Christians, and then how he was converted. This lesson came out of Acts 9:1-19. It was hard to get everybody to talk a lot during the discussion at first, but the questions out of the Serendipity Bible helped to spark a lot of questions. I also found however that even with these questions there were many times when only Kevin or I would say something. One of the questions that I asked was what changed the most in you when you became a Christian. I went first because nobody was really talking, and I told them that I accepted Jesus at a very young age, and there was not any major change at such a young age. Chelsea went next and she pretty much had the same answer as me. Mostly everybody else had the same answer of a slow and gradual change, and not something that was extremely noticeable. Then a guy by the name of Charlie brought up an interesting point when he asked if this story was the reason why Catholics use their “Christian names.” I thought that this was interesting, so we had a little side conversation about this question, and we really did not find an answer to it.
Questions:
1) Should I as the teacher be the first person to answer the questions that I have posed?
2) How can I keep people from getting too sidetracked during the study?
3) Should I rely on Kevin to help me get everyone back on track?
To: Stephen
From: Caleb
Subject: Practicum Report 3
Time Spent this Week: 3 Hours total (SS=1; AM worship=1; preparation=1)
My class this week
Preparation: This week I taught the Bible study, so I had to do some preparing for the lesson. For the lesson I prepared to talk about Saul on the road to Damascus, and getting his name changed to Paul. This was relatively easy to do because of the study that Kevin and I have chosen to use for our Bible study. This lesson was pretty much straight out of a serendipity Bible.
Lesson: This week I taught on Saul’s journey to Damascus to persecute the Christians, and then how he was converted. This lesson came out of Acts 9:1-19. It was hard to get everybody to talk a lot during the discussion at first, but the questions out of the Serendipity Bible helped to spark a lot of questions. I also found however that even with these questions there were many times when only Kevin or I would say something. One of the questions that I asked was what changed the most in you when you became a Christian. I went first because nobody was really talking, and I told them that I accepted Jesus at a very young age, and there was not any major change at such a young age. Chelsea went next and she pretty much had the same answer as me. Mostly everybody else had the same answer of a slow and gradual change, and not something that was extremely noticeable. Then a guy by the name of Charlie brought up an interesting point when he asked if this story was the reason why Catholics use their “Christian names.” I thought that this was interesting, so we had a little side conversation about this question, and we really did not find an answer to it.
Questions:
1) Should I as the teacher be the first person to answer the questions that I have posed?
2) How can I keep people from getting too sidetracked during the study?
3) Should I rely on Kevin to help me get everyone back on track?
Practicum Report #5
To: Stephen Howlett
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #5
Time: 4 Hours
Preparation: We had our youth group's annual fall festival the other night. This fall festival is a time of pumpkin painting, food, hay rides and a bonfire. I had to help come up with songs to sing as well as my usual chant. It was my task to get some college age youth to come help supervise the event. But my biggest task was to prepare the study for that night. I always love doing this event. It is a youth favorite and a chance for me to have the youth's attention. In preparation, I sat for a few minutes praying about the study. I searched my mind for things I had heard recently or things that might get the youth's attention. I was quickly drawn to a few passages I had used many times before in studies and love dearly: 1 Peter 2:9-10.
Study: I had the chance to do the study around the fire in the evening. I started off by reciting the verse to them and telling them to focus on a seemingly insignificant word repeated throughout the verse. The first part of the verse goes, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God...". I had them focus on the word "a". This word is important because it does not signify different chosen individuals or priests. It indicates one unified people, priesthood and nation. I focused hard on the idea of community and what a youth group can mean to each other. I used Matthew 18:20, which discusses the idea that where two or more are gathered, God is there with them. I also referenced a verse in the old testament that says one person is easily defeated, while a strand of 2 can be easily broken, but a cord of 3 is not easily broken. My point was that as our youth group takes on new directions and a new youth pastor soon, it is up to them to come together and make great things happen. I looked at the fire and talked about how if I were to take one coal out and throw it in the grass that coal would go cold. But when kept in the fire it stays warm, keeps other coals warm, and may even start another fire. The idea is simple, we are those coals. Alone we can easily succumb to temptation and our religious fervor can cool off. But united as brothers and sisters in Christ, we can strengthen each others' faith and fight temptation. Together, the youth group can do amazing things. And that was where I left it with them. I left them with the question of how they were going to respond to the new opportunities that lie ahead of them as a youth group.
Questions: How can I use such a study to ignite the group and encourage community?
Was there a better way to finish off such a study?
Should I have gotten the youth more involved rather than have it seem more like a devotion or sermon?
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #5
Time: 4 Hours
Preparation: We had our youth group's annual fall festival the other night. This fall festival is a time of pumpkin painting, food, hay rides and a bonfire. I had to help come up with songs to sing as well as my usual chant. It was my task to get some college age youth to come help supervise the event. But my biggest task was to prepare the study for that night. I always love doing this event. It is a youth favorite and a chance for me to have the youth's attention. In preparation, I sat for a few minutes praying about the study. I searched my mind for things I had heard recently or things that might get the youth's attention. I was quickly drawn to a few passages I had used many times before in studies and love dearly: 1 Peter 2:9-10.
Study: I had the chance to do the study around the fire in the evening. I started off by reciting the verse to them and telling them to focus on a seemingly insignificant word repeated throughout the verse. The first part of the verse goes, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God...". I had them focus on the word "a". This word is important because it does not signify different chosen individuals or priests. It indicates one unified people, priesthood and nation. I focused hard on the idea of community and what a youth group can mean to each other. I used Matthew 18:20, which discusses the idea that where two or more are gathered, God is there with them. I also referenced a verse in the old testament that says one person is easily defeated, while a strand of 2 can be easily broken, but a cord of 3 is not easily broken. My point was that as our youth group takes on new directions and a new youth pastor soon, it is up to them to come together and make great things happen. I looked at the fire and talked about how if I were to take one coal out and throw it in the grass that coal would go cold. But when kept in the fire it stays warm, keeps other coals warm, and may even start another fire. The idea is simple, we are those coals. Alone we can easily succumb to temptation and our religious fervor can cool off. But united as brothers and sisters in Christ, we can strengthen each others' faith and fight temptation. Together, the youth group can do amazing things. And that was where I left it with them. I left them with the question of how they were going to respond to the new opportunities that lie ahead of them as a youth group.
Questions: How can I use such a study to ignite the group and encourage community?
Was there a better way to finish off such a study?
Should I have gotten the youth more involved rather than have it seem more like a devotion or sermon?
Practicum Report #4
To: Stephen Howlett
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #4
Time: 2.5 hours (1.5 Youth Service, 1 SS)
Preparation: I did not have much preparation to do for this week. Since Caleb took charge of the study, I only had to show him the study we were going work from and he took care of the rest. The largest piece of set-up I had to do was help get everyone to church.
I did find myself helping with the youth service however. I had to help plan and run a skit before the message. The skit we did was called "God's Coming to Dinner." In this skit, someone calls acting like God and says he is coming to dinner. Then three people come one at a time to the person's house with some major problem such as a broken leg and asks for help. But the person is expecting God and does not have time to help, so she pushes them out of her house quickly. At the end God calls back and says she did not let him in on three separate occasions. The point is that God is in everyone and the what we do for the least we do for God. I also had to help keep people involved in worship and get the excited to sing.
Study: Caleb's Bible study was on Acts 9:1-19. This passage focuses on Saul's conversion while on the road to Damascus. We started by having Adam read the passage. Then Caleb began asking questions from his study Bible. Such questions addressed our personal conversions and what we would have felt if we had been Saul, now called Paul. We all discussed our personal conversions. Chelsea discussed how hers occurred really young, since she was raised in the church. Others discussed theirs as gradual. I, in an attempt to keep things light, made joke of how I had been blinded for a while as well as Saul. Caleb did not find it humorous, so I explained how I had been raised in the church and always had the basic beliefs, but did not understand what it meant to truly believe until later on in my youth. Chase was rather quiet, though he did say his was gradual from being raised in the church. We also discussed where we think we are in our faith journey compared to Saul's. Some opted for the road to Damascus, some felt they were in Damascus having seen the light. We then discussed which sense we thought would be the worst to lose. Many thought scent would be the worst to lose since it had such an effect on taste. I felt like taste would be awful, because I like the taste of things and taste is supposed to tell us when something is harmful for us to eat or drink. The study kind of slowed down after that and ran into some problems keeping on track. By that point, we had all discussed our faith and were struggling to stay focused after a long night of little sleep. So we quickly closed the study and spent some time in general fellowship before heading our separate ways for the day.
Outlook: Next week is supposed to be my turn to do the Bible study. I will not be able to do that though, since I will be out of town. Most of us will be as a matter of fact, so the Bible study has been suspended for one week until after fall break. Once it resumes though, it is up to me to carry the torch and keep the study alive.
Questions: How do we keep people in the study and on track instead of getting sidetracked so easily?
How do we deal with off-weeks such as the one coming up to keep spiritual formation alive? Do we give a reading to read in preparation for the next week's Bible study?
How can I help Caleb when he is leading the study without starting a power struggle?
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #4
Time: 2.5 hours (1.5 Youth Service, 1 SS)
Preparation: I did not have much preparation to do for this week. Since Caleb took charge of the study, I only had to show him the study we were going work from and he took care of the rest. The largest piece of set-up I had to do was help get everyone to church.
I did find myself helping with the youth service however. I had to help plan and run a skit before the message. The skit we did was called "God's Coming to Dinner." In this skit, someone calls acting like God and says he is coming to dinner. Then three people come one at a time to the person's house with some major problem such as a broken leg and asks for help. But the person is expecting God and does not have time to help, so she pushes them out of her house quickly. At the end God calls back and says she did not let him in on three separate occasions. The point is that God is in everyone and the what we do for the least we do for God. I also had to help keep people involved in worship and get the excited to sing.
Study: Caleb's Bible study was on Acts 9:1-19. This passage focuses on Saul's conversion while on the road to Damascus. We started by having Adam read the passage. Then Caleb began asking questions from his study Bible. Such questions addressed our personal conversions and what we would have felt if we had been Saul, now called Paul. We all discussed our personal conversions. Chelsea discussed how hers occurred really young, since she was raised in the church. Others discussed theirs as gradual. I, in an attempt to keep things light, made joke of how I had been blinded for a while as well as Saul. Caleb did not find it humorous, so I explained how I had been raised in the church and always had the basic beliefs, but did not understand what it meant to truly believe until later on in my youth. Chase was rather quiet, though he did say his was gradual from being raised in the church. We also discussed where we think we are in our faith journey compared to Saul's. Some opted for the road to Damascus, some felt they were in Damascus having seen the light. We then discussed which sense we thought would be the worst to lose. Many thought scent would be the worst to lose since it had such an effect on taste. I felt like taste would be awful, because I like the taste of things and taste is supposed to tell us when something is harmful for us to eat or drink. The study kind of slowed down after that and ran into some problems keeping on track. By that point, we had all discussed our faith and were struggling to stay focused after a long night of little sleep. So we quickly closed the study and spent some time in general fellowship before heading our separate ways for the day.
Outlook: Next week is supposed to be my turn to do the Bible study. I will not be able to do that though, since I will be out of town. Most of us will be as a matter of fact, so the Bible study has been suspended for one week until after fall break. Once it resumes though, it is up to me to carry the torch and keep the study alive.
Questions: How do we keep people in the study and on track instead of getting sidetracked so easily?
How do we deal with off-weeks such as the one coming up to keep spiritual formation alive? Do we give a reading to read in preparation for the next week's Bible study?
How can I help Caleb when he is leading the study without starting a power struggle?
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Caleb's 2nd Blog
To: Stephen
From: Caleb
Subject: Practicum Report 2
Time Spent this Week: 2 Hours total (SS=1; AM worship=1)
My class this week
Confusion: There was a little bit of a miscommunication which resulted in the lesson for Sunday school not being prepared. Luckily for us the study that we are doing is right out of a Serendipity Bible, so Kevin was able to go get some of the Bibles. This turned out to not be that big of a problem, but it could have been a very big problem.
The Lesson: The lesson for this week was based on James 2:14-26 which is a passage based on faith without deeds. Kevin asked me to read the passage to start out the lesson, so that we all knew what the passage was talking about. After the scripture was read Kevin then had some questions for the class to think about and answer. Kevin did a very good job at using some of the questions in the Serendipity Bible, but also making up his own challenging questions for the students to answer. This class that we are teaching can be a little bit difficult at times with getting to answer the questions that are asked. So needless to say it was a lacking in conversation at first. Then Adam finally spoke up and said pretty much that he did not think that we needed to do good things to get to heaven, but rather that as Christians we should want to do good deeds simply to show Christ in us. The three girls that were there were Chelsea, Rebecca, and Rachel. Rachel was just a visitor on Sunday, and I do not think that she was comfortable enough with everybody to really voice her opinion. Chelsea and Rebecca added little comments every once and a while, but for the most part they did not talk much.
Questions:
1. Should have I offered more of my opinions, or should I let the “students” answer them?
2. How do I as the “helper” of the class encourage the students to answer the questions?
From: Caleb
Subject: Practicum Report 2
Time Spent this Week: 2 Hours total (SS=1; AM worship=1)
My class this week
Confusion: There was a little bit of a miscommunication which resulted in the lesson for Sunday school not being prepared. Luckily for us the study that we are doing is right out of a Serendipity Bible, so Kevin was able to go get some of the Bibles. This turned out to not be that big of a problem, but it could have been a very big problem.
The Lesson: The lesson for this week was based on James 2:14-26 which is a passage based on faith without deeds. Kevin asked me to read the passage to start out the lesson, so that we all knew what the passage was talking about. After the scripture was read Kevin then had some questions for the class to think about and answer. Kevin did a very good job at using some of the questions in the Serendipity Bible, but also making up his own challenging questions for the students to answer. This class that we are teaching can be a little bit difficult at times with getting to answer the questions that are asked. So needless to say it was a lacking in conversation at first. Then Adam finally spoke up and said pretty much that he did not think that we needed to do good things to get to heaven, but rather that as Christians we should want to do good deeds simply to show Christ in us. The three girls that were there were Chelsea, Rebecca, and Rachel. Rachel was just a visitor on Sunday, and I do not think that she was comfortable enough with everybody to really voice her opinion. Chelsea and Rebecca added little comments every once and a while, but for the most part they did not talk much.
Questions:
1. Should have I offered more of my opinions, or should I let the “students” answer them?
2. How do I as the “helper” of the class encourage the students to answer the questions?
Practicum Report #3
To: Stephen Howlett
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #3
Time: 2 hours (1 SS, 1 service)
Preparation: There was some confusion with the lesson this week, and as a result, no one had prepared anything for the class Sunday morning. Luckily, the series is a very open and easy study to put together. I simply went to the prep room and got a few Serendipity Bibles and picked a controversial topic in the Bible: James 2:14-26.
Lesson: James 2:14-26 focuses on faith with deeds. The big issue here is whether deeds are required for faith to get into heaven or not. It is a topic that is hotly debated and no one can find a simple middle ground. I had Caleb read the passage and then I proceded to ask questions. Most of the questions were found in the Serendipity Bible to go along with the passage, but some were questions that came to mind as we went through the passage. It was a challenge getting response from those in attendance. The problem was that most of them were tired and did not know much about the topic. Furthermore, I found that many did not feel like it was a topic they wanted to debate. It was a challenge the whole way through, although Adam was willing to speak up and give his insight. He simply believes that it is a topic with no final answer that we can debate for as long as we want with no solid conclusion. But he did concede that he felt like deeds were not required for heaven, but that if we truly loved God and had faith, we would want to do deeds. It was a challenge getting any response from Rebecca and her friend Rachel. Rachel was just visiting and did not want to be a big part of the discussion. Chelsea did not say much, though she said she enjoyed some of information we were able to discuss. The study ended quickly as Peggy, one of our youth leaders, came in to ask about helping with various youth events. It became apparent to me quickly that most of those in attendance Sunday did not have much interest in studying the Bible. They were mostly there because I harrassed them enough to get them there and for some fellowship. So my challenge now becomes getting them excited about Bible study.
Questions:
1. How do I get everyone excited for Sunday school?
2. How do I get individuals to give there opinions without awkwardly having to call them out?
3. Should I stray away from hotly debated topics in a Sunday school setting such as faith without deeds?
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #3
Time: 2 hours (1 SS, 1 service)
Preparation: There was some confusion with the lesson this week, and as a result, no one had prepared anything for the class Sunday morning. Luckily, the series is a very open and easy study to put together. I simply went to the prep room and got a few Serendipity Bibles and picked a controversial topic in the Bible: James 2:14-26.
Lesson: James 2:14-26 focuses on faith with deeds. The big issue here is whether deeds are required for faith to get into heaven or not. It is a topic that is hotly debated and no one can find a simple middle ground. I had Caleb read the passage and then I proceded to ask questions. Most of the questions were found in the Serendipity Bible to go along with the passage, but some were questions that came to mind as we went through the passage. It was a challenge getting response from those in attendance. The problem was that most of them were tired and did not know much about the topic. Furthermore, I found that many did not feel like it was a topic they wanted to debate. It was a challenge the whole way through, although Adam was willing to speak up and give his insight. He simply believes that it is a topic with no final answer that we can debate for as long as we want with no solid conclusion. But he did concede that he felt like deeds were not required for heaven, but that if we truly loved God and had faith, we would want to do deeds. It was a challenge getting any response from Rebecca and her friend Rachel. Rachel was just visiting and did not want to be a big part of the discussion. Chelsea did not say much, though she said she enjoyed some of information we were able to discuss. The study ended quickly as Peggy, one of our youth leaders, came in to ask about helping with various youth events. It became apparent to me quickly that most of those in attendance Sunday did not have much interest in studying the Bible. They were mostly there because I harrassed them enough to get them there and for some fellowship. So my challenge now becomes getting them excited about Bible study.
Questions:
1. How do I get everyone excited for Sunday school?
2. How do I get individuals to give there opinions without awkwardly having to call them out?
3. Should I stray away from hotly debated topics in a Sunday school setting such as faith without deeds?
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