If you’re searching for a new church (rather than wanting to recommend one) click here.

If you’ve followed me for a while, you know I’m passionate about helping people find doctrinally sound churches to join. I’ve recently been updating my list of Reader Recommended Churches, but we can always use more recommendations for doctrinally sound churches, church search engines, and church planting organizations, especially in the states that don’t have very many recommendations and in countries outside the United States. So I’d love it if you’d help out by making a recommendation!
Please read this part in its entirety before recommending…
I really need your help here, readers. Please carefully read and follow the guidelines and instructions below so your recommendation won’t be deleted or rejected.
- You must have a personal connection (ex: you’re a member or recent former member, you know the pastor personally, etc.) to the church you’re recommending
- Please check this list to see if the church you’re recommending is already listed. (It takes time for me to weed out recommendations of churches that are already listed.)
- Please check this link to see if the church search engine or church planting organization you’re recommending is already listed. (Read carefully. The Master’s Seminary, Founders, G3, Grace Advance, and several others are already listed.)
- The following types of churches, church search engines, and church planting organizations will not be added to the list (due to doctrinal or other issues)1:
~ United Methodist churches
~ Calvary Chapel churches (continuationist)
~ Continuationist churches
~ Churches that consider Calvinism/Reformed theology to be false teaching
~ KJV Only churches (Churches which consider the King James Version to be the only acceptable and/or inspired translation of the Bible. Churches which merely prefer using the KJV are fine.)
~ Any church that uses music from Bethel, Jesus Culture, Hillsong, Elevation, anyone connected with these groups, Catholics, non-Christians, or any other musician who isn’t doctrinally sound.
~Any church that uses or recommends books and materials from false teachers.
~Any church that violates Scripture’s teaching on the role of women in the church (1 Timothy 2:11-3:7). This includes, but is not necessarily limited to: churches with a female bearing the title of “pastor” (of anything) or “elder,” churches which allow women to function in pastoral roles without the title of pastor / elder (for example: female ministers of music or worship leaders; discipleship “facilitators” or “directors” who essentially function as elders / associate pastors, and so on), churches which allow women to preach to, hold unbiblical authority over, or instruct men or co-ed groups in the Scriptures (for example: teaching / co-teaching co-ed adult Sunday School / Bible study classes or home / small groups).
~ Any church that does not have a detailed statement of faith (“What we believe,” “Doctrinal statement,” etc..) or pastor (and staff, if any) listed on its website.
~ Any church that does not have an actual website (a social media page alone is not sufficient).
If the church, church search engine, or church planting organization you’re considering recommending meets the criteria above, I’d love to consider it! Please comment below with:
- The full, correctly spelled name of the church, church search engine, or church planting organization
- The city and state, or city and country the church is located in
- The church’s, church search engine’s, or church planting organization’s website. Submissions without websites will not be considered and will be automatically deleted.
I apologize if this is inconvenient, but I’m really going to need you to make your recommendation in a comment on this article, rather than a social media comment or private message, email, or comment on another article. That way, I’ll have all the recommendations in one place and I won’t miss yours.
Just a reminder – as it says above the comment box, I handle all comments manually, so your comment will not appear immediately. When I add (or decline to add) your church to the list, I’ll post your comment. Please do not submit your recommendation multiple times because you think I haven’t responded quickly enough. It takes time to sort through and delete multiple submissions for the same church/organization.
I vet every church that’s submitted, so it may take me a while (possibly several weeks to several months) to get to your recommendation depending on how many submissions I receive (last time it was well over 100). Your patience is appreciated.
Thanks so much for helping your brothers and sisters in Christ find a good, solid church!
1I am not saying any church or person who falls into one of these categories is automatically a heretic, unsaved, or a horrible person/church. These are merely the requirements for a church to be on this particular list because these are the requirements most of the people who use this list are looking for.
Please consider adding
Reformation Church
Plant City, Fl
https://reformationchurch.online/
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Added! Thank you!
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Anniston Bible Church
Anniston, Alabama
http://www.annistonbible.org
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Hi Susan- Thanks for your recommendation. It looks like ABC is a great church, and one I would probably add to the list, but as the criteria in the article say, I don’t list churches that don’t have some sort of clear listing of who their pastor and staff are. If ABC should add a pastor/staff page to the website, I would be delighted for you to re-submit. I’ll be happy to take another look at that time.
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Redemption Community Church
Bartlett, TN
https://redemptionmem.org/
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Added. Thank you! :0)
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I would like to suggest Immanuel Baptist Church:
152111 Tulip Ln
Wausau, WI 54401
715-359-2422
http://www.ibcwausau.org
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Thank you so much for taking the time to recommend your church. Unfortunately, I am going to have to decline to list IBC at this time. Right now the website indicates IBC will soon be participating in David Platt’s “Secret Church”. While David used to be a trustworthy pastor and teacher of God’s Word (I used to listen to him and read his books myself, and have participated in Secret Church in the past), he isn’t any longer. From the turmoil going on at his own church to his increasing wokeness, I just can’t recommend a church that would promote him to its members.
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Grace Community Church
Hudsonville, MI
https://solagrace.org/
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Added. Thank you! :0)
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Berean Community Church
Summit,MS
https://www.bereancc.net/
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Added. Thanks! :0)
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Hey Michele,
We are dear friends with the pastor of Grace Bible Church in Conway, AR, Jeff Johnson. I’ve known him for at least 20 years. We’ve visited their church many times, and often listen to the recorded services. He also runs a seminary as a ministry of the church, which is where Owen Strachan now teaches. http://www.gbcconway.com/
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Still can’t believe I didn’t already have GBC on the list! Added! Thanks for the recommendation, Katie! :0)
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Michelle thank you for all you do, can you tell me about THe Met in houston Tx, please? 13000 Jones Houston tx 77070
Sent from AT&T Yahoo Mail for iPhone
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Hi Blanca- I’m so sorry, but time constraints prevent me from vetting churches “on demand” (and even if I had the time, I couldn’t do it without the church’s website). I would recommend you familiarize yourself with the parameters I’ve listed above and the “What to look for in a church” section of this resource, then carefully examine the church’s website, visit the church, set up an appointment with the pastor to ask questions, and see how the church and its beliefs and practices stack up. If you’re on the hunt for a good church to join, it might be easier to just click on the link at the very top of this article and start your search there with the good churches that are listed.
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This is the church we are now going to since we’ve moved to Montana. I’m so thankful for a sound church here. They are hard to find.
Valley Bible Church
Billings, Montana
https://www.billingsvalleybible.org/
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Added. Thanks! :0)
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Bethany Community Fellowship
Sylvania, OH
bethanycf.org
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Thank you! Added! :0)
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I have two:
Christ Our Hope Bible Church, Spokane, WA (www.cohbc.org)
Christ’s Church of Tucson, Tucson, AZ (www.cctworship.org)
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Thank you LC. I have added Christ’s Church. I’m afraid I’m going to have to decline to add COHBC as they define deacons as “men and women” and allow women to serve as deaconesses.
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LC- In keeping with my newly published position statement on doctrinally sound churches with women deacons or deaconesses (https://michellelesley.com/2022/04/22/deaconesses-and-female-deacons/), I went back and took another look at COHBC in hopes of adding them to the list. However, when I did, I noticed that the website does not contain any information about who the pastor/elders and staff (if any) are. Since this is a requirement for listing, I’m afraid I still can’t list them at this time. However if they add this information to the website in the future, I welcome you to resubmit them at that time, and I will be delighted to take another look.
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You can probably guess mine, but I’ll post it anyway!
Grace Community Church of the Valley
13248 Roscoe Blvd.
Sun Valley, CA 91352
https://www.gracechurch.org
(My experience with Grace Church? Church member since 1971; church staff 1979-2019)
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Thanks, but that’s already on the list. :0)
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Thank you, Michelle for this huge undertaking! I have two recommendations!
Our home church is Bethany United Reformed Church , https://www.bethanyurc.net/
Wyoming Michigan
Pastor Eric Van Der Molen
Also Grace Church ( PCA)
http://graceharrisburg.org/
Harrisburg, North Carolina
Pastor Doug Agnew. We attended there for months while caring for our daughter. He did our daughter’s funeral.
Thank you for your consideration, love in Christ,
Elly Berghoef
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Hi Elly- Thanks so much for your recommendations. I have added Grace Church. I am declining to add BURC at this time as they do not seem to have a pastor/staff page. Should they add one, please feel free to re-submit. I would be delighted to give them another look.
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Hi, Michelle!
MrsSquirrel and I attend Frenchtown Community Church in Frenchtown, Montana. The church website is https://fccmt.com/
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Added. Thank you, my friend!
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Hi Michelle,
We have been attending a reformed Baptist church in our town for almost 3 years and we recently became members. It’s wonderful and I believe fits the criteria for your list.
Cornerstone Community Church
Billings, MT 59106
cornerstonebillings.org
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Added. Thank you! :0)
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My church! Please consider for the list! https://refugefellowship.org/about/vision-mission-values/
The Rufuge Bible Fellowship
1600 Chicago Ave.
Riverside, CA 92507 STE R5/7
United States
Our worship team writes a lot of the music we sing! We don’t sing/play Bethel, Hillsong, etc!
Biblically sound pastor who goes through the whole Bible, book by book, chapter by chapter, verse by verse!
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Added. Thank you! :0)
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The Summit Church
1605 MO-125, Rogersville, MO 65742
https://www.summitchurch.net/
Affiliation: I’m a member and wholeheartedly recommend The Summit. It has taken us a long time to find a church that is doctrinally sound and led by elders who are true shepherds of their flock, leading by example and spending a lot of time with the members outside of church services.
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Added. Thanks! :0)
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Thank you for taking the time to do this. My recommendation is…
College Hills Baptist Church
San Angelo, TX
https://www.collegehillsbc.org/
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Added. Thanks! :0) A couple of items on the “Teaching and Bible Study Resources” page you may want to give your pastor a heads up about:
1. The Gospel Coalition has gone extremely woke over the past several years. They also platform false teachers like Thabiti Anyabwile and Jackie Hill Perry. I know a lot of pastors put TGC on their “recommended resources” pages years ago when they were still doctrinally sound and aren’t aware of this turn TGC has taken, so I’m trying to let people know.
2. I’ve been getting a lot of questions lately about Right Now Media, because, while I realize they’re kind of a general platform for everything that calls itself “Christian,” so it’s going to run the gamut from great teachers to blatant heretics, what I’m hearing is that they’re pretty heavy on the false teachers and pretty light on the good teachers. I haven’t had a chance to look into it myself, but your pastor might want to take a look to protect your church.
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This is our church that we’ve attended since moving to Montana and we’re now members. I’m so thankful for a solid church here…they are hard to find.
Valley Bible Church
Billings, MT
https://www.billingsvalleybible.org/
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Thanks so much for recommending. I think someone else must have recommended VBS too, because they’re already on the list. :0)
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Oops, I posted twice. I’m sorry!
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No worries! :0)
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The Town Church
Fort Collins, CO
https://thetownchurch.org/
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Hi Carley. Thanks so much for for recommending your church. I’m afraid I’m going to have to decline to list The Town Church at this time because they are allowing women to serve as deacons.
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Hi Carley- In keeping with my newly published position statement on deaconesses/female deacons (https://michellelesley.com/2022/04/22/deaconesses-and-female-deacons/) I have added The Town Church to the list.
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Redeemer Baptist Church
7320 Steep Hollow Rd.
Bryan, TX 77809
redeemerbcs.org
Our church currently meets at Emmanuel Baptist Church in Bryan which is already on your list. Emmanuel helped our church recover and transition in a Revitalization program after a fire burned our building to the ground. Our website is very new and pics of the Pastors and Elders are there, but no bios currently. However there are links to our very detailed constitution, statement of belief, and mission statement.
We hope to be moving to our own location soon – as God leads and provides. At his time we have Sunday School and Church in the afternoon, but those will be moved back to morning when we get into our own building.
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Added. Thank you. :0)
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Regarding Redeemer Baptist Church in Bryan, TX, I meant to add that my husband and I are members and have been personal friends of Pastor Ramiro Castillo (Pastor/Elder – formally Senior Pastor but transitioning into retirement and working as a chaplain for a local hospital) and his wife for 25 years.
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Grace Community Church in Battle Creek, MI. I have been a member here for 7 years. The website is bcgrace.net. Thank you for all you do!
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Hi Courtney- Thanks so much for your recommendation. I have a concern, and I was wondering if you might be able to help me. While GCC has every appearance of being the solid type of church I would normally add to the list, there’s a photo on the “Worship Ministry Application” page that shows the worship team leading a song by Phil Wickham (who has close ties to Bethel and is definitely in the heretical New Apostolic Reformation stream). On the home page, there’s a photo of the worship team leading a song by Vertical Worship. Are these two songs typical of the music GCC uses?
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Crossway Church
Mohnton, PA (Berks County)
http://www.crosswayberks.org
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Added. Thanks, Caitlin! :0)
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My family recently began attending a church back in November. Although they don’t claim to be Reformed, I know that several of the members are and we have found the teaching to be extremely solid. We have not heard a single song from Hillsong, Bethel, or Elevation and the Pastor preaches verse by verse from Scripture. And, though I don’t know for sure the Pastor’s personal beliefs (we have yet to sit down and chat with him), his preaching definitely indicates a strong leaning toward Reformed theology. We love it there.
New Life Alliance Church
Logansport, Indiana
https://www.newlifealliance.net
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Hi Trista- Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. Although many of the churches on my list are Reformed or Calvinistic, I want to reassure you that is not a requirement for inclusion on the list. Sound doctrine is, however, so I’m afraid I’m going to have to decline to list New Life for a couple of reasons:
1. The CMA (and, thus New Life) believes physical healing was purchased in the atonement. This is not biblical.
2. The resource page of the website recommends both Proverbs 31 and a ministry of Cru. I realize some aren’t aware of this, but Cru has become severely woke over the past couple of years. Among other things, they have brought all kinds of Critical Race Theory leaders into their staff training programs to hammer this ungodly doctrine into their workers.
If you’re considering joining this church, I would encourage you to look further into the doctrines and practices of the CMA denomination. The CMA as a denomination is continuationist, functionally egalitarian, and social justice focused. If your pastor and several of the members are Reformed leaning, it would be very surprising if they choose to stay in the CMA.
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https://newlifepresbyterian.org/
New Life Presbyterian Church – PCA Church.
Harrison City PA
I do attend here
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Added. Thank you!
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I’d like to recommend Grace Of The Valley in Kingsburg, CA. We found it last year through some of your search engine recommendations and really enjoy it.
https://www.graceofthevalley.org/
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Thanks, Janie. I’ve added Grace to the list and also to my Biblical Counseling tab (in the blue menu bar at the top of this page).
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First Baptist Church New Braunfels
Located in New Braunfels, Texas
We have been members for a little over a year. They do not play any songs by bethel, hillsong, or elevation. The pastor is very reformed in his teaching and preaches Verse by verse through the scriptures.
https://fbcnb.org/
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Hi Julie- Thanks for the recommendation. I’ve added FBC to the list. One thing I would encourage you to give your pastor a heads up about: under Grow >> Resources >> Websites, “The Bible Project” is listed. Most Christians, even pastors, aren’t aware of this, but TBP teaches actual heresy. You might want to pass this link along to him.
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Yes, thank you! Several people in the church have noticed that Lately and mentioned it, and the church is in the process of taking that a few other resources off their website. Thank you!
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First Baptist Church of Clearfield
Clearfield, PA
fbcclearfield.com
(I’ve attended 13 yrs, and am a member. Also friends with the pastor’s family).
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Added. Thanks!
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Church of the Apostles, Atlanta, Ga (Dr. Michael Youssef). 3585 Northside Parkway, Atlanta, Ga 30327, website is apostles.org
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Hi Catherine- Thank you so much for taking the time to make a recommendation. I’m afraid I’m going to have to decline to list Church of the Apostles as it doesn’t meet the criteria given above. It is continuationist, it uses music from Hillsong and other biblically problematic musicians, in 2019 the speaker for their women’s conference was Anne Graham Lotz, who is a false teacher and preaches to men, and a number of the “Bible study” classes are either support groups and/or are studying what look like self-help books written by psychologists/counselors. Additionally, I’m uncomfortable recommending a church whose description of the finery of their sanctuary is far more detailed than their bare bones statement of faith.
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Westwood Baptist Church
1809 Bassett Rd. Palestine, TX
903-723-8297
WBCPalestine.org
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Added. Thanks!
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I’d love to recommend my church! Very solid theology and a strong family of a congregation.
Community Baptist Church
Spring Hill, TN
https://www.cbcspringhill.org/
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Added. Thanks!
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Grace Community Church
Jackson,MS
gccjackson.com
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Added. Thank you!
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Oh Michelle! Sister you are so brave to take on this task! I wish I could mention my church but one of the song leaders is a woman and sadly we use music from those three churches. I wonder how in the world has this happened in most of the churches now? I feel like a bunch of asteroids named Bethel, Hill song and Elevation passed over earth and sent us into a alternate universe!
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I’m so sorry, Regina.
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Atlanta Reformation Fellowship. We meet in Tucker GA.
https://atlantareformationfellowship.com/
Best mess I’ve ever been a part of!
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Added. Thanks!
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Grace Church in South River, NJ! https://www.njgracechurch.com/
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Hi Aly- Thank you so much for taking the time to recommend Grace Church. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to decline to add it to the list as the website does not have a detailed statement of faith. If a detailed statement of faith is added in the future, I’d be delighted for you to resubmit. I’ll be glad to take another look at that time.
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Sovereign Grace Chapel in Southbridge, Ma
https://www.sovereigngracema.org/
I can’t recommend this church highly enough. It is a Calvinist/Reformed Theology Church. I’d been in search of a church for years, after renouncing Roman Catholicism, but could not find the Truth being spoken/taught, until God pointed me to this place and to its elders. It’s incredible!
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Hi Patty- Thank you for taking the time to recommend your church. I’m so glad you’ve found a home there. I’m so sorry, but I’m going to have to decline to list SGC at this time. There are several things I noticed that, separately, might not have been quite as significant, but, together, they add up to my feeling uncomfortable recommending SGC right now. They include: the women’s ministry is doing a Jen Wilkin study, I watched a couple of the worship services from earlier this year and noticed a Matt Maher (Catholic) song being used, and a woman reading Scripture and praying from the pulpit during the worship service, and on the “Resources” page of the website, The Gospel Coalition (which has gone extremely woke and platforms false teachers) is recommended.
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I recommend
Maranatha Bible Church
4701 N. Canfield Avenue
Norridge, Illinois 60706
USA
Website: https://mbchicago.org
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Added. Thanks!
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King’s Church
Reformed Baptist Church
http://kingschurchaz.com/
CONTACT ADDRESS
KING’S CHURCH
P.O. BOX 5576
GLENDALE, AZ 85312
Pastor John Samson
We currently meet at Grace in the Desert Adventist Church, every Sunday morning at 10:30am at 13450 N. Plaza Del Rio Blvd, Peoria, AZ 85381
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Added. Thanks!
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Christ Reformed Fellowship
Garner NC
Christreformedfellowship.com
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Hi Kristina- Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. Unfortunately, there’s no indication on the website of who the pastor (and staff, if any) is, and that’s a requirement for listing. If your church should add this info to the website in the future, please feel free to resubmit. I’ll be glad to take another look.
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Grace Bible Church of Tampa, Tampa, FL; https://gbctampa.org/. My husband and I have been attending since June and we are members, very thankful for this body of believers and the high view of scripture
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Added. Thank you!
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Lebanon Bible Fellowship Church
Lebanon PA 17042
Lebanonbfc.org
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Added. Thanks!
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I recommend Christ Fellowship Bible Church. It is located in Lake Worth, Texas. I have been attending there for about 10 months and have been a member for the last several months. Their website: https://www.christfellowshipbc.com/
I also recommend Reformed Baptist Church of Fort Worth, located in Richland Hills, Texas. I was a member there from 2017 – 2021. Their website: https://www.rbcfw.org/
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Both added. Thanks.
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Immanuel Baptist Church
Wausau, WI
https://www.ibcwausau.org/
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Hi- Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to decline to list it. Please see my comment to KVLN11 (who also recommended IBC) for the reason.
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Hi! I’d love to recommend my tiny church in our tiny town. We may be small but we are a faithful group of believers! This faithful church is STILL made up of many of our original founding families.
Zion United Church at Womack
Clifton Texas
http://www.zionunitedchurchwomack.com/home.html
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Hi Khaki- Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. Quick question- does Sherry, who is listed on the staff page as “Director of Music” lead the congregational singing and select the music for the worship service? In other words, is she basically in charge of the music portion of the worship service? I ask, because I do not add churches to the list that have women in the position of (regardless of their title) minister of music as this is a pastoral position.
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No ma’am. Our pastor both chooses hymns based on his sermon for the week and he leads the congregation in the hymns as well- he is quite talented too!
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Wow, he must be! (He must be tired, too, lol!) Thanks so much for letting me know. I’ve added Zion to the list. :0)
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Bridwell Heights Presbyterian Church
Kingsport, TN USA
http://www.bridwellheightschurch.org/
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Added. Thank you.
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Our town is filled with prosperity among other false gospels. It is so sad to watch. Thankful for your ministry that keeps an eye out on these things.
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Grace Chapel
500 Linden St
West Liberty, OH 43357
https://gracechapelwl.org/
I am a member of Grace Chapel. It is a solid, biblically sound church. We have a terrific pastor who preaches the scriptures–check out his sermon videos under the Watch & Listen tab.
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Added. Thanks!
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Hi Michelle,
Thank you for adding our church. I just wanted to point out that under your link “Find a Good Church (Bible Bulletin Board)” their list has the wrong pastor name for Grace Chapel in West Liberty, Ohio. The link to our church is correct, however our pastor’s name is Zach Dudenhofer. I have sent an email to let them know of this error.
Linda
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Hi Michelle! I would like to recommend our church. Blue Ridge Grace Brethren Church in Winchester, VA. Expository preaching, Christ honoring music (our pastor has a degree in music as well, and doesn’t allow music from the listed groups. He also vets and approves every song used in worship to be sure money is not going to unsound organizations and searching the song will not lead others to bad theology.
The website is brgrace.com
It is part of the charis fellowship (formerly Grace Brethren Churches) and their website is charisfellowship.us
Thank you so much!
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Added. Thanks!
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South County Bible Church. (South) St.Louis, Missouri. I’m a member. We do have a FB page, and Youtube channel.
https://www.scbc.us/
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Added. Thanks!
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Hope Baptist Church
1199 Alton Road
Galloway, Ohio 43119
https://www.hopegalloway.org
We are on the outskirts of the west side of Columbus Ohio.
Hope is a fairly new church. This little church preaches the Word of God faithfully, with NO Hillsong, Bethel, Elevation, etc. music. Pastor Josiah plays the keyboard for us and Virgil sometimes plays acoustic guitar. We sing old hymns, Sovereign Grace and biblically sound songs of worship!
I am a member of this church and I know the Pastor personally. We are a congregation of believers who love the LORD, seek to honor Christ, and obey the Holy Spirit in our daily lives. We love one another, strive to disciple our members, and reach out to the surrounding community with the glorious good news of Christ Jesus. We are still a tiny country church but have doubled our size in a year and a half. We are not worried about the numbers as we all know that it is Christ who builds His church. We pray He uses us mightily.
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Added to both the recommended churches list and my biblical counseling page (in the blue menu bar at the top of this page). Thanks for recommending!
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Berkley Community Church
bcchurch.com
Berkley, Michigan 48072
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Hi Jenn- Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. I’m afraid I’m going to have to decline to add BCC to the list as they use music by Bethel and Hillsong and a woman appears to be leading the music portion of the worship service.
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Lifepoint Church. Senatobia, MS
https://lifepointchurch.online/
They are everything you list. They are SBC, not following in social justice issues, no females can pastor or minister (minister as in holding office). Good solid place. Contemporary.
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Hi Michelle- Thank you so much for taking the time to recommend your church. Unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to add Lifepoint to the list as they use Bethel and Hillsong music.
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I did not see our church on the list unless I overlooked it. Calvary Bible Church in Joelton Tennessee. They meet all the criteria you have listed.
5245 Hwy 41-A, Joelton, TN 37080
https://cbctn.org/
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Hi Marcy- thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. I’ve added it to the list.
I know you’re probably not in charge of the website and there might not be anything you can do or say about what I’m about to mention, but since your pastor is probably a very nice guy, and your church seems like a good church, I felt compelled to say this:
It was extremely off-putting to me when I clicked on the link for the CBC website and the very first thing I saw was a display of your pastor’s books. And then I scrolled down the home page a little more, and there was more about your pastor and his books. And the “Who is Jesus?” gospel presentation is all the way at the bottom in a little corner. A sizable portion of the church’s website appears to be self-promotion by your pastor. It was troubling enough to me that I almost declined to put CBC on the list. And if it’s troubling to me, and I’m not even looking for a church in your area to visit, you can imagine the impression it’s going to make on potential visitors to your church.
I say all of this because, like I said, I’m sure your pastor is a nice guy and your church is a good church, and if that’s the case, the website is giving people the wrong impression about your pastor and your church, and might even be turning away potential visitors. And I would hate to see that happen.
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Green Acres Baptist Church – Athens GA
https://www.greenacreschurch.com/
They are SBC, kinda reformed, pastor is young, gospel driven. I was once a member for 2 years. Moved but still go when I can
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Added, thanks!
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Liberty Grove Baptist Church
Loretto, TN
Libertygrovebaptist.org
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Added. Thanks!
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Watershed Church
Copperas Cove, TX
http://www.watershedchurch.net
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Added. Thanks!
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I’ve checked all the links. Thank you for your work.
Harrison Hills Baptist Church
Lanesville, IN, USA
http://www.harrisonhills.org
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Hi Amie- Thanks so much for recommending your church. I’ve added it to the list.
I wish I could give your pastor a big hug and THANK YOU! for the “topical teaching positions” page of the website. I am so impressed by the clarity, directness, and detail. I know exactly where HHBC stands on everything that’s important. I wish every church had a page like this on their website!
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Calvary Baptist Church
Bremerton, WA, USA
https://cbcbremerton.org/index.htm
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Added, thanks.
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Valrico, FL – The Grove Bible Chapel
1801 S Miller Rd
Valrico, FL 33596
https://thegrovetampa.org/
https://thegrovetampa.org/about/our-doctrine/
(Our lead elder/pastor graduated from TMS & is a former elder of GCC.)
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Hi Michelle – Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. I’ve added it to the list.
I noticed a small error on the “Worship” page (under the “Ministries” dropdown). It’s in the section title “Our Five ‘Tenants’ of Worship”. The correct word is “tenets,” not “tenants“. (I don’t know if you would want to bring that to someone’s attention or not. I just know I always appreciate it when readers catch my errors so I can fix them.) :0)
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Oh gosh I’m so glad you noticed! Thank you for pointing this out! Will get it changed 😊
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No worries. Glad to be of help. :0)
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I would recommend my church in Norwich, England, which is Surrey Chapel. https://www.surreychapel.org.uk
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Hi there! Surrey Chapel looks like a very friendly and dynamic church. Thanks for taking the time to recommend it. I just have a couple of questions about the two women on staff, Bev and Annie, that I’m hoping you can help me with.
Annie– Does Annie’s position have her teaching the Bible to teenage boys? And what, exactly, does “equipping our fab team of volunteer leaders” mean? Is she instructing male volunteers in the Scriptures and/or exercising authority over them?
Bev– I’m a bit confused on what an “Outreach and Trainer” is. Is this similar to an associate or assistant pastor or elder?
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Christ Reformed Community Church
161 Hampton Point Dr. Suite 2, St. Augustine, FL 32092
https://www.christreformedcc.com/
Church Member
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Added. Thanks.
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My husband and I are members at Calvary Baptist Church in Rochester, MN and have found it to be a very encouraging place 🙂 https://www.cbcroch.org/
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Added. Thank you!
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I’d love to recommend our church so others can find it! Thank you for doing this and thank you for your ministry! Harvestfield Church, Rainbow City, Alabama https://harvestfieldchurch.org/
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Hi Pam – Thanks so much for taking the time to recommend your church. I was all set to add it to the list until I watched a few services, and, unfortunately, this church uses Jesus Culture and Hillsong music, so I’m afraid I’m going to have to pass.
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Thank you for taking the time to review Harvestfield! Our pastor, along with the elder who leads us in worship, just released a podcast about “Expository Worship” two weeks ago stating their intent to move completely away from groups such as Hillsong. They stated their desire for doctrinal purity in worship and expressed how they are actively pursuing this for HFC. Here is the link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4Katq5LoRS0anraT2fZLcr?si=iwSKqriOSTirJqZlPCY1Hg&utm_source=copy-link
I know you may not have time to listen and it’s ok if you need to just move on down your list! But I wanted to at least put this out there. Thank you so much!
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Pam, that is so encouraging to hear! Thank you so much for letting me know! I wish I could give your pastor and elders a huge hug and a THANK YOU! Could you do me a big favor? Once they’ve stopped using all of that music, could you let me know? Because I really was just about to add Harvestfield to the list when the music stopped me. And if your pastor and elders need any help or advice, I would be glad to put them in touch with some great brothers at G3 who lead their worship workshops. My email address is at the “Contact” tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page. I can’t wait to add Harvestfield to the list! :0)
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Absolutely! Thank you so much for the helpful information!
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I would like to recommend my church:
Temple Baptist Church
700 W. Moore Ave
Searcy, AR 72143
https://www.templebaptistsearcy.org/
My family are members here. We have a wonderful, biblically sound Pastor who is a blessing to us.
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Added. Thank you.
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Faith Baptist Church – Longview, Texas
“Preaching Christ…verse by verse”
Pastor David Webber
https://www.faithlongview.com/
We sing hymns – no repetitive, unbiblical fluff!
My husband and I have been a part of this small fellowship of believers since summer 2021.
Children are in church with their parents.
Men’s and Women’s Bible study groups go through books of the Bible, verse by verse.
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Added. Thank you.
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Hi Michelle, have you had a chance to look at my church Temple Baptist of Searcy, AR? I had submitted it a few days ago. If you can let me know either way I sure would appreciate it. Thanks so much.
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Hi Kimberly- I know it can be easy to miss things in an article this detailed, but did you happen to catch the second to last paragraph? :0) Right now, I have over 70 churches to individually vet. I’m starting with the oldest recommendations and working my way up to the newest. When I vet a church and put it on the list (or decline to), I publish the recommender’s comment and reply to it letting her know it has/hasn’t been added. Keep an eye out for your comment to be published. I’ll get to your recommendation as soon as I can. :0)
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Oh goodness!! Yes, I did miss that! Thanks for your patience and for answering so quickly! I look forward to your reply. Have a great day!
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Providence Church in Marshall Tx
It took us forever to find a biblically sound church. We drive 45 minutes to get there but well worth it.
https://www.providencemarshall.com/about-us
There is also Grace Baptist in Mt. Pleasant, Tx that very much meets your criteria. Both of these are small and relatively new church plants and neither have what you’d call a “staff”. Just two Pastor/Elders. No females in a position of authority only pianist.
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Hi Marcus & Cynthia- Thank you so much for taking the time to recommend your church. I have one question about Providence that will determine whether or not I can add it to the list. Maybe you can help clear up my confusion? On the “About Us” page of the website, what does it mean that Providence is “associated” with The Gospel Coalition? Is there some formal TGC network of churches Providence is a member of or something like that?
Here’s the reason I ask. About 10-15 years ago, TGC was a trustworthy, biblical organization. I used and recommended them all the time, myself. Now they platform false teachers like Thabiti Anyabwile and Jackie Hill Perry, write articles about supposedly finding the gospel in various popular movies, and generally tend toward the woke/progressive. So, if there’s some sort of formal membership or association between Providence and TGC, I’m afraid I can’t list Providence.
I would be delighted to check out Grace Baptist if you could provide me with their website.
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Ridgecrest, CA
Cornerstone Bible Church
http://www.cbcridgecrest.org
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Hi Katie- Thanks for taking the time to recommend your church. I’ve added it to the list. If you can, I wonder if you might give your pastor a little heads up about something? On the “Our Partners” page under “About Us,” The Gospel Coalition is listed.
Your pastor probably just isn’t aware, but, while TGC was great 10-15 years ago, it is not now. They platform false teachers and women who preach to men like Thabiti Anyabwile and Jackie Hill Perry, they’re increasingly woke/progressive, they post unbiblical articles on things like finding the gospel in secular movies, etc.
And it’s such common knowledge among so many Christians (including potential visitors to your church) now that when they see a link to TGC on your church’s website, they assume your pastor knows these authors, ministries, etc. are unbiblical and that he and your church agree with their errant theology. Your church’s website -without intending to- might be giving a false impression of what your church actually believes and stands for.
Just wanted to let you know.
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Abounding Grace Church
Visalia, CA
https://www.agcvisalia.org/
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Thanks! Added to the list and to my biblical counseling page.
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Thank you Michelle,
Magnify Church
Monroe Washington
member of the G3 network
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Hi Brian- Magnify looks like a great church, and one I would probably add to the list, but I’ve run into a couple of roadblocks:
As the instructions above state, I can’t list churches whose websites don’t explicitly say who the pastor (and staff, if any) is. Unless I’m missing it, I’m not seeing that on the website.
I clicked on the Facebook and Instagram links at the bottom of the home page, but they both took me back to the home page of the website. I generally try to peruse a church’s social media pages to a) if possible, check out videos of their worship services to make sure they’re not using music from heretical sources like Bethel, Hillsong, and Elevation, and b) make sure they’re not promoting false teachers or events featuring false teachers.
So, I’m afraid I can’t list your church right now for those reasons, but if you have a moment to remedy those things, I’d be glad to finish vetting Magnify, and hopefully add it to the list.
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I appreciate your diligence and the time you take to qualify these as best you can. I am listed as the pastor on the about page and the only staff – https://magnifygod.church/about/
As far as worship, we only record the message because we are a plant and the worship is a work in progress 🙂 but we do not sing anything from Bethel or those others – only hymns and Psalms. I totally understand if you cant list us though without verifying and appreciate your stance.
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Hi Brian- Thanks so much for getting back to me so quickly. I’m so sorry I missed your name in the “About” section. (I didn’t realize I needed to click on “About,” I hovered and clicked on the dropdown pages under “About”.) Thanks also for the information about the music. It’s my pleasure to add Magnify to the list. Thanks again for submitting.
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Please consider Central Hope Church in Little Rock, AR.
https://www.centralhope.org/
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Added. Thanks!
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