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Welcome to Day 2314 of Wisdom-Trek. Thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to\xa0Wisdom Philippians-1\xa0 Insights into Philippians \u2013 Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message \u2013 11/05/2023 - (10/29 was missions Sunday) Joy in Living - Insights into Philippians \xa0 Last week was our Outreach/Mission focus with Jeff & Candy Waite of the Gospel Mission Food Pantry. Partnering with others worldwide to build God\u2019s kingdom is a blessing. This week, we begin a new series in the letter to the Church in Philippi, where our focus for this month will be Joy in Living for this Thanksgiving season. Today, we will explore some insights into this letter, and next week, we will begin walking through Philippians. \xa0 As an introduction today, let\u2019s read Philippians 1:1-2, on page 1825 in your Pew Bibles. 1\xa0Paul and Timothy,\xa0servants of Christ Jesus, To all God\u2019s holy people\xa0in Christ Jesus at Philippi,\xa0together with the overseers\xa0and deacons[a]: 2\xa0Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. As we sang the song \u2018I\u2019ve Got The Joy\u2019 along with our children\u2019s message today, it makes you wonder why some church gatherings seem to have lost their joy. There certainly are exceptions where there are joyful believers and rejoicing congregations. I\u2019m thankful I\u2019ve have the privilege to serve in such a congregation here at Putnam. But sadly, truly joyful Christians are a rare species in some congregations. To be clear, when I say \u201cjoyful Christians,\u201d I\u2019m not talking about silly or foolish Christians. I\u2019m not talking about Christians who think everything\u2019s a joke. And I\u2019m certainly not talking about sarcastic, cynical, or sneering Christians. I\u2019m searching for genuinely joyful Christians\u2014the kind of joy that looks more like contentment and peace than excitement or happiness. This type of joy is what the letter to the Philippians is about. It is the joy mentioned during our children\u2019s video this morning in Psalm 16:11. You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. \xa0 Let's ask ourselves a few questions if we think it does not apply to us. Are we together, and each of us individually, part of the joyful remnants? Or have we forgotten how good it is to smile? Have our burdens caused our shoulders to sag and our backs to slouch? When was the last time we really let the joy of the Lord change our countenance? \xa0If we\u2019re like most people, we could probably use a healthy dose of real joy. Thankfully, that\u2019s the theme of the book of Philippians. Paul\u2019s letter is saturated with joy from the first word to the last. Talk about a message desperately needed today! In our world of downers and disappointments, setbacks and failures, tragedies and disasters, how easy it is to let despair take over. \xa0 I can\u2019t think of anything that reveals the person and work of Jesus Christ in the lives of believers more than the manifestation of joy. The Christian\u2019s most obvious advertisement is that they have something that can make a real difference in a world scraping for just an ounce of