Pleasure
In the C.S. Lewis classic Screwtape Letters, Wormwood tells his protege that God is a hedonist, and he advises the demon-in-training to beware.
Wormwood bemoans the fact that throughout history Satan has not been able to do anything other than attempt to twist pleasure, which is by nature, good.
In our current era, Pleasure seems to have become a dirty word among people who identify with God.
With that in mind, the Covenant Eyes blog Breaking Free has a great post talking about Pleasure. The post features the thoughts of author Gary Thomas, whose book Sacred Marriage was one that i read shortly after my issues hit the fan in my marriage.
And Thomas makes some salient points regarding the positives of Pleasure. Really, what he’s talking about is Pleasure in a redeemed and healthy context. This is one of the points i raise in my yet-to-be-published book, Dangerous, Passionate, Alive, Free.
Passion is not the problem. Passion iself was not what got me into trouble with pornography. It was Passion twisted, ala Wormwood in Screwtape Letters.
The Pleasures of sex, and the Passion which drives the pursuit of those Pleasures, are holy. They are from God and find their best expression in a covenantal marriage relationship between a husband and wife.
God is Himself, Passionate. And to think that He does not take Pleasure in things is false. We read that when He had created the heavens, the earth, the animals, the sun, the ocean, and so on, He stepped back and called it “good.” In that moment He was taking Pleasure in His creation. The story of God’s relationship with humans reveals that He has created many things Pleasurable, and we can celebrate them.
God is a hedonist. Redeemed and Holy, yes. But a hedonist.
Intentional Warriors 
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