Are there times in the Christian life when, for whatever reason, God chooses to withhold

His presence from us and thus nullifies all hope that we would experience God-were defections?

The Puritans seem to operate from this assumption.

Pastor John, if this is true, if God withdraws from the Christian at times, thus making joy

in God impossible, doesn't then Christian hedonism, the call to be happy in God, doesn't

just plead, just heap guilt on such a person?

I do believe that God lifts His hand or another image would be, covers us with darkness at

times.

I don't think Christian hedonism adds guilt.

I think Christian hedonism names guilt.

In other words, it is proper to feel bad that we're not rejoicing in the Lord.

That's part of what darkness is.

We feel we can't rejoice and we feel bad we can't rejoice.

Christian hedonism is not going to withdraw the biblical statements, rejoice always.

It's not going to rejoice, it's not going to withdraw on the biblical mandate to be

sorrowful yet always rejoicing as though, okay, we'll just change the Bible so you don't

feel bad in this moment.

Instead, what Christian hedonism does is say, I know what you're talking about.

This view of joy is not a naive view of joy, it's not a view that assumes we don't

have seasons of horrible darkness.

My favorite passage of scripture in this regard of darkness and seasons of desertion is

Micah, 7, 8, 9, and I preached a sermon one time how many years ago it was in which

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