At church this morning, we sang the hymn "Calling You", which was written by Hank Williams. Click here to read the lyrics, and here to listen to the song.
The
first verse especially stood out to me: "When you've strayed from the
fold and there's trouble in your soul, can't you hear the blessed
Saviour calling you? When your soul is lost in sin and you're at your
journey's end, can't you hear the blessed Saviour calling you?"
This
verse reminded me of a question that I have asked myself more than
once: If found myself in a situation in which I'd want to get my life on
track, would I go to evangelical Christianity for solutions? I'd be
very hesitant to do so, to tell you the truth, on account of the baggage
that has accompanied evangelical Christianity in my own experience. I
do think it's beautiful, though, when people reconnect with their
religion. I know a couple of people who have decided to return to
church after years of not going, and that's cool, in my opinion. But
enough things have convinced me that, in terms of me personally,
evangelical Christianity is not an end-all-be-all solution. Maybe
others can make it work for them, so that it can give them joy and
meaning and help them to live a moral, giving life. But trying to fit
into the evangelical mold has never been fruitful for me. On the
contrary, it's been rather toxic.
I still like going to church, though, because the people are
nice, the services are relaxing, and it provides me with an opportunity
to reflect on big issues.