My journey to Veganism began when I joined the Seventh Day Adventist Church, at the age of fourteen. The Church recommends that its members become plant-based because the Bible teaches us that this was the original diet that God designed us to eat [Genesis 1:29]. In fact, this mandate was one of the elements that attracted me to the Church. It made sense to me that if God designed us, He would be concerned about what we ate, and that what we ate and eat would have an impact on the quality of our interaction with Him.
To that point in my life, I had been a big meat-eater. While the SDA church “recommends” that members become plant-based, it does not “require” it. It does however, require we stop eating animals the Bible considers “unclean”. When I joined the church, I complied with these requirements which meant I changed my diet substantially and I no longer ate pork, shellfish, and the other “unclean meats.” Although I was trying to be more health-conscious, I didn’t become plant-based because I simply didn’t think I could live without eating hamburgers, chicken and steaks.
About a year and a half after I had joined the Church, I found myself struggling with some personal issues and I was talking to God about it one night, when He said to me, very clearly: “If you want a closer relationship with Me, you need to have a clearer mind. For that, you need a better diet. You have to stop eating meat.” I remember the frisson of panic I felt at that moment when I realized what He was asking me to do — never eat meat again! I didn’t think I could do it. But God had just told me my diet was hurting and interfering with my relationship with Him! So I replied, “If You want me to stop, You’ve got to take away the desire to eat it.” And He did. And I stopped!