The only reason I share my religious beliefs on the internet is because I am communicating what I believe to be the truth. My conclusions may or may not be 100 percent logical to another person, but they fit with who I am as a human being at this stage of life. I am an artist. In the words of one of my childhood heros, Bruce Lee: Art is about Honestly Expressing Oneself.
I remember promising myself two things when I was around 16 years old. I was sitting in the Men’s Dorm at Blue Mountain Academy in a common area reading a copy of Ellen Whites’ Desire of Ages. I started wondering how much of my Adventism was mine versus having heard it taught by someone else. It was a great question. It was then I resolved that I would never worry about my future salvation (as I refused to serve God out of Fear instead of Love), and I also resolved I would never believe anything to be true unless I had researched it for myself.
As a result, I began a lifelong pursuit of knowledge. I listened to all of the various sides of an argument and then after much prayer, meditaiton, and consideration, I decided which position I believed was the most logical. I also felt the strong presence of the Holy Spirit who helped me fit all of the peices of the doctrinal puzzle into a spiritual worldview.
I am fully conscious I will stand before God on my own two feet to answer for every word I have spoken, written, taught, and argued. God will be my judge and I have to answer to Him alone.
I had an english teacher who inspired me to “write about the world from my persective” which would ensure I would be completely orginal in my thoughts and feelings. What the world gets when I publish a poem, a short article, or essay–is my own unique perspective about the world.
It is like allowing the world to eavesdrop in a private conversation between me and the creator of the Universe. I sit at the feet of Jesus, I hear his voice teaching me, and I share what I have learned with the world. To be sure, there is no mysticism here–no audible voices, no imaginary spirit guide. But somehow I am in tune with the “still small voice” that acts as an inner compasss pointing me to the source of all wisdom and truth.
Stephen Beagles (2025)