When growing up in Kentucky, I attended a revival service at a Southern Baptist Church with friends. As the service was beginning, a woman who was unfamiliar with the church arrived dressed in dark pants. Almost before the double doors could close behind her, the minister stepped down from the podium and met her at the back of the church. The minister asked her to leave the service because she was not properly dressed. With the entire congregation looking at her, she turned and left.
The image of that woman at the back of the church has stayed with me throughout life. I often wonder what happened to her, and how that experience affected her spirituality. I also wonder why not one person in that church, including me, stood up for her and argued on her behalf.
Who in your life needs you to stand up for them today?