Today, at church, I was scared. I had absolutely no reason to be. However, there I was in the same section I've sat in for eight years, and I was scared. It seems silly, and I don't know how everyone else felt, but I was sure something bad was going to happen.

Let me tell you why. It was a fire alarm. Yes, I said a fire alarm. It was something as simple as what elementary school students hear on a monthly basis as they practice for an emergency. This wasn't practice, though. In the midst of the pastor preaching on chaos, the alarm sounded, and it seemed as if not even he knew what was going on. Suddenly, all of the other pastors stood up with the police officers and security and exited the room while the rest of us were told to remain sitting. This is when I got scared.

I have an active imagination, I'll admit. Images and news reports of church shootings ran through my head. I recalled stories of people shooting pastors at the end of their message and began to fear that soon my church would become one of those stories. All of this, because of a fire alarm. I feared that maybe the fire alarm was pulled to get all of us out, and that their was a shooter ready. I feared that someone was going to rush in while all of the police and security were out of the room and hold us hostage or kill us. Just because of a fire alarm. I used to think we were immune to these things because we were in a small town. What does that even mean anymore. Even so, it's a big church in a small town. My anxiety was high, and truthfully I could not wait for the message to be over so I could return to my car and get out of there.

Was this all my imagination acting up? Most definitely. However, in another church somewhere else on any given Sunday, it could become true. As I sat there with all of these scenarios running through my head, I thought, That's what is wrong with our country today. I was raised with the knowledge that we are free people. People can be whatever religion they would like. They can worship who they want and spend their days free to be. Now it seems that anybody who doesn't agree will just open fire. Whether it be at a gay club in Orlando or at a Baptist church in small town, USA.

What saddened me even more is that this could happen on any given Sunday in any given church in America and for just this small time, as my imagination ran wild, I caught a mere fraction of a glimpse at the fear that millions of Christians in other countries feel every time they gather to worship. For a split second, I was scared to be in church. This was a first for me, and all I wanted was to get out. However, believers in other countries gather with the full knowledge that they could be executed on the spot if found. They gather with strength and love for the Lord. I wanted to get out at the first sign of danger. I sat there in my comfy seat with my nice dress on and my makeup done scared. What they wouldn't give to have the kind of security I should have felt.

I should have felt safer than ever. I should have known that there were people in that building who would do all they could to make us safe. Above all, I should have known that the Lord was looking out for us. I should have recalled that He has a plan for each of our lives, and that plan could have been to keep us safe or it could have been to use us as a testament. No matter what the plan is, He has one. So, today I felt scared in church. I had no reason to be because the Lord, my God, was there with me and every single person in that room. I pray for those who feel extreme fear as they gather to worship in secret. I pray for them and pray that one day, I can have that same kind of courage because I had no reason to be scared in church today.