Free Outside the Fence: Holding the Gate Open for the Women Left Behind

Just this afternoon, I was driving past a church I attend regularly, thinking about a dream I had recently. In the dream, I was standing outside a fence with other women. The pastors were inside, but the gate was open, and they had to come outside the fence just to talk to us. As I drove by the building today, I asked, “God, why am I always outside the fence in my dreams?” Immediately, I heard in my spirit: “You are free outside the fence!”

A short time later, I read the headlines. The Southern Baptist Convention voted decisively to tighten their ban on women pastors and preachers. At first, I felt anger. But then, looking at that religious spirit trying desperately to cage women back up, I began to giggle.

Over the years, I have watched plenty of people roll their eyes at my poems. It doesn’t bother me anymore; I have always spoken the truth through poetry, whether people were ready to hear it or not. But if we want to talk about what is truly eye-rolling, look at what happened in Orlando. A room full of men took two verses completely out of context and weaponized them to build an entire rigid, religious system. They have built a massive fortress out of fear and a couple of isolated sentences, completely ignoring the sweeping narrative of the Gospels and the heart of Jesus.

This isn’t just a theological debate for me; it is personal. About five years ago, I had someone from the SBC try to silence me. When it happened, my ex-husband only laughed. He thought it was so hilarious. That laughter was meant to make me feel small, invisible, and foolish for believing that God had put a calling on my life. It was a betrayal that cut to the bone, a localized enforcement of the very cage they are trying to lock all women into today.

But man-made systems can vote to expel us, and individuals can mock us, but they have all accidentally set us loose. You can try to build a cage out of a few twisted verses and a cruel laugh, but you cannot lock up the Holy Spirit.

For any woman sitting in those pews today feeling the heavy weight of that vote, the first hurdle is the fear. The religious system wants you to feel small and isolated, just like I felt five years ago. But the moment you realize the light isn’t something they give you—that the light is already inside you—the cage breaks. I wrote this poem about that exact awakening:

The Coward

The coward
Hiding in the shadows
Waiting, watching always hiding
Never standing
Always lurking.
The victim
Always unexpectedly grabbed
Pulled into the shadows
Too afraid to run from the coward
Fear so contagious until …
A light begins to shine into the darkness
Strength begins to grow
Just a trickle then a flow
The warrior stands
The coward hides
The warrior standing tall
The Light getting brighter
The coward goes into the shadows
Deeper
The warrior discovers the light is within
The coward screams
The warrior turns and looks behind
Other victims are following close
Following the Light into freedom
A roar can be heard softly at first
Then a mighty roar is resounding through the land
The victims run in freedom
Never looking back
Cowards hide
Gathering like jackals
Waiting, laughing and trembling in fear.

Being kicked to the curb by preachers or religious systems hurts. I know that pain personally. Not too long ago, I had a pastor and an associate pastor pull me aside and tell me I was “out of alignment.” They told me I needed to make a decision. They wanted me to bow to their system, but I made my choice: I walked away, and I listened to God instead.

What man intends for rejection and intimidation, the Father uses for refinement and redirection. They think they are punishing us or correcting us when they draw those lines, but they are actually releasing us into our true identity. We are secure in His hands, and you cannot burn what is already made of fire. I am running a different race now, and I will not quit.

Out of the Ashes

Out of the ashes we rise,
Hot embers into the skies.
We gather to set the world ablaze.
To our Father, the God of Heaven and Earth we praise.
And with a shout demons flee,
And we walk in liberty.
Within His children there is a flame,
And He knows each by name.
Our God reigns from on high,
And He guides with a watchful eye.
With a love that is pure,
In His hands we are secure.
In the Heavenlies we are called to sit,
So be encouraged in this race, “Do Not Quit.”
The finish line is within sight,
Don’t give up the fight.
The battle has already been won,
By Jesus, the only true Son.

By closing the front doors of their institutions to half of God’s children, these denominations haven’t stopped the callings on women’s lives. They have just forced those callings out into the open air where people are actually starving for truth.

I can see an explosion of women preachers, teachers, and prophets arising across the land. The veil is thinning, the old disguises are falling, and the true King is moving.

Kingdom Children Raise

Somewhere in between,
The seen and unseen.
It’s all been there from the beginning,
It’s just now the veil is thinning.
Why are you so surprised?
The enemy had everything disguised.
Prophets have shouted,
Many have doubted.
Time,
It is sublime.
God in all His splendor,
He is our great defender.
Captives in prisons long held,
Have finally been expelled.
Cries of freedom
Are now heard throughout the Kingdom.
Shouts of Praise,
Kingdom children raise.
Shout to the King,
Let your voices ring.
The King is coming,
The King is coming,
The King is coming.

As the structures of man attempt to use expulsion to silence us, God is using this very moment to pull back the curtain on their control and reveal the true power of His daughters.

The Lifting Of The Veil

The lifting of the veil
A revealing of all that was concealed
Some see beauty, others bewail
Regardless of feelings all will yield
The separation has begun
From the goats and sheep
Everyone get ready for the arrival of the Son
Some will shout for joy, others will weep
A metamorphous is taking place
The Bride is making herself ready
We are about to gaze into His face
For some the price will be too heavy
Prepare the way
For the coming of the King
There is no more delay
The trumpets are sounding
And the veil is lifting

I spent my whole life being silenced, and I just cannot stand by and watch other women be silenced. I know exactly what the inside of that cage feels like, and I know the grueling courage it takes to look at the gatekeepers, choose direct alignment with God, and walk away.

So to every woman looking at the lines in the dirt today, wondering if she belongs inside that rigid system anymore: the door was unlocked two thousand years ago on Resurrection morning when Jesus told the women to go and tell.

I am not one to get back in the cage. There is more freedom on the outside of the fence—and I am standing right here, holding the gate open.

The Anthem Awakens

Step out from the shadows of the past,
The heavy quiet is shattered at last.
The breath you held for miles and years
Now dries the dirt and burns the tears.
No longer hidden, no longer bound,
Your footsteps shake the hollow ground.
A royal lineage, a fierce decree—
You were never made for captivity.
Lift up your heads, let the chorus ring,
For the power you hold is a breathless thing.
The cage is open, the night is done,
Step into the light of a blazing sun.
Arise, oh daughters, take your place,
With fire in your eyes and power in your grace.
Rise up, oh daughters of the King
Let your voices sing.
So speak with the thunder, sing with the wind,
The era of hiding has come to an end.
No weapon can hold what the Maker has blessed,
No shadow can conquer the light in your chest.
The universe waits for the sound of your roar,
As you step through the threshold and shatter the door.
Reclaim your dominion, inherit the skies—
Daughters of royalty,
Open your eyes.
For too long they asked for your silence and smile,
To walk in the background, to wait for a while.
But the silence has broken, the rivers run free,
And you are the wave that will conquer the sea.
So march to the rhythm of a heavenly drum,
Look at the horizon and see what has come.
The kingdom is yours, it has been all along,
Woven directly into the truth of your song.
Unstoppable, fierce, and divinely designed,
Leaving the dust of the valley behind.
The lineage lives, the promise is true—
Daughters of the King,
The world waits for you.

Copyright ©️ Deborah Seale Schnadelbach 2026

Free Outside the Fence: Holding the Gate Open for the Women Left Behind

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