Late on New Year’s Eve, at a moment when revelers were unwinding and music filled the air around Club 3208 in Huntsville, Alabama, an encounter outside the venue almost escalated into tragedy. Yet, because of swift action and training, what could have been a deadly rampage was stopped in its tracks.

This is the account of how courage and preparedness saved lives.

On a seemingly ordinary Sunday morning at CrossPointe Community Church, more than 150 people gathered for worship. What happened next would shake not only that congregation but serve as a tragic reminder of how perilously close many places of sanctuary are to becoming battlegrounds — and how decisive, often unseen, acts of bravery can avert catastrophe.