Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis Goes Free. What's Next?

GRAYSON, Ky. – Six days after a judge threw Kim Davis in jail for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, the Kentucky county clerk woke up a free woman Wednesday morning.

Davis said she couldn't betray her Christian faith since those licenses would be granted under her authority.

On Tuesday, the same judge who put her behind bars also let her go, saying that since her deputy clerks began issuing licenses to gay couples, there would be no reason to keep her in jail.

If, however, she tries to interfere when she returns to work, there could be more legal trouble.

But for now, Davis said she just wants "to give God the glory."

"His people have rallied and you are a strong people," Davis told her supporters after her release Tuesday. "We serve a living God who knows where each and every one of us is at. Just keep on pressing. Don't let down because He is here."

That was music to the ears of hundreds who came from all over the country to support Davis's stand for religious liberty and the biblical definition of marriage.

"I did not want my children to miss this moment in history as this courageous woman of God is being persecuted for her faith," Ohio resident Elizabeth Johnston said.

"We need to stand up. We need to stand up as believers and stand together. Our country was founded on Christian principles," said Bonnie Gilles, who drove 11 hours from Oklahoma.

GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee helped organize the rally and met with Davis after her release. So did Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz.

But politics took a back seat, with Huckabee telling CBN News this was a day to believe in a God of miracles.

"I think it is a God of miracles that we saw act in getting Kim Davis out of jail," the former Arkansas governor told CBN News.

"But her being in jail brought attention to something that many of us have warned about: the criminalization of Christianity," he said.

This fight has been brewing since the Supreme Court ruled in favor of gay marriage two months ago.

Chief Justice John Roberts warned events like this would happen and that finding a right to marriage equality in the Constitution would raise future problems when people of faith exercise religion in ways that may be seen to conflict with the Supreme Court decision.

Christians in Grayson believe the time is now to take a stand.

"We have to be ready," one resident said. "The apostle Paul says we have to be steadfast and immovable, always be ready to stand up and stand out for Jesus Christ."

As for Davis's future, her lawyers want an accommodation so her name or authority doesn't have to be part of the marriage license.

They believe the Kentucky governor can solve the problem with an executive order that allows the authority of the license to come from the commonwealth.

Whatever happens, Davis's lawyers say that despite her release, their client won't back down.

"She will not violate her conscience," Liberty Counsel's Mat Staver said. "She will return to work at the Rowan County Clerk's office later this week and she will not abandon her post at that position as she's been democratically elected to serve."

This small town of Grayson now takes a prominent place on the religious liberty map. And that map could soon be littered with other fights across the country.