Courageous Change

2 Chronicles 15:8, "And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities which he had taken from mount Ephraim, and renewed the altar of the LORD, that was before the porch of the LORD."

Wouldn't it be great if we had a sudden burst of righteous courage - the boldness to what God says is right - in our families, churches, and political leaders?
Asa, unlike his wicked father, "did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God" (II Chronicles 14:2); but he needed the courage to do more. And that courage came when the preacher came with a special message from the Lord.
Courage comes from hearing from God! You cannot expect to boldly do right God's way without the power of God that comes from fellowshipping with Him. When Asa heard from God, "he took courage."
What he had to do was not easy. It created enemies. It even required him to dethrone his grandmother from being queen (15:16) because of her idolatry!
The result of his courage and the actions that followed was all of Judah dedicating themselves with the right heart to seek the Lord, "and he was found of them" (15:15). The cycle of war was broken, and there was peace for many years (15:19), as long as Judah depended upon the Lord.
Need courage? Open God's Word daily, and spend time with the Lord in prayer. Be in your place at church, so that you can hear the preaching. Then you, too, may develop the courage to make radical, Christ-honoring change in the world around you.