Reading the history of the Jews in the Old Testament can be very frustrating because there are so many instances of repeated rebellion followed by the predictable outcome of God’s judgment. At some points, they experienced a genuine spiritual revival. One such revival took place under the leadership of king Asa in the southern kingdom of Judah. The story is recorded for us in 2 Chronicles 15. The condition of the nation prior to this revival was horrible. The country was “without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law” and in trouble. God sent a prophet to warn and encourage the nation and the king. If they would repent and turn to God, He would deliver them from their hardship. To do that would require a tremendous amount of courage on the part of king Asa. He would have to take steps that might upset some people, even to the point of violent retribution. Had Asa been a coward, he would have allowed the people to keep doing what they were doing. Instead, “he took courage, and put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin.” He led the people to renew the altar to the Lord. They then restarted the practice of public assembly for instruction in the word of God, and there was a real affirmation of their commitment to follow the Lord. Make no mistake: it takes courage to admit that you are wrong, that your friends are wrong, or that your family is wrong. It takes even more courage to do something about it and make it right. But if revival is to take place in your life, you must be brave enough to deal with sin.