Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about, "The Ticket Will Be There."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Hebrews 4:16, honestly, one of my very favorite promises in all of God's Word. It's really an invitation, "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Grace, grace to help us...what's grace? Well, let me give you a kind of operational definition that has applied so many times in my life. I think grace is God's intervening love when you're on "empty." I mean even when we discovered God's grace when we didn't know Christ. We were on "empty," we had nothing to contribute to our relationship with God and God intervened with His love. It's God's intervening love when you're on empty. God says, "I'll give you that grace," and He says, "you can come boldly, approach the throne of grace with confidence." That word "confidence" literally means outspokenness in the presence of authority. "And grace to help" to hold us together is what the Word means. In this unique moment, in this time of need.
I have a friend whose life has changed dramatically since his wife began her battle against cancer. He said to me, "Ron, when I think about what's ahead, it's tough," and it is, but you see God gives His grace in 24-hour installments for this day.
The promise of scripture is, your strength will equal your day. Not your week, not your month, not your year, but your day. If you try to deal with next months load before you get next months grace, you sink. Maybe you've been doing that? You deal with today's load which will be perfectly matched by His grace. Grace to help us for this time of need.
Corrie Ten Boom - that wonderful saint who was so involved in helping to rescue Jews during World War II - she would go through tremendous suffering so would her family and when she was little she had a hard time going to sleep and her Daddy said, "What's the problem?" And she said, "Daddy, I wonder what happens if I ever had to suffer for Jesus." Well, as it turned out she did have to. He said, "Honey don't worry about it. You know it's like when the train is going to take us from Harlem to Amsterdam, when do I give you your ticket? Not a week in advance." She said, "No Daddy, you give it to me right when the train comes." He said, "That's right honey, your ticket is always there right when the train comes." Well, that's what God will do for you with His grace. Your ticket will always be there.
Because of the love of your Savior you will never have an assignment where the load will outweigh His grace. No matter how heavy that load is. But you probably won't get it early, you will have it, when you need it. As much as you need, the ticket will be there.