Stop Sign

Stop; Webster says it means “to cease to move on : halt  “ If you drive a car you know what a stop sign means. It means come to a complete stop or cease to move; it doesn’t mean almost stop or slow down it means to cease to move. I received a ticket one afternoon long ago because I almost came to a stop and went on through. You know there are stop signs all through our life; God puts them there for you and I to come to a complete stop. I’m afraid too many times we pay little or no attention to them at all. The apostle Peter ran through more than one stop sign. Jesus told Peter that the enemy’s desire was to have him and he wanted to sift him like wheat.                                            Luke 22:31  And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: Peter runs right through that stop sign and tells the Lord he would be willing to go to prison and to death if needs be.                                                                       Luke 22: 33  And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death Those are big words; would Peter have the opportunity maybe to fulfill those words? Sure but know what he did? Ran!  Luke 22:54  Then took they him, (Jesus) and led him, and brought him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off. Followed where; “afar off.” What happened to going to prison and dying? Now before we get too down on Peter you and I have ran through those stop signs too. Someone invites you to Church with them but you run right through that stop sign with not a second thought. Someone ask you to come to a drug addictions program and you run right on through that stop sign too. We keep falling into the same traps again and again thinking that we ourselves can overcome our problems only to discover we can’t. It matters not who we are, we all have weaknesses that hinder us. There are four things that we can watch out for that will help us to be over comers. It was given in the meaning of our word stop; halt. Write this down and it will help you when you feel like you are going to fall. We need to Halt when we are Hungry. Remember Esau? Genesis 25:29  And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: Genesis 25:30  And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. Genesis 25:31  And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. Genesis 25:32  And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? We need to Halt when we are Angry. Remember Moses Exodus 32:19  And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount. We need to Halt when we are Lonely. Remember Samson? Laying in the lap of Delilah as she begged him to tell her his secret of where he got his great strength. We need to Halt when we are Tried. Remember King David?  2Samuel 11:2  And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon. Flying through stop signs when we are hungry, angry, lonely and tired can be very heart breaking and disappointing. Know where you are weak and watch out when you feel a halt coming on.