Freedom and Imprisonment

Paul often wrote about being a slave. He suggested that we are bound to be slaves in anything we do, whether it is slavery in sin or slavery to righteousness. The cartoon transformers illustrated that point to me today as I was leaving starbucks.

After finishing my iced coffee, I was walking to my car to return to work, a young guy in his mid 20's zipped into a parking space near mine in his red Mini Cooper. He got out of his car, wearing fashionable clothes, his sleeves rolled jauntily up to his elbows. On his car were artistically placed transformers logos intended to make some throwback fashion statement.

As I got into my car and headed out of the parking lot, I saw another young chap. He was probably early 20's, long hair, poorly placed truckers hat, and clothed in an oversized jacket sporting some childish cartoon or another. He sported a backpack with a similar cartoon character and genuinely appeared to be presenting these characters as if they were his favorite heroes.

Isnt it odd that, while one person is imprisoned in his stunted development, banished to continually support his favorite cartoon heroes, another person has risen so far above and beyond all of the childish cartoons that he can boldly and fashionably return to boast those same heroes? For one it seems to be a developmental delay, for another a statement of edgy self-expression.

Okay, maybe it isnt that dramatic. But it was interesting to observe nevertheless.

In what ways are we imprisoned to our own childish perspectives? To whom are we slaves that continually and faithfully do the bidding of our hidden masters? What would it be to break away from that and personally and consciously choose to follow a different course of action?