There is sadness In a shackle and bitterness In bonds. Many men part with life rather than liberty. Speaking humanly, Paul’s lot In chains would have been intolerably irksome; but his soul was free! They could not chain his spirit. It is melancholy to watch the attitude of a caged eagle; its eye is dull, its plumage droops. The chain is round the spirit of the creature of the skies. Not so with the Christian soul. “It is not the shackle on the wrist that constitutes the slave,” said Robertson of Brighton, “but the loss of self-respect.” In Christian service we learn to reverence self. Our only bonds are the bonds of love. Our manhood is exalted, our service is liberty. (Christian Commonwealth.)
