If you have ever seen the movie, or the broadway musical version of the story of “Annie” you have probably shed a tear or two. Annie is a touching story of an orphan who is adopted by a super rich man out of a horrible orphanage. The movie and musical are based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie. The story takes us through the trials of this little girl and how she captures the rich tycoons heart after being brought in as an act of kindness by him at Christmas. The orphanage supervisor, Miss Hannigan, tries every way she can to thwart any progress in Annie’s life and involves other unsavory characters in her schemes. It is Miss Hannigan’s desire to get all the money she can from her unscrupulous way of life and Annie is her main target. At the end it becomes increasingly evident that Annie is destined for a new life and all of Miss Hannigan’s deceptive schemes fall apart as she and her cohorts are arrested. Annie proves that orphans can have a life too, and that the “Sun will come out tomorrow” and hope is not something just dreamed about. It’s a great story and sounds very familiar.
We as Christians have that same orphan complex before we know Christ. Satan tries to do everything he can to keep us from finding The Ultimate Daddy Warbucks, Jesus Christ. We are in a desperate position in life without Christ and hope is just that, something to be hoped for, but many don’t know where their true hope lies. Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” That means all of us are born as sinners, or orphans without much hope for eternal life in heaven, until God visited us through His Son, Jesus Christ and gave us the hope we were looking for in the first place. Jesus paid our ransom (orphanage costs) and took us out of the horrible condition we were in and made us co-heirs of the kingdom of God. Like Miss Hannigan and all her cohorts, satan tries to keep us from hearing the truth, or even realizing there is a better way to live. He does everything he can to put roadblocks in our path and keep us attached to the orphanage of hell. Like Annie, when we hear that there is more to life than the orphanage, or constantly being deserted by the world’s promises, we know we must do everything we can to get this hope. The great thing about God is He has done everything to insure our adoption is final and complete. Jesus Christ paid the ultimate debt for our souls to ensure that we could be part of God’s Forever Family. Just think, a real family!! Here’s a real true word from the orphanage complex. We all are looking for God and His hope. We may not recognize it though until someone who is a member of the family tells us about the possibility of adoption. This is where the true story of Annie and Us starts to make sense. The hope offered by God is in all who call Him Savior, but we sometimes want the big mansion to ourselves, so we don’t tell other orphans of His hope. This has got to change. The same heart that saved us, also calls each of us to tell other orphans that “The Sun will come up tomorrow” in a better place. The only difference for us is that the resurrection of Jesus Christ made it where the statement says, “The Son Will Back Tomorrow.” In John 14:15-21 Jesus says, “If you love Me, You will keep my commandments.” “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of Truth whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him, or know Him, but you know Him, because He abides with you and will be in you.” Here’s the great word we can rely on, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.(verse 18)” When Jesus went to be with the Father in that heavenly home, He promised He would return and take us there and He will. “Bet your bottom dollar!!”
We can bank on our Daddy Warbucks, known as Abba Father because His promises are true and He is in the business of adopting orphans wherever they will receive Him. He is our hope and our Ultimate Daddy Warbucks.
A man approached a little league baseball game one afternoon. He asked a boy in the dugout what the score was. The boy responded, “Eighteen to nothing–we’re behind.”
“Boy,” said the spectator, “I’ll bet you’re discouraged.”
“Why should I be discouraged?” replied the little boy. “We haven’t even gotten up to bat yet!”
Don’t despair in the world we live in. When we receive Christ He reclaims all the orphans who come to Him, and gives them a bat, and says, “Swing Away.” May our lives always be lived giving thanks to the one who adopted us, and may life be one home run after the other.
The Pilgrimage continues..
David Warren