We’re only a few weeks away from when the annual blast of Christmas movies launches on TV, and one movie that usually shows up each year is the classic comedy film A Christmas Story. It’s the tale of young Ralphie Parker, age 10, growing up in a little Indiana town in 1940.

            Long before Internet and TV were in homes, Ralphie’s great passion is the Little Orphan Annie radio show. A favorite scene in the movie is when Ralphie receives his Little Orphan Annie decoder disk in the mail. He’d sent away for it weeks before. When the gadget finally arrives, he can’t wait to break it out and use it.

            At the end of each radio show, the narrator broadcasts a series of letter and number combinations for kids to write down and decode, using the decoder disk. Ralphie grabs a scrap of paper and a pencil stub, dutifully writing down the latest coded message. Then he runs upstairs and locks himself in the bathroom — the only private room in the house — to watch the decoder disk work its magic.

            As each letter of Annie’s secret message is slowly unveiled, Ralphie’s excitement grows. What will she ask him to do for her? Help her catch a Nazi spy?

            Finally, Annie’s urgent missive for her faithful fans is revealed: “Drink more Ovaltine.”

            Even the star-struck Ralphie isn’t taken in by that ploy. Ovaltine is the sponsor of the show. He feels like he’s been had.

            Ralphie was a mighty good fan — surely a better one than the Little Orphan Annie’s producers deserved.

The parable

            What about Jesus? Does he have fans? Does he even want them?

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