Lessons from a Little Drummer Boy

I am in love with Christmas music.  I turn it on immediately after Thanksgiving and rarely listen to anything else for those weeks leading up to Christmas.  I love the way that it sounds and the way that it puts me in the mood for the Christmas season.  Most of the traditional Christmas carols I know by heart and can confidently sing them loudly without fear of screwing up.  But have you ever really listened to the words?  Or are you like me and just sing the songs because you always have and you know the tune better than the actual words?  Well, this morning, I got a lesson from a little drummer boy.

Lately I have been feeling stagnant in my quest to be a Godly, impactful woman.  I feel like I am living in a sea of complacency, surrounded by things that are comfortable and known.  I’ll be honest – I like the known and I like being comfortable.  But that’s not what God calls me to be.  And this is something that has been very heavy on my heart lately.  I have felt inadequate in my efforts to imitate Christ – to love people, forgive people, serve people, and go outside of my comfort zone.  I feel like I’ve been selfish and only talking to God about me, me, me and my own personal journey.  I have been forgetting my call to get out in the world and be with other people; to show them the love of Christ. 

I have had some big things happen in my life lately, and it has been very easy to get consumed in them.  And they’re wonderful, and happy, and reasons to celebrate.  But that doesn’t excuse me from living my life for God, does it?  It doesn’t excuse me from seeking Him, offering my life up to Him to serve others, or losing my idea of life just to find true life through Him.  It doesn’t mean that I drop off the spiritual radar and get lost in the sea of complacency.  I hate complacency.  I hate it in any facet of my life.  I never want to settle in for a life that is unchanging and routine.  I want to get out of the sea of complacency and into uncharted waters. 

In my quiet time this morning, I asked God to show me how to quit standing still and get moving for Him.  And by get moving, I don’t mean writing a check to my church.  I mean giving a piece of me up for His use.  Or all of me, actually.  I’m not very good at that.  And I trust that He will answer that prayer, because He is so faithful.  I also asked Him to encourage me; to let me know that I am not completely screwing up this thing called life.  Because I only live this life on earth once and I want it to stand for something; something that honors, glorifies, and reflects the image of Christ.

So after my quiet time, I was listening to Christmas music and piddling around the house.  And something made me listen – really listen – to the words of the Little Drummer Boy.  I don’t think that I’ve ever really heard them before.  Sure I’ve sung them many times, but I’ve never truly listened to them and paid attention to what they meant.  And I’m sure on another day the lyrics would mean something totally different, but today, a day that I spent time with Jesus and prayed that He would help me find my way out of the sea of complacency and put me where He wanted me instead of where I wanted me – well, I got a lesson from a little drummer boy.  (lyrics may not be perfect, but you get the point…)

Come, they told me
Pa rum pum pum pum
Our newborn King to see
Pa rum pum pum pum
Our finest gifts we bring
Pa rum pum pum pum
To lay before the King
Pa rum pum pum pum

Little Baby
Pa rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too
Pa rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring
Pa rum pum pum pum
That’s fit to give a King
Pa rum pum pum pum

Shall I play for You?
Pa rum pum pum pum
On my drum, on my drum
I played my drum for Him
Pa rum pum pum pum

Mary looked at me and nodded
Pa rum pum pum pum
The ox and lamb kept time
Pa rum pum pum pum
I played my drum for Him
Pa rum pum pum pum
Then He smiled at me
Pa rum pum pum pum

After really hearing those lyrics, I was encouraged.  I was reminded that my offerings to the Lord don’t have to be the most significant or material.  The little drummer boy had nothing to give the King.  All he was able to do was play his drum, but he gave the best that he had, and our King smiled.  With his drum, he honored our Lord. 

I was reminded that I have to give my best to Jesus, whatever that may look like.  It may not be a lot, but it needs to be my best and come from the heart.  Not an attempt to impress others or feel satisfaction, but an attempt to throw away my life and gain the one that He has prepared for me.  And He also showed me that there are times when He is working in me, and I don’t need to feel guilty about that.  He has prepared for us different seasons in life, and some of those seasons are meant for me to focus on my personal journey with Him, and that’s okay.  As long as I seek Him and trust Him, the season will eventually change and He will throw me out into the world, armed with the good news of the Gospel and the courage to live the life that He has called me to live. 

My pastor has been talking a lot about courage lately.  I loved an example that he gave recently about courage that said:  “A ship in a harbor is safe.  But that’s not what ships were made for.”  I do believe that sometimes God has us in the harbor for repairs and maintenance.  But we can’t stay there forever.  We must go out into this world; into the uncharted waters.  We must remember the lessons of a little drummer boy.  As long as we are giving our best to the King, He will smile at us.  Today, on the eve of our Savior’s birth, I encourage you to listen to the lyrics instead of the song.  And maybe you’ll get your own lesson.

Worth the Wait

First of all, apologies for the long break that I have taken from blogging. I had no intentions to do so, it just happened. Perhaps I was not moved, perhaps I was distracted by other things, or perhaps I was just not feeling particularly creative. But going along with the title of this blog post, maybe it was worth the wait!

Since March (and my last blog post), I have returned from my second trip to Ethiopia, continued to travel across the country and the world for work, fallen ridiculously in love, started my Invisalign treatment, developed an intense liking of brussel sprouts, beets, and anything with truffle oil, and gained and lost 5 lbs, several times :-) Eating, traveling, and loving – that pretty much sums up my year! I really can’t complain. I am blessed!

I don’t know if it’s the Christmas season, or just my particular state of mind at the moment, but I have been realizing lately how much I have benefitted from waiting. Not only on big things, but small things too. I think that God has used this past year to really show me the art of trusting, being patient, and appreciating things that take a long time. For example, a slow-cooked meal in the crockpot? Worth the wait. Not only do you get the benefit of a deliciously smelling house, but whatever you put in there is almost guaranteed to be tender and delicious. All of the ingredients have had hours to become friends and that is worth the wait.

Or what about opening gifts on Christmas morning? My family has always opened gifts on Christmas morning with the exception of one on Christmas Eve night. I remember being a little girl and begging my parents to let me open *just one gift* on Christmas Eve night. The suspense was just too much for me to handle and I so badly needed to get my greedy little hands on something and tear open the wrapping paper. They indulged me, but as I’ve gotten older, I have learned to appreciate the fact that I was only allowed to open one. Christmas morning just wouldn’t have been the same without the anticipation of discovering what was laying beneath the tree. Worth the wait.

I spend a lot of time in airports and on airplanes. Because of this, I have learned that there is a flight schedule for a reason. There are only so many gates, so many ramp personnel, so many crew members, and so much airspace. I have waited a lot. Waited in a security line, on a tarmac, in a club lounge, at a boarding gate, and for a mechanical issue to be resolved. And through all of this, I always try to remember that my safety is the first priority for the airport and the airlines. Not my comfort, my safety. That extra-long wait on the tarmac while I’m safely buckled into my seat? Maybe the winds are too high or there is another plane that is unexpectedly on the runway. The waiting at the boarding gate when a flight is delayed due to a mechanical issue? I would much rather not get on a defective plane. Please, take your time to resolve whatever mechanical issue there is and then let’s go. Or what about that extra-long security line that threatens to make me late for my flight? To me it’s worth the wait if it means that I can board an airplane with the confidence that I will be as safe as another human being can make me. So as frustrating as waiting in an airport or on an airplane can be, knowing that my safety is at stake here, it’s definitely worth the wait.

What about a relationship? So many times in my life I have questioned my position in life. Or rather, I have questioned where I am compared with where I thought I would be and where the world tells me I should be. It’s easy to do, isn’t it? And it’s also very easy to compare myself to other people who are of a similar age, education, and background. Thankfully, I am not governed by the world; I am governed by my Savior. And my status and worth do not come from comparing myself to others; they come from Jesus.

In June, I met the love of my life. Actually what happened is that God plopped him right in front of me out of nowhere. I am 35 years old. Was he worth the wait? Oh yes he was! You see, as much as I have wanted to be in a relationship these past few years, God knew that I wasn’t ready. I didn’t realize it, but He did. Which is why every other relationship that I have been in has not worked. And why a lot of doubt and frustration has ripped through me more times than I would like to admit. Was all of that doubt and frustration worth it? Absolutely it was. God was working in some big ways – teaching me, molding me, softening me, preparing me, encouraging me. All for Him and him :-) God has gifted me with the man who is most perfect for me; the man whom He hand-crafted to one day be my husband. And that, my friends, is most definitely worth the wait.

I truly believe that waiting helps us appreciate things more. If we were to always get what we want when we want it, we would never feel the butterflies and the joy that we so often experience when our waiting pays off. I believe we would never learn the value of life’s most precious lessons and rewards. Besides, what we want is not always what we need. And what we need is ALWAYS worth the wait.