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.