A Little Drummer Epiphany... X-)

Ya know what... I was gonna wait until closer to Christmas to write this, but I figured, "What the heck, why not now?" X-) So I was driving to church, listening to the best radio station ever (http://air1.com/ :-)), on which they periodically play Christmas carols between Thanksgiving and Christmas. As I was driving, I heard a song I've probably heard about a million times over the course of my life, and I'm sure you've heard it just as many times, if not more... "Little Drummer Boy." I can't help it, I gotta admit that in my brain, I was just kinda thinking of it as one of those "typical Christmas carols" that you know all the words to, but you really never pay much attention to what you're singing. You know exactly what I'm talking about, right? I know you do. X-) But this time, there was something different. For some reason, this time, I didn't just listen to it passively as just being another one of those standard Christmas carols that we "have to" hear... I really heard the meaning of it this time. It just really hit me differently, and it was like I finally "got it"... and I found it so amazingly touching that I just have to share it with you now. :-)

Just for a little drummer trivia, "Little Drummer Boy," a.k.a., "Carol of the Drum," was written by Katherine K. Davis, Henry Onorati, and Harry Simeone in 1958, the lyrics of which consist of no less than 21 "rum pum pum pum's"... honestly, the "rum pum pum pum's" always really got on my nerves, which made me pay even less attention to the song, which in turn makes it all the more interesting that it had to be the song I would stop and pay this much extra attention to... X-) Even though you probably know the words, I'll post them here for you... but this time, really stop and pay attention to what's being said, and see if you catch the same things I caught about it. :-)

Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum
A new born 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,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
When we come.

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 the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

Shall I play for You, pa rum pum pum pum,
On my drum?

Mary 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
I played my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum
Me and my drum.

So here's what gets me... in a good way. ;-) The Scripture the song references is Matthew 2:1-11... go ahead and click on that and you can read it. As usual, you can click on all the Scriptures. :-) The song is about a kid who's invited to go along with the Magi from the east to see Jesus in Jerusalem. The kid doesn't actually appear in the Scriptures, but it uses the scenario in the Scriptures to illustrate a principle... one that Jesus made it a point to stress the importance of all throughout His ministry on earth.

What's going on in the song is this. In the first verse, the Magi tell the kid to come with them because they're bringing their finest gifts to this newborn King they heard about, and that they're bringing these gifs to honor Him. Verse 11 indicates that these gifts were gold, frankincense, and myrrh... the significance of which would be a whole other sermon in itself, but I'll try to actually stick to my original point here. X-) In the second verse, the kid sees the situation Jesus was born into... one similar to his own. If you check out Luke 2:1-7, you'll find the part of the story that tells how Jesus was born in a scrubby little dinky town called Bethlehem, and that on night He was born, He and His family had to sleep in the barn because the inn had no vacant rooms. The kid doesn't have the money or means to bring anything of the world's definition of value. He doesn't even have anything of his own, let alone anything great and grand to bring to honor the King. All he has is a drum, and his ability to play it, so he asks Mary if he can play his drum for Jesus. And Jesus, even though He was just a little 2-year-old baby at the time, appreciates what the kid did for Him, and shows His appreciation by smiling at him.

Think about it... it doesn't say Jesus smiled at the Magi, nor did He do anything to notably react to their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, but the one gift He shows His appreciation for is the kid playing his drum. What the kid could offer may not have had any monetary value, but it was all he had. What the kid gave may not have appeared to matter much in the world's eyes, but in Jesus' eyes, it mattered the most because it was his all, from his heart.

Later on in His ministry, Jesus famously illustrates this point in the story known as "The Widow's Mite," or "The Widow's Offering," from Mark 12:41-44. When you read this story, the point Jesus was trying to make is that the grandeur of the gift doesn't matter... what matters is that you gave your all, and you gave it from your heart, no matter what it is. The actual quantity of what you give isn't what's important, but rather the relative quantity. In the story of the widow, the people watching were highly impressed with the large, publicly announced offerengs of the wealthy, but the widow who gave two cents, which was all the money she had to her name, was totally overlooked. Jesus, on the other hand, made it a point to publicly recognize this widow's offering of two cents as being far greater than all the offerings of all the wealthy could ever be because she gave all she had, while they did not. In the same way, the kid gave all he had, regardless of how comparatively little it was in the eyes of everyone else. All he had was the talent for playing the drum that God gave him, so in return, he used that talent to give back to God.

God gave different talents and different abilities to all of us. Romans 12:6-8 says that He made us all able to do something, and no matter what it is, we're to do it for Him, for others, and to the best of our ability. Have you ever seen the movie, "Chariots of Fire?" If not, in a nutshell, it's based on a true story about two Olympic sprinters in 1924 who do what they do for different reasons. In the movie, one of these sprinters, Eric Liddell, explained why he runs in one of the best lines I gotta say I've ever heard. He said, "I believe God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure." Eric took what God made him good at, and did as best he could, and with the intention of doing it to please God. That's just what the kid did. The gift the kid gave to Jesus wasn't anything he created or acquired on his own, but rather it was the kid using what God gave him to give back to God. The kid could play the drum, so he played his best for Jesus. And that's what made Jesus truly happy.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying we shouldn't be giving of our finances... I can give you Scriptures that tell us how and why we should... Proverbs 3:9-10, Malachi 3:10, Leviticus 27:30... and if you're unfamiliar with the tithe, I would recommend a series of teachings called "Honor 10." But what came from this song is taking what God gave to us, and using it to honor Him.

I once wrote on the subject of faith that He doesn't give us what He gives us just so we can say we have it. He gives us what He gives us for a reason, and that reason is to use those things for His glory and His glory alone... and that's what this song really reminded me of. It reminded me that what really matters to God is that I gave my all, I gave it from my heart with the intention of honoring Him with it, and I've used what He blessed me with to bless Him back. It reminded me that this is what's really in God's heart, and that it's in His heart because of His infinite love for us. So next time you hear those nerve-gratingly annoying little "pa rum pum pum pum's" ;-), may they be a reminder to you of who you are in God's eyes, and how much He loves and appreciates all you do for Him, no matter what it is... and inspiration to do all that you do for His honor and glory. :-)

Here... now listen to it with a new ear: http://dai.ly/eEiNnT :-)