Little Drummer Boy

December 11th, 2008 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (1) |

I had to add another page to the new edition of the quarterly youth ministry newsletter today, because the powers that be didn’t like an odd-number page count — apparently it threw the entire newsletter out of whack.

Anyway, to fill up the new page I wrote a mini-message about the lyrics of one of my favorite Christmas songs, “Little Drummer Boy,” and you can find it below. Enjoy.

It’s no secret that I love music. There is a certain power in music — something that extends beyond the reach of the senses to touch us deep in our souls. When it is the vessel for lyrics, music transforms once static words, and truth becomes communicated in a dynamic and extraordinary way.

Now, I love this about all music, but I think there is something particularly special about Christmas music and the way in which it imparts so many profound and timeless truths about Christ’s breaking into our broken world.

The song “Little Drummer Boy” has been a perennial favorite Christmas song of mine. There are lots of things that I love about the song, like the subtle march-style drum beat or the “pa rum-pum-pum”s, but it is the lyrics that truly draw me in. Have you ever really contemplated the lyrics of “Little Drummer Boy”?

The story of the song, told from the perspective of a little boy on the night in which Jesus was born, begins like this: “‘Come!’, they told me. ‘A new born King to see! Our finest gifts we bring to lay before the King, so to honor Him when we come’.” Those instructing him to come see the baby Jesus are likely proudly displaying their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh — none of which the boy has, nor could he afford anyway. With nothing extravagant to offer as a gift, the boy decides to go anyway.

Standing beside the manger, the boy musters the courage to speak: “Little baby,” he says to Jesus, “I am a poor boy, too. I have no gift to bring that’s fit to give the King. Shall I play for you on my drum?”

This boy gets it. Here he stands, at the side of the promised Messiah, knowing full well the significance of the event unfolding before his eyes. Yet he also recognizes that there is something peculiar about the situation. Playing the role of amateur detective, the boy surveys his surroundings and deduces that the Christ-child is not simply wrapped in swaddling cloths, he is wrapped in humility.

Upon the realization that the ultimate gift from God has come in utmost humility, the Little Drummer Boy reciprocates, and although he wishes he had precious gifts to offer, he offers his own humble gift: Playing his drum.

The story concludes with the ox and lamb grooving to the boy’s drum beat (I love that), and after he plays his absolute best, the baby Jesus looks up at the boy and smiles. In his smile, the Messiah says, “Thank you, little boy. The gift you have brought me is better than all of the gold, frankincense, and myrrh in all the earth.”

Martin Luther once said, “God created the world out of nothing, and so long as we are nothing, He can make something out of us.” When we humble ourselves before Christ and offer the best of ourselves, however simple, God smiles.

May we reflect on these lyrics and come to find ourselves wrapped in humility this Advent season. ✛