People have strong opinions about Christmas music, like when is the right time to begin listening to it.  Personally, I like to have a long Christmas season but also don’t want to distract from other good holidays like Thanksgiving, so for me the right time is once Thanksgiving is done.  I have a Christmas playlist on my phone of my favorites and its playing regularly when I drive around or while I’m wrapping presents or putting up the tree.

People also care a lot about which songs to listen to, sometimes in strange ways.  A tradition we have every year (mainly because of my kids) is called “Whamaggedon.”  What’s that?  It’s a contest to see how long you can go without hearing “Last Christmas” by Wham.  Apparently, lots and lots of people play this and the winner(s) is the one who gets to Christmas without hearing it.  Not that it’s a bad song, but it’s just a fun thing to do in the holiday season.

There are a lot of things to like about Christmas music, even if it’s enjoying goofy songs like Frosty the Snowman or watching the Charlie Brown Christmas special on TV.  But when it comes to genuine Christmas carols, we all have our favorites.  Mine is a beautiful, simple song with a great theme of humility, a trait we can all appreciate during Christmas.

This carol imagines that, in addition to the 3 Magi, the baby Jesus also had other visitors who came to worship Him, including a “Little Drummer Boy.”  You can read the lyrics here, or watch the video below, a version performed by for KING and COUNTRY.  Generally, the simpler the version of the song, the better in my opinion.

Why do I like this carol so much?

Most of us aren’t like the Magi who travelled far and gave expensive gifts to the baby Christ.  We don’t have much gold, and we probably don’t keep frankincense and myrrh laying around.  If the Magi were recognized for bringing these lavish gifts in eternal Scripture, how can we measure up?  Is their example too hard for us to follow?  How can we adequately worship Jesus?  Little Drummer Boy answers these questions.

We can all identify with the boy because what he has to offer Jesus is something we can all offer: whatever we happen to have.  The Little Drummer Boy gives us assurance that if we offer what we have, whatever we have, to our King Jesus, He will accept it.  In the song, when Jesus smiles at the boy at the end of the song, we are all reminded that “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)

The Little Drummer Boy shows us that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5).  Humility doesn’t mean thinking of oneself as worthless or inferior to others.  Humility means thinking of yourself in the proper place, a miserable sinner who is nonetheless loved by God and who God will use for His glory and will bring to perfection in eternity.  As the great Lion Aslan said in C.S. Lewis’ Prince Caspian, “You come of the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve. And that is both honor enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth.”  Humility involves having the proper balance between shame and grace, with grace ultimately victorious.

This is why I wrote earlier that the simpler the version of this song, the better.  Just about anyone can tap out “rum pa pum pum” on a drum and identify with the little boy, but not everyone can perform the more elaborate cover versions of the song and to me that dilutes the beautifully simple lesson of the song: whatever you have, however little of it you have, offer it to Jesus and He will smile at you.  He will accept your worship, no matter how imperfect.  To Jesus, it’s not what you have that matters, but what you do with it.  You can be a beggar or an emperor, but with the right attitude toward Jesus our King, anyone can experience salvation and eternal life, gifts infinitely greater than anything on this earth and therefore infinitely greater than anything we have to offer Him.

So, whatever your particular “drum” is, pay Jesus a visit and play it for Him this Christmas and in the coming year!  Offer to Him whatever you have and see what happens!