Pa Rum Pum Pum Pum

A couple of weeks ago, I found myself listening to one of those stations that play only Christmas music during December.  A familiar song came on called The Little Drummer Boy, and for some reason the song really got on my nerves.  I think I was in one of my more critical moods, and (not ever taking the time to actually listen to the lyrics of The Little Drummer Boy) I thought that this particular song was just another "worldly" venture.  In fact, I remember looking at my wife and saying, "This song is really annoying.  What kind of person writes 'pa rum pum pum pum' throughout an entire song?"


Today, I find myself regretting that comment.

I don't know why, but after that day I couldn't get The Little Drummer Boy out of my head.  At random moments I would find myself humming the tune, and those once annoying words--"pa rum pum pum pum"--would flutter through my mind.  So earlier this week I finally took the time to look up the lyrics to see what the song was actually about.  I found that The Little Drummer Boy is one of the most affectionate Christmas songs around.  As I read through the lyrics, it became evident to me that the song detailed the heart of a young boy who had nothing to give a king, except his ability to play his drum to the best of his ability.  For me, this was a humbling message.

If you have never taken the time to listen or read through the lyrics, I encourage you to do so here:

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 our King
Pa rum pum pum pum
Rum pum pum pum
Rum pum pum pum
Shall I play for you!
Pa rum 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
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.

I am so thankful for the message of this song.  The little boy recognized who Jesus was, and then realized that he didn't have a gift fit for the king.  So, he improvised and played his drum "unto the Lord."

Paul has written,

"Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men" (Colossians 3:23).

We can all learn a lesson from this poor little drummer boy.

A Great Escape

I have always been terrible with directions.  I rarely pay attention to my surroundings, and when I travel, I never really know which direction I am going or where I am, at any given time.  The same holds true for when I walk around large facilities.

I'll never forget a certain band trip I took when I was a freshman in High School.  The directors decided to stop at a mall and let us walk around at our own discretion.  The most important rule was to be back at the bus at a certain time.  If any single person failed to follow this rule, then the entire band would suffer and we would be behind schedule.  Needless to say, about ten minutes before we were supposed to be at the bus, I got separated from my friends and could not find the way out.  It was a terribly embarrassing situation, and when I finally found the correct exit, the main director was standing there waiting to give me an ear full.

In a letter to the troubled church at Corinth, Paul wrote about the importance of finding the correct exit:

"No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it."

Most of us know this verse as the "God will never put me through anything too hard for me to handle" verse.  While this mentality captures an element of Paul's message, it fails to capture its heart.  It's not only that God "won't put you through anything too hard for you to handle;" it's that when He does put you through "something too hard to handle," He is faithful to provide an escape.  This is precisely why a trial can't be too hard for you to handle--it rests on God's faithfulness to you, not your faithfulness to Him.

Thankfully, every temptation that we can ever experience is "common to man."  That is, it is nothing new.  The Bible is filled with stories of men who experienced great tests and overcame them not because they were solely capable of doing so, but because of God's faithfulness to see them through it.  This is in fact the context of this verse as Paul recollects the trials and temptations of Israel.

God does put us in situations that are difficult  to handle, but He has been working with these situations for thousands of years, and we can trust that He will always, always, always be faithful to us and provide a way of great escape.