“I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.” Luke 21:3-4 

I often look forward to Christmas. Some of my favorite songs can be heard on the radio or sung from the hymnal at church. For some reason, my whole life I have been drawn to “The Little Drummer Boy.” I can barely keep a beat myself, but I have always loved this song. The song, written in 1941, is based on a Czech carol. Although there is no reference to a drummer boy in the Christmas story, the point of the story goes straight to the heart of worship. 

The carol describes how a boy is asked to join the scene of Christ’s birth. The drummer has no gift to give, like the Magi, so he gives what he has: “I played my best for Him.”

This resonates in the worship Jesus described when He told of the widow and her two coins. All the drummer had was his drum. All the widow had was her two coins. The God they worshipped was worthy of their all. He is worthy of our all as well, having given His all for us.

All to Jesus I surrender; all to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, in His presence daily live. - Judson W. Van De Venter

Your little is a lot when you give your all.

Prayer: Jesus, may we always remember our part in your story. May our little be a lot when we give our all to you. Amen.

Mark Ashby

About the Contributor

Mark Ashby is the current youth director at First Presbyterian Spartanburg. He has been married for eight years to his beautiful wife and best friend Jessica. They have three children: Carson, Cooper, and Presley.