Parents often make a great effort to find a particular present that their child wants for Christmas. It doesn’t seem ridiculous for the parents, if it is done out of love for their child. The gift in time may be forgotten, abandoned at the back of a cupboard, but the love shown in the gift will never be lost. If the parents cannot find the special present then the child may be disappointed, but the disappointment will not last for ever. The promise parents make to a child doesn’t depend on providing that special present, but upon doing their best for their child by constantly loving the child. This is the greatest gift a child can be given, and without this all other gifts are empty signs.
God our Father is the loving parent who never withdraws His love from us. If we turn away from God’s love, we look for things to replace that love. We search for other presents, other presences, which we think will bring us the joy we long for. We become like a child who mistakes a Christmas present for the love expressed in the present. A child will grow in maturity be recognizing that the most important thing is not the present, but the love of the giver. As children of God, human beings had turned away from God’s love and sought other things to replace that love. Like Mary we are invited to welcome this gift that prevent us from saying yes to God’s gift, those things with which we try to replace God’s love.