Although Alzheimer's has robbed her of her memory, my mother savours our daily phone calls. Being separated by the Atlantic Ocean, it is impossible to see each other on a regular basis, and phone calls are our only means of frequent communication with each other.

However, though they are well meant, these calls lack the personal touch of actually being there. Once the short conversation is over (She has a hard time comprehending anything besides talking about the weather and her current activities), she can't wait to hang up.

This was not so when I had the opportunity to visit her in person last summer. Although she tired quickly, she would keep insisting on holding my hand, just delighting in being with her son. She smiled constantly, and although she didn't always understand what we said, she relished being in our presence, enjoying these precious moments much more that our ritual phone calls. How I would love to be with her again!

The Christmas season is a celebration to remind us of how important we are in God's eyes.

Although God has always been in touch with us, in Bible days His primary means of communication were through His written word and His prophets. He always remembered, however, those sweet walks with Adam and Eve before their loss of innocence (see Gen 3:8), and He hungered for a much more personal relationship with each one of us.

It was our choice to walk the forbidden path and thus, to obliterate our intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father, but God ardently desired to re-establish this lost relationship. The more sin swallowed up our human race, however, the less likely the prospect seemed! Only God could make this possible!

"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel - which means, "God with us." (Matt 1:23 NIV)

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14 NIV)

His phone calls (prayers) were constant, always trying to reach us, but our contacts have always been sporadic and garbled with interference from our own pitiful self-interests, so God decided to come in person and re-establish real communication with the ones He dearly loved. While He walked the streets of this planet, He savoured the opportunity of being with us! How He longed to bring each one of us back home! (see Matthew 23:37).

We were so important, that Jesus willingly died on a solitary cross, paying the price of our sin, so that we would have the choice to live with Him for eternity. His resurrection guarantees us of this possibility!

"God with us!" We are really that important to Him! Moreover, to those of us who have accepted His love in our lives, He made it possible to be constantly with us, to guide us, to swallow us in His loving arms, to fill us with inner peace, in a few words: to have a personal relationship with Him.

"And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us." (1 John 3:24 NIV)

"Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matt 28:20 NIV)

And this, friends, is the real purpose of Christmas: A time to celebrate in Christ, the relationship that He died to re-establish!

He is still lovingly calling, inviting you to personally get to know Him. Will you answer His call? Will you celebrate Christmas the way it was originally meant to be celebrated?

Rob Chaffart