אל נא אם נא מצאתי חן בעיניך ולקחת מנחתי מידי כי על כן ראיתי פניך כראת פני אלקים ותרצני ... (לג-י)
Yaakov attempted to persuade Esav to accept his gifts. Esav balked at the idea, saying "יש לי רב". Yaakov responded with the above posuk, translated literally and loosely, “For just seeing your face, like one who comes to see and greet the king and brings a present; you too should take mine.” R’ Gavriel Zev Margolis zt”l of Vilna explains "כראות פני אלקים" as alluding to עליית הרגל. Yaakov told Esav, “I know you don’t need the money, as you said יש לי רב. Hashem doesn’t need our money, but yet He commanded us: "ולא יראה את פני ה' ריקם" - not to come empty-handed, each time we are עולה רגל. Obviously, the point of gifts is to show that we cherish the relationship and the opportunity to “see” each other. To that argument Esav finally conceded.
This machshava pertains to our entire avodas Hashem and is a pivotal concept of the neis of Chanukah הבא עלינו לטובה. We have 613 mitzvos. Does it really make an iota of a difference, if for example we shecht the animal from the front or the back? Nevertheless, Hashem provides “geleigenheiten” - opportunities through dikdukei hamitzvos to get closer to Him.
Regarding the upcoming Yom Tov, there’s a pshat from the Pnei Yehoshua that complements this idea. Many meforshim ask what was the whole point of looking for a pure untainted pach shemen if the halacha is טומאה הותרה בציבור (according to many opinions)? Why then didn’t they simply use one that was טמא? He answers that despite the fact that it was halachically permissible, the Yidden went above and beyond, due to their ahavas Hashem. When Hashem saw their efforts, He, too, out of love, unveiled that lone jug and enabled it to last for eight days.
It’s interesting to note that there is a shita, albeit an enigmatic one, who maintains that the פכים קטנים Yaakov went back for in the parsha, were the very same jugs found by the Yidden for the Neis Chanukah! יהי רצון ... שכשם שעשה ניסים לאבותינו, so too, we should merit many miracles and be able to light the heilige Menorah in the Bais HaMikdash - במהרה בימינו אמן ואמן!