July 27, 2025 
by M. Regina Cram
To the children in my life:
You are just children now, but the day will come when you’ll read this letter and understand what I mean.
I do not want you to be happy.
I do not want you to have financial stability, good health, or a satisfying career. I don’t care whether you attend college or buy your own home.
I want you to be holy.
I want you to seek God with all your heart and yearn for Him above all else. I want you to know richness beyond compare as you spend your life loving and serving God.
But most of all, I want you to be holy – dedicated to the service of God and endowed with purity and virtue.
I’m not opposed to happiness, success, or good health. I just don’t think they’re essential for a fulfilling life.
Let me be blunt. Jesus wants more than our church attendance. He wants our hearts. Anyone can go to church; it takes guts to bring it with us into the world. God wants our total surrender, not just weekend visitation.
Such a life will not be easy, my little ones, especially when you are beset by hardships. There is no way to avoid pain, but I promise that God will hold you so close, you’ll hear the beating of His heart.
It’s God who is the constant; God who gives meaning to life. Even if you don’t see this now, you will come to understand it, especially as you age. I assure you that when you’re on your deathbed, you will not lament, “I wish I’d attended more meetings.” You won’t be daydreaming about stainless steel appliances, or the Patriots’ odds for winning the Super Bowl, or whether to buy a Mustang convertible or an Audi hybrid.
You may, however, wish that you had given more and accumulated less. And I’m pretty sure you’ll grasp, maybe for the first time, the inestimable value of God.
That’s because facing eternity makes you focus on what truly matters. I know this to be true because I once lay on what doctors said was my deathbed. Believe me, I was not thinking about the newest iPhone or how to invest my IRA. I was focused on things that matter.
God matters.
And so, my beloved babies, I pray you will become men and women of compassion, mercy, and faith. I hope you will feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit those in prison. I pray you’ll alleviate suffering by getting into the trenches with those in need. And I pray that your heart will be full of joy as you serve God’s people.
Living for God is the only way to experience true happiness. And that’s the kind of happiness I wish for you.
“He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.” Jim Elliot
M. Regina Cram is a published author and parishioner of SS. Isidore and Maria Parish.
