Well, my dear friend, I am so glad that your friend and you are saved, and also so glad that she is witnessing to her family members. It can be so difficult to share the Gospel in one’s own family, especially if the family members seem uninterested or even hostile to the things of the Lord. But now, I have a personal message for your friend and also for you. As much as we would like to see our friends and family members to be saved, we cannot, by our own energy or arguments, bring this about. This is the work of the Holy Spirit.

It can be so discouraging when we desire salvation so very much for someone, only to find that they are seemingly unmoved. But take heart…our job is to bring the message with prayer (and sometimes tears), and then we must let the Holy Spirit work in the hearts of our loved ones. There is a lovely Old Testament verse that is sometimes linked to situations such as this of your friend, and that is Psalms 126:5-6: “Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him,” (NKJV). But alas, we might not get the response we are hoping for.  We can lead a soul to the living waters, but we cannot compel them to drink of it. At the end of the day, sharing the Gospel is very much like sowing that precious seed in a garden. The devil (like the birds eating garden seeds) is there to try to snatch the seed away from our loved ones so that they do not believe and get saved as we see in the Lord’s description of the parable of the sower in Luke 8:12. But, at the end of the day, we sow with tears, watering with our prayers, and the Holy Spirit can then work in the hearts of our loved ones and friends (see John 3:5 and Titus 3:5). Sometimes, it may take years for our loved ones to change, and I suppose that sometimes, they might never give us any indication of being saved. But, if we sow those seeds with prayer, the Holy Spirit can work a miraculous work in the hearts of any who will receive the Gospel of life in Christ Jesus. Remember Saul of Tarsus whose life of hate and violence against Christians was turned around by his meeting the risen Lord on the road to Damascus. That living water is without cost and available to anyone who will come and drink as we read in Isaiah 55:1-2, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.” 

In summary, my best advice is to continue to fervently pray for those family members. In James 5:16 we read: “…The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much,” (NKJV). I would also point out that there is One who loves and wants your friend’s family to be saved even more than your friend does, and that is Christ Jesus Himself. In 2 Peter 3:9 we read: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance,” (NKJV). This is why judgment is so long in coming upon this sin-sick earth.  The Lord is longsuffering, and He wants all to have the opportunity to be saved. Please tell your friend not to be discouraged.  Jesus loves her and her family, and He will be with her as she seeks to minister the Word. I’m sure you and I will be praying for her as well!  (SF)  (622.1)