If any of our dear young friends who know the Lord Jesus as their Saviour, have been timid about confessing Him before others, I beg of you to do so now.
Go to the Lord alone first, and tell Him all the truth, then go to others. Like the man in Mark 5, begin at home.
“Go home to thy friends,” and tell them first. Also write to your friends, and tell them of what the Leo has done for you.
Confession of Christ will often meet a difficulty felt by many young converts, a difficulty which was once expressed to me by a young man in these words, "I do want to follow Jesus, but how shall I get rid of my old companions in sin, for they seek to draw me aside?”
I advised him to tell them gently and lovingly of the Saviour, and invite them, in the spirit of the hymn, to come to Him, “O that my Saviour were your ‘Saviour too!”
“You may be sure,” I said, “the result will be this: you will either win them to Christ, or they will leave you entirely.”
He promised to adopt this plan.
Now I would like to have you try the same thing, and you will find that those who care nothing for the Lord will drop off like autumn leaves.
How sweet, on the other hand, if you should thus be the means of leading a companion to Christ. You will find, as I have found, that if a bold, decided confession of Christ in your home, school or business is unhesitatingly made, it will give glory to Him, and save you a great deal of sorrow and remorse.
ML-05/22/1960