For me, one of the biggest pressures was how to spread the gospel to my non-Christian friends—until I learned that it is not us who brings someone to faith, but the Holy Spirit.

Teenagers face pressure every day. Some face negative peer pressure to take drugs, smoke, or drink alcohol. Most of us struggle with having too much homework, high expectations set by our friends and family, or just being "too busy." For me, one of the biggest pressures is how to spread the gospel to my non-Christian friends.

I attended the local public school system from second through eighth grade. Only four of the two hundred kids in my grade were WELS. Most of my friends either went to other churches or didn't go to church at all. This was hard for me, but I began to realize what a great opportunity I had to share my faith.

When I was in eighth grade, I became friends with Daniel. We got along really well and soon became good friends. He had repeatedly told me he was an atheist and couldn't see how people could think a god actually existed. I knew I had to say something to him, but I couldn't think of the right words. What if I offended him, or he decided not to be my friend anymore? It was so much harder to do than I thought.

One day during science class, we started talking about the big bang and evolution theories. This was a hard subject for me because I believe that God created the world, but my teacher was tolerant enough to let me express my views. After class, Daniel and I started talking about how we thought the world came to be. He told me that he agreed with what my teacher said, and I explained to him why I had such a problem with it.

After telling about how God created the world, I started to tell him the true story of Christmas, about Jesus, what he did for us, and all of the other things I couldn't say before. Daniel thanked me for expressing my views, but he also said he didn't believe a word I said. I couldn't believe it; I'd finally worked up the nerve to tell him about Jesus, but it had no effect!

I mentioned the subject several other times, but the same thing happened. No matter how hard I tried, Daniel refused to believe that Jesus is his Savior. I felt like I had failed and was responsible for someone's eternal damnation to hell. After crying about it, I decided to talk to my pastor.

My pastor helped me realize that it was not my fault Daniel kept rejecting the Holy Spirit. He told me to remember that it is not really us who brings someone to faith, but it's the Holy Spirit working through us. This doesn't mean that I "failed" in saving Daniel. I can feel disappointed that my friend is not yet a believer, but I can't feel as though the Holy Spirit or I failed.