How can I be more effective in my presentation of the gospel to my friends and relatives? It seems that I see such little fruit in all my efforts to lead them to the Lord.

I would like to answer your question in two parts.

Things basic and necessary to the presentation of the gospel:

• A love for those who are lost. "Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee" (Mark 5:19). We need to be like new converts, having the enthusiasm and sincerity of "first love" in our dealings with souls.
• A knowledge of some of the verses in the Bible that describe the need of salvation and the way of salvation. It is necessary that some verses of Scripture are used in the presentation of the gospel. Romans 3:23; 6:23; John 3:16; 5:24 are examples of good ones. If possible, have the one to whom you are witnessing read the verses aloud. It is through the verses in the Bible that people are saved. The Word of God is the seed through which people are born again. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 10:17).
• A consistent Christian life that glorifies the Lord. "That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the Word of Life" (Philippians 2:15,16). Our words will not be effective if not backed up by our life.
• A readiness to share the gospel at all times. "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear" (1 Peter 3:15). God has promised that His Word will not return to Him void, or empty (Isaiah 55:11). We must leave the results with Him.

What makes the gospel effective:

• Earnest, fervent prayer for the lost and especially for those the Lord has laid on our heart. Prayer is dependence upon God. The work is His. It is through prayer that we water the seed which has been sown (Ephesians 6:18-20; 2 Thessalonians 3:1).

  "Lead me to some soul today,
  Oh, teach me Lord, just what to say.
  Friends of mine are lost in sin,
  And cannot find their way."

• Perseverance. In a booklet entitled "Keep on Keeping On," Leslie B. Flynn tells of a man who handed out gospel tracts on a street corner. After years of not seeing anyone trust Christ as Saviour, he became discouraged and quit. Two years later he passed that same familiar corner and saw a person handing out tracts. He walked over to the stranger and struck up a conversation and learned that a little more than two years earlier the man had become a Christian after reading a tract that he had received at that corner. "Many a time I came back here to find the man to thank him," said the stranger, "but he never came back. So I decided he must have died and gone to his reward. That's why I've taken his place."

  Keep on keeping on. Only eternity will reveal the results of faithful sowing. "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise" (Proverbs 11:30).