It’s hard to see someone you love step away from the gospel. You want to keep loving them, but maybe you worry that if you show “too much” love it will seem like you’re endorsing their choices. How do we find the balance?
First of all, we can remember that the Savior taught us to love everyone, even enemies. Everyone.
Another helpful thing to remember is that, for the most part, what others do spiritually is none of our business. It’s between them and God.
It can start to become your business if they are hurting other people, in which case you should let an adult know what’s happening. Or if they’re trying to involve you in inappropriate activities—in which case you should decline and set some friendship boundaries.
Maybe you have friends who want to tell you about sinful things they’ve done in the past. You can lovingly tell them that while you care about them, you’d rather not hear the details of things that go against your standards.
Bottom line: you don’t need to go around making a big show of how much you disapprove of sin. Your friends probably know how you feel about things you consider to be sinful. If you’re going out of your way to make sure everyone else knows, too, you may fall into the trap of becoming like the hypocrites the Savior condemned for sounding a trumpet whenever they do something good, “that they may have glory of men” (3 Nephi 13:2).
Love your friends. Set a good example. And let God worry about the rest!