I am learning to avoid useless religious debates. Our calling is to make disciples, not turn people off by our intellectual pride that makes it seem as if we know all the answers.   The best way to share our faith is to share God’s love and share the Gospel.   One of our pastors said that the seed of faith was planted not by us; it was planted when Christ died on the Cross for our sins and rose again.  No testimony is greater than that.  Here’s what I learned from my church and my experience about discipleship:

• take the call to become fishers of all men seriously
• be aware of God’s work in other people’s lives and JOIN in this work. Trust that God is the primary mover, not you 
• learn to let people go. be there for them, but don’t shove your beliefs down their throat.
• spend quality time with the person you are discipling
• be concerned about their concerns 
• do not be ashamed to share the Gospel through different methods, but season your words with love
• listen well
• point them to God when they ask for advice.  
• Realize that you are primarily in a spiritual warfare, not just an intellectual battlefield. Your relationship with God is the most important thing you need to protect, not your pride.
• Read and study your bible so that you will not stagger 
• Avoid getting drawn into useless discussions that take your eyes away from Jesus. Focus on your own relationship with God. You cannot be sincere in your sharing and pure in thought and deed without God in your life. 
• Pray. Prayer refocuses your eyes on God, not on your petty feelings  
• Remember that everything you do is for the purpose of worshiping God.
• Get your security from God, not in winning a battle. 
• Leave room for faith.  William Willimon says that faith is best defined not as firm belief, but as trust in God. 
• Remember how you yourself were lost and now you’re found.