You care about discipling others. As a disciple-maker, you must learn how to bring out the best in others and help them be more like Jesus. Let my experience below help you in that journey.
So, I had to break off nasty-looking dirt clods from under the eaves of my house. Perhaps you have seen them before—a log strip of mud perhaps as wide as a sausage link and about as long. When I broke them open I found all kinds of nasty bugs inside: spiders and creepy junk like that.
What I discovered is that these mud homes are built by blue mud daubers that flit around our yard. The wasp will build the home for its baby to hatch and grow up in. Then, she catches spiders, stings them so they are still alive but paralyzed, and puts them in the mud hut for the baby to eat when it grows up.
I have to say I was very grateful to see black-widow spiders and brown-recluse spiders were being exterminated by this flying creature. However, I still must say I hate the idea of having any wasp flying around my house. I also do not appreciate mud packs being built on the air conditioner or under the hood of my old pickup out behind the shop.

A pleasant stinging sensation

I must also tell you about another stinging creature who lives in my yard: the honeybee. It seems the honeybee gets a lot of bad press because it also has an open-carry policy. What I see, though, is that there is a huge distinction between the two species.
Honeybees only sting in self-defense or to protect their colony. Stay away from their home and do not step on them, and you will be fine. Those who hate honeybees are usually those who have been stung by yellow jackets and do not know the difference since they look very similar. While the honeybee will only sting in a self-sacrificing situation (dying after delivering her one sting), the wasp can inject venom repeatedly while also defending her home—which is often your home, too.
Here’s the real difference between the blue wasp and the honeybee: what they focus on. The honeybee hunts for only the most beautiful things nature has to offer. She searches and finds flowers on front lawns and in ditches, on back fences and in thick undergrowth. If there is anything lovely, anything pretty, anything savory about the most tangled woods or abandoned real estate, the honeybee will find it.

How to bring out the best in others

No, the bees are not just taking time to stop and smell the roses. They are digging deeper than just superficial beauty. They know that the real value of the floral world is not in what is seen but in what is hidden deep inside: nectar.
Life would go on with or without nectar. You could live your whole life without sucking nectar out of a flower. The bee cannot. The bee is driven to harvest this overlooked and almost unnecessary element in order to create something no other creature makes: honey.
What about you? God has surrounded you with beautiful people made in His image. How do you bring out the best in others? What are you drawing out of them instead of draining from them. The bee takes nothing from nature—it eats no plants or animals. Rather than be a consumer of those around you, are you helping take the best that they have and turn it into something that would never exist if you had not become involved in their lives?

Draw from the deep wells

Too often, I have been like that blue wasp. I have a powerful ability to spot the toxic stuff in life much like how she manages to hunt out and find the black widow. By God’s grace, I am becoming more like the honeybee.
The scripture tells us that counsel or prudence is buried deep within a person, but an individual “of understanding will draw it out” (Proverbs 20:5). You are surrounded by people who have good gifts, sweet things the Lord has placed in them. No one will ever see that and nothing may ever come of those raw ingredients if you do not help draw it out.
You see, this is the work of disciple-making. You could focus on what is wrong in our world and try to stop all the bad you see in people with poison of your own. Or you could practice discipling others by focusing on what good God is doing in each one and help them become all God intends for them to be. It is a skill worth developing with the guidance of His Spirit. He will help you see the beauty and potential in those around you.

You were created for discipling others

How do you practically bring out the best in others? That is a good question. You ask questions that lead them to see where Jesus is working in their lives. Draw them out with questions. Here’s some tips for discipling others like this:
1. If a person does not claim a relationship with the Lord, I like to talk to them about their life purpose. One “drawing” question would be: “If nothing would stop you, what would you like to accomplish with your life? What lasting legacy would you like to leave behind you?” This often will reveal what the Lord has laid on their heart and by discussing this they may become more engaged in a discussion about the One who will help them fulfill that life mission.
2. Listen to their hurts and their brokenness. It is usually our hurts where God makes our sweetest testimony. Many people meet Jesus in the area of their wounds and hurts. They find their wholeness in Him and begin the journey there.
3. If they have some measure of faith, frequently draw it out until it becomes strong and vibrant. “What has the Lord been teaching you this week?” “What challenges have you faced that caused you to look for answers in the Scriptures?” “What did you find?”
4. Once a person is growing in awareness that the Lord is working in their everyday life, then help them become a honeybee, too: “Whom have you gotten into a spiritual conversation with lately?” “What might you do or say to help draw them closer to the Lord?”
You were born a honeybee, not a wasp. You don’t have to live a life focused on the negative, only seeing the venom around you or using yours on others. You were created to draw out the best in others and develop something that would not exist if you had not been there.
As you go, let the Lord lead you in discipling others by framing questions that bring out the best in them.