Before Belief

Consider the masterful way the authors of the Catechism describe the process of our coming to faith:

"Effectual calling is the work of God’s Spirit whereby (three progressive participles indicate inward changes beginning to unfold): convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills; he (the Spirit, having prepared our hearts) doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered in the Gospel" (#31).
The various nuances of that catechism answer are extraordinary and provide great insight into helping a person recall the powerful working of God before they actually believed. Usually when people give a testimony of their salvation they will allude to these kinds of experiences, but often with the thought that they were almost random events rather than the deliberate moving into their lives of the Holy Spirit of God. It seems to me that taking time to reflect back on our lost condition and then recall how God moved in and changed us is a pattern frequently applied by Paul
(1 Corinthians 1:26-31, "think of what you were when you were called..."; Ephesians 2:1; Colossians 1:13,14,21).
--Steve Smallman in a really helpful article called "Understanding the New Birth"