"And He [Jesus] was saying, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know. The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. But when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” - Mark 4: 26-29
We do not know all the things and ways in which God moves a person to salvation but we can see evidence of Him working. We can't see HOW the seed is growing but we can see that it IS growing.
Paul says that,"....we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life." 2 Cor. 2:15-17. When we preach the Gospel we will have one of two responses: they will either be drawn to it (aroma of life), or they will be repulsed by it (aroma of death). If you preached the Gospel faithfully (SOW), then their response to it will be based on if God is choosing to draw them or not. The Gospel will ultimately be offensive to all who are not being drawn by God.
Some of the ways you can tell if the seed is growing (aka, God is drawing someone):
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They keep pursuing and connecting with you even after you have shared the Gospel with them.
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They ask questions about God and Christianity or what you think of other religions.
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They ask you how you would deal with different situations.
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They are thinking about more than just their day to day tasks.
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They trust you with deeper things.
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They don't seem to mind when you talk about Jesus, as all who are saved by Him will.
Some people may stay around a while because you have shown them love, but if they aren't genuinely drawn to the gospel then, in time, you will be the only one in the relationship pursuing the other. When this happens do not think you have failed. And if it comes to it, it's okay to let them go. Christians are called to cultivate fruit. It takes a lot of time cultivating in order to know if someone is being drawn. But it is always the safest bet to exercise long-suffering and continue to pour into people as God's timing is not your timing.
God grows the seed, we help water it.
Things to do (water) once you have seen evidence of God moving in someone's life:
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Offer resources: Books, YouTube Sermons, Tracts.
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Invite to church, bible study or small group.
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Invite them for a coffee and tell them you want to talk more about God with them.
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Invite them to events where you know other Christians will be (to show them how Christians operate in this world).
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Ask them to help you in the area that you serve at church.
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Talk about baptism and what a life with Jesus, as Saviour and King, looks like.
- What is Baptism? J.I. Packer's summary: https://youtu.be/V-TLkmQpsCY
- A fuller and longer explanation by John MacArthur:
Baptism should be one of the first things a follower of Jesus does as an act of public obedience to demonstrate that they are no longer a citizen of this world, but a citizen of heaven; no longer their own, but God's.
And they are entering into the family of God, the church.
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Show them how you read the bible, so they can read it for themselves (remember the Study to GROW section).
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Ask to pray with them; model and explain what prayer is.