SEVIERVILLE, Tenn.—As a former atheist Tiffany Bowen knows the language of those who deny the existence of God. She lived it for 21 years before she was saved by God’s grace and mercy.

“Atheists know the truth,” she said. “They just don’t understand the truth.”

She noted most atheists at one time or another had a bitter experience either with the church in general or individual Christians. “We need to help atheists have a non-bitter experience,” she stressed.

Now the wife of Jason Bowen, pastor of First Baptist Church of Trenton, Tenn., Tiffany shares five tips on how to witness effectively to atheists.

1. Go to them free of a judging spirit.

2. Be genuinely invested in them as a person.

3. You need to know the hope that is in you and genuinely know what Scriptures give you your hope.

“For me I use Romans 10:9 because that’s what happened to me. I believed in my heart and confessed with my mouth.”

4. Understand that anyone who has never been given forgiveness does not understand what the word means. The same goes for words such as grace, compassion and love. “You have to demonstrate what those words mean.”

That’s what her future mother-in-law did for her, she added.

5. Don’t lose heart. “It’s not our job to change someone’s heart. It’s merely our job to be transparent and steadfast with the truth. God will do the rest.” (BP)