I sat quietly in my room pondering the meaning of faith, knowing it was time to put it to work. Without hesitancy, I wrote the check. It was the last money I had saved for tithe, and after six months of unemployment I knew that it was now God's turn to follow through on His promise.

Thinking back on that experience almost two and a half years ago, I am reminded that faithfulness isn't necessarily about comfort or simply knowing about faith. Although God often provides for our happiness along the way, a life journey with Christ can be a life of challenges. It doesn't matter how young or old you are either.

At the time of my graduation from Andrews University, God provided me with a good job at a prominent architecture firm in Kalamazoo. My employers and coworkers respected my choice not to work on Sabbath, and knew that my Christian ethics were a benefit to the company. However, two years later, work slowed and I found myself signing up for unemployment. I also found myself asking God some very big questions. After six months of diligently searching for work, sending out resumes, contacting job leads, going to interviews, and receiving a few rejections because of Saturday unavailability, I still had no job. But God had a plan, and I determined to have faith no matter what.

Not long after the unemployment paychecks stopped coming and I had given the last of my tithe money back to God, I got a job lead from a former coworker, who was also an Adventist friend. I sent a resume, had an interview, and a few weeks later I was again employed.

I will never forget that miracle. God has blessed my choice to trust Him in both good and difficult times. Even though I couldn't see beyond the discouraging circumstances, God was watching out for me, taking note of my choices, and planning an even better job for me than the previous. He wanted to test my faithfulness, and He waited until just the right time to show me His faithfulness.

Since that experience, God has given me additional challenges of faith. It is not always easy to exercise faith or to stand out among the people of the world, but I am encouraged as I look back at the evidence of God's love, and His blessings in response to faithfulness.

Heather Doty works in an architect firm in the Kalamazoo, Michigan, area doing architecture and interior design.