Before we knew the full extent of our need, Eric had prudently suggested we set aside a large portion of our tax return to start saving for a new vehicle. (Neither of us thought we would use that money so soon!)
We found a few options in the Dallas area. The first place we went had a nice van except it had a lot of miles on it. We liked it but hesitated. I suggested we stop at a dealership we had passed. They just had a van traded in- they hadn't even cleaned it out yet! We really liked it. It had less miles and a known service history but was out of our price range. I laid it out for our salesman, Jay. I didn't want to waste his time (or ours) so I offered him what we could and waited for the response. He came back with a great offer. Eric and I almost NEVER decide to buy in front of a sales person. We like to step away so we left to grab some lunch. We talked, ate, prayed, consulted with knowledgeable friends, decompressed, and decided to go back to the dealership. After we agreed on a few things for the service department to look into, Eric and I put a deposit on the van.
Over the next week while we waited for the van to be ready, I was tentative. I thought we had made a good choice but I was bombarded with thoughts of better deals or being right back where we were with major repairs. And again, I prayed a lot while driving.
We went the following Friday to pick up the van. It was just Eric and I this time as we drove Penny (our old van) on her last trip with us. As we drove, I felt God's blessing on us. We arrived at the dealership, signed the papers, and said goodbye to Penny. Eric suggested we visit the service department and get the full history of the van since it had been serviced at this dealership.
I drove home which gave Eric a chance to read the history. To our surprise, all of the repairs we thought would need attention had already been done! This blessing felt like an affirmation
. Eric and I thought we were getting a great price on a great van. Turns out we got an even better deal than we thought!
We are looking forward to many trips and memories in our new van! We named him Jayne for reasons that I may write about later. In the meantime, I still find myself praying a lot as we drive- thanking God for this gift!
