It's been in her sights for some time now. We have talked about it, evaluated options, and asked her to wait until the timing was right. Then finally, she got it. The green light. Execute. She's been working hard, locked down the funds to make the purchase, and had the support to move forward. She is a lot like me when it comes to executing a decision. It may take a minute, but once a decision is made to do something, that something is front and center until complete. Not much else gets attention until that box is checked. That is especially true about a purchase which is why Amazon is such an evil temptress.
In this situation, however, something changed. It was different. She went to a few places, found versions she liked, shopped around, and compared. When she walked away from the first option, I was impressed. When she found another option she liked even better, I figured this was it. Then something extraordinary happened. She called and asked for advice. Then she called another friend (she knew I was ignorant) who knew more about the item and sought even more advice. Following that insight, she found a perfect solution, checked it out, and made sure it had all the right features, good ratings, and the right price. It checked all the boxes. Then the unthinkable happened...she walked away. Yup, just walked away to think about it some more. A year ago that would never have happened and we were so impressed.
Walking away from a decision point (a purchase, big decision, or negotiating table) is not a sign of weakness or indecision, but of strength, maturity, and wisdom. Don't let emotion tempt you into a decision you'll regret.
God uses life and experiences to transform all of us into upgraded versions of our former selves.
"And the Lord- who is the Spirit- makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image." 2 Corinthians 3:18
It's fun to look back and see just how much we have changed over time. With each new version, certain habits, behaviors, and tendencies are dampened or removed and others enhanced or added. Skills are developed over time through successes, failures, moments you are proud of and want to repeat, and others that leave you full of shame and regret that you are determined to avoid. That's life and the awesome reality of being human. With each new release, search for a lot of existing things to say "no" to in order to make room for better "yeses". One thing to always say yes to is adding more love and more grace. You'll never regret that decision.
Always remember you have the power to walk away. Emotions are a necessary component of life as they offer both attraction and warning signals. But they make a terrible GPS. In the multitude of counselors, there's safety.
No matter how old you are, you are always working toward the next release of you. Look for features to remove that no longer function well or serve a Godly purpose and develop new ones that bring more value to others, like Grace, patience, and love. If you allow Him, the Lord will make you more and more like Him, and for me, He’s got a lot of work to do! I'm looking forward to the next version.