Just before the local post office closed this afternoon, we mailed our defense drafts — 3 copies from each of us — to the doctor of ministry office for the members of our dissertation committees.

Every step is one step closer to the finish line.

Throughout this program, which we began more than 4 years ago, we’ve experienced a lot of pressure, and at times, a lot of relief (e.g., the end of each class and at various milestones of the dissertation writing process). But this step brings the greatest sense of relief so far.

We’ve got a *few* steps left, including …

• Defend our dissertations at next week’s defense hearings in Kentucky (mine on Thursday and Joleen’s on Friday).
• Then, we’ll have three short weeks for final edits, including, (1) making committee-recommended changes and (2) making final revisions after our drafts are edited one last time.
• Then, we go to graduation — in 46 days!

Along with the extra sense of relief tonight is an extra dose of gratitude for God’s presence and help throughout this part of our journey!