Join us at the long table as we take an unflinching look at the numbers shaping the future of Lutheranism—and consider how honesty, clarity, and confessional faithfulness can guide the Church through challenge and change.

About Today’s Guest
Rev. Tim Wood is a pastor and data analyst serving the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod with a rare blend of theological conviction and statistical insight. With a sharp eye for demographic trends and a heart for the Church’s future, he helps Lutheran institutions read the signs of the times—faithfully and fearlessly. Whether interpreting numbers or proclaiming the Word, Rev. Wood brings clarity, candor, and care to the work of Christ’s Church.

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Join us at the long table as we question the official story, explore the rise of conspiracy thinking, and ask how Christians can remain anchored in truth and humility while navigating a world of collapsing narratives and contested realities.

About Today’s Guest
Rev. Willie Grills is an LCMS pastor and co-host of A Brief History of Power, where he brings historical insight and pastoral clarity to bear on the crises of modern life. Known for his deep knowledge of church history, American folklore, and the strange undercurrents of our cultural moment, he helps listeners connect the dots between the past and the present.

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Join us at the long table as we recover the moral imagination, rediscover the wisdom of the ancients, and explore how story—rooted in truth, beauty, and goodness—forms the heart and mind for Christian living in an age of fragmentation.

About Today’s Guest
Dr. Louis Markos is a professor of English and scholar in residence at Houston Christian University, where he teaches classical literature, Christian thought, and C.S. Lewis. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and is a prolific author and speaker, known for making ancient wisdom and Christian truth come alive for modern audiences. His books include From Achilles to Christ, The Myth Made Fact, and On the Shoulders of Hobbits. A passionate advocate for classical education and cultural renewal, Dr. Markos brings the voice of the ancients into dialogue with the Church today.

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Join us at the long table as we explore how stories shape the Christian imagination, from the parables of Christ to the poetry of Tolkien, where beauty, suffering, virtue, and vocation meet in the narrative of redemption.

About Today’s Guest
Rev. Jacob Benson is director of admissions and assistant professor of humanities at Luther Classical College in Casper, Wyoming. Ordained in 2019, he previously served parishes in Connecticut and Wyoming, and holds degrees from Concordia Theological Seminary and the University of Wyoming. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in English at Trinity College Dublin, where his research explores how fiction and hagiography shape virtue. Known for his love of classical education and his deep pastoral care, Rev. Benson brings theological clarity and a joyful sense of vocation to both church and academy. He and his wife, Mary, have one son.

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Join us at the long table as we dig into what it means to be wholly citizens of both heaven and earth, recover a robust Lutheran ethic, and consider how virtue, identity, and vocation shape Christian witness in a fragmented age.

About Today’s Guest
Rev. Dr. Joel Biermann is professor of systematic theology at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis and one of the LCMS’s leading voices on vocation, virtue ethics, and Christian identity in the public square. He holds a Ph.D. from Concordia Seminary and is the author of A Case for Character and Wholly Citizens. Dr. Biermann’s work challenges Christians to live faithfully in both the Church and culture, rooted in doctrine, yet active in the world.

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Join us at the long table as we trace the roots of Christian tradition, wrestle with the legacy of the Church Fathers, and recover a vision of doctrine, discipline, and ministry shaped by the clarity and strangeness of the early Church.

Dr. James Lee is a scholar of historical theology and teaches Church History and Religious Studies at Concordia University Chicago, where his courses range from Christianity and the Modern World to Lutheran Worship and Liturgy. He holds a Ph.D. from Saint Louis University, an S.T.M. from Yale Divinity School, and degrees from Concordia Theological Seminary and Concordia University Chicago. Dr. Lee’s research focuses on nineteenth-century German theology, the Confessional Revival, and the development of doctrine in modern Lutheran thought. A respected author and frequent speaker, he bridges deep historical scholarship with contemporary questions facing the Lutheran Church. 

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Join us at the long table as we confront the seven deadly sins not just as abstract categories, but as real spiritual threats—and explore how humility, gratitude, and daily repentance lead us toward the virtues that shape faithful Christian life.

Rev. Dr. David H. Petersen has served as Pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana, since 2000. A graduate of Central Michigan University and Concordia Theological Seminary (M.Div., S.T.M., D.Min.), he is known for his deep commitment to the Church’s liturgical and theological heritage. Dr. Petersen is a contributing editor for Gottesdienst: The Journal of Lutheran Liturgy, teaches D.Min. and continuing education courses at CTSFW, and serves on the LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations. In addition to his pastoral and academic work, he has helped found both Redeemer Classical School and Agnus Dei Lutheran Church, and frequently contributes to Lutheran Witness, Issues, Etc., and conferences across the country.

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Join us at the long table as we confront the seven deadly sins not just as abstract categories, but as real spiritual threats—and explore how humility, gratitude, and daily repentance lead us toward the virtues that shape faithful Christian life.

Rev. Dr. David H. Petersen has served as Pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana, since 2000. A graduate of Central Michigan University and Concordia Theological Seminary (M.Div., S.T.M., D.Min.), he is known for his deep commitment to the Church’s liturgical and theological heritage. Dr. Petersen is a contributing editor for Gottesdienst: The Journal of Lutheran Liturgy, teaches D.Min. and continuing education courses at CTSFW, and serves on the LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations. In addition to his pastoral and academic work, he has helped found both Redeemer Classical School and Agnus Dei Lutheran Church, and frequently contributes to Lutheran Witness, Issues, Etc., and conferences across the country.

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Rev. Dr. David H. Petersen has served as Pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana, since 2000. A graduate of Central Michigan University and Concordia Theological Seminary (M.Div., S.T.M., D.Min.), he is known for his deep commitment to the Church’s liturgical and theological heritage. Dr. Petersen is a contributing editor for Gottesdienst: The Journal of Lutheran Liturgy, teaches D.Min. and continuing education courses at CTSFW, and serves on the LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations. In addition to his pastoral and academic work, he has helped found both Redeemer Classical School and Agnus Dei Lutheran Church, and frequently contributes to Lutheran Witness, Issues, Etc., and conferences across the country.

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Rev. Dr. Christian Preus is pastor of Mount Hope Lutheran Church in Casper, Wyoming, and Chairman of the Board of Regents for Luther Classical College. He holds a Ph.D. in Classics from the University of Iowa and an M.Div. from Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne. A scholar and translator, his works include Philip Melanchthon’s Loci Communes 1521 and contributions to Luther’s Works. Dr. Preus is also editor of Christian Culture: A Magazine for Lutherans and a frequent contributor to LOGIA. He and his wife, Lisa, are raising their nine children at the foot of Casper Mountain.

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