Lead Time
Episodes
414 episodes
The Convention Pushes Back | Elections, Worship & Lutheran Identity
Join Lead Time+Learn more about Lead Time+One of the clearest moments of pushback at the LCMS Co...
Unity or Uniformity? What the 2026 LCMS Convention Is Revealing (Day 4)
Join Lead Time+Learn more about Lead Time+: https://www.uniteleadership.org/support/leadtimeplusRecorded on location at the 2026 LCMS Convention, Jack sits down wi...
600+ Empty Pulpits—What Is the LCMS Plan? | Convention Day 2 and 3 Debrief
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Is $20M at Risk? The Last-Minute LCMS Concordia Debate
Join Lead Time+: https://www.skool.com/leadtimeplus/aboutLearn more about Lead Time+: https://www.uniteleadership.o...
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The Plan That Could Have Saved Concordia Ann Arbor
Join Lead Time+: https://www.skool.com/leadtimeplus/aboutLearn more about Lead Time+: https://www.uniteleadership.org/s...
LCMS Convention: Kingdom or Castle? What Every Lutheran Should Know
Join the Lead Time Plus!The LCMS Convention is almost here—and the decisions being made are about more than resolutions, bylaws, and floor committees. Th...
Is the LCMS Too Strict? Closed Communion, Pastor Shortage & Confessional Courage
https://www.uniteleadership.org/thelcmscurrentJoin the LCMS Current! (LCMS Current Events Newsletter) Stay up to date.Is the LCMS too strict — or is it simply trying to be...
Should the LCMS Stop Selling Off Church Property?
https://www.uniteleadership.org/thelcmscurrentJoin the LCMS Current! (LCMS Current Events Newsletter) Stay up to date.Resolution 9.11 may sound like a technical bylaw issu...
The CMPL Controversy in the LCMS | Dr. Jeff Kloha Responds
https://www.uniteleadership.org/thelcmscurrentJoin the LCMS Current! (LCMS Current Events Newsletter) Stay up to date.Dr. Jeff Kloha joins Tim Ahlman for a timely Lead Tim...
A Conversation with CUWAA Leadership About Concordia Ann Arbor
https://www.uniteleadership.org/thelcmscurrentJoin the LCMS Current! (LCMS Current Events Newsletter) Stay up to date.In this special Lead Time conversation, Tim Ahlman si...
Did the LCMS Give Up on Concordia Ann Arbor Too Soon?
https://www.uniteleadership.org/thelcmscurrentJoin the LCMS Current! (LCMS Current Events Newsletter) The Concordia Ann Arbor story continues to raise painful questio...
The LCMS Election Is Down to 14 Votes | Round 3 Could Change the LCMS
The LCMS presidential election has moved into historic territory.After two rounds of voting, President Harrison’s lead has narrowed from 228 votes to just 14 votes, while hundreds of eligible voters still have not cast a ballot. In this...
Is LCMS Bureaucracy Holding Back Ministry?
In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman welcomes back Jim Sanft, former President and CEO of Concordia Plans, for a wide-ranging conversation on leadership, trust, Lutheran education, lay leadership, LCMS bureaucracy, and what it means to stew...
LCMS Runoff Shock: Can Biermann Beat Harrison?
The LCMS presidential election is heading to a runoff — and the numbers are impossible to ignore.President Matthew Harrison received 43.8% on the first ballot. Dr. Joel Biermann received 39.0%. For the first time in this election cycle,...
The Future of the LCMS: Generosity and Tithing
In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman and Jack Kalleberg sit down with Philip Meinzen, a longtime LCMS educator and creator of The Grace Formula, for a powerful conversation about stewardship, generosity, tithing, debt, vocation, and the mis...
The LCMS Pastor Pipeline Problem
In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman talks with Jim Simpson, a retired higher education leader with decades of experience in curriculum development, administration, accreditation, and student success. Together, they explore what higher educ...
Why Culture Can’t Be Faked
In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman sits down with Coach Patrick Daberkow, head football coach at Concordia University, Nebraska. Together, they talk about what makes a healthy team culture, why football still matters in an age of individu...
The LCMS Forgot This Part of its Story...
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod loves its history. But what if we have forgotten one of the most important parts of it?In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman talks with Pastor Mark Brandt about the story of St. Lorenz Lutheran Chur...
The Pharisee Living Inside Every Lutheran
Pastor Bryan Wolfmueller returns to Lead Time for a conversation that begins with the Prodigal Son… and ends up exposing something much closer to home.Most Christians know the story of the younger son who runs away, wastes everything, a...
Before LCMS Convention: The Future of the Concordias
A major LCMS convention overture could reshape the way the Concordia University System functions — but many everyday Lutherans may not understand what is being proposed, why it matters, or what questions still need to be answered.In thi...
The LCMS Bylaw Change Most Lutherans Aren’t Watching
Most Lutherans do not get excited about bylaws — but sometimes a bylaw change can have real consequences for local ministry.In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman and Jack Kalleberg sit down with Jim Saalfeld, CEO of the Church Extens...
The LCMS Ethics Crisis Behind Public Heresy Accusations | Dr. Jim Voelz & Dr. Mark Hoehner
What happens when public accusations of heresy are made without clear evidence?In this urgent Lead Time conversation, Rev. Dr. Jim Voelz and Rev. Dr. Mark Hoehner join Tim Ahlman to discuss ethics, truth, the Eighth Commandment, public ...
What Should the LCMS Do About Decline? (From Presidential Nominee Brady Finnern)
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod is heading into a significant season. With convention conversations ahead, questions around pastoral formation, membership decline, congregational vitality, and the future of Lutheran mission are all on the ta...
Two Seminary Legends on the Future of the LCMS
In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman sits down with two longtime Concordia Seminary professors, Dr. Andy Bartelt and Dr. James Voelz, for a wide-ranging conversation on time, aging, biblical literacy, seminary history, SMP, distance educati...
Who’s Actually Joining the LCMS? | Looking at LCMS Data with Dr. Lyman Stone
What’s really happening inside the LCMS right now?In this episode of Lead Time, Tim Ahlman and Jack sit down with Dr. Lyman Stone—demographer and creator of the Lutheran Religious Life Survey—to unpack the most surprising data trends in...