Future Christian

What does it mean to lead the church in a time when the old maps no longer work—and the future feels uncertain?

In this episode, Loren talks with Alan Roxburgh about leadership, the “great unraveling,” and why the church may be entering a prolonged “dark night” rather than a season of quick renewal. Drawing from Scripture, particularly the book of Jeremiah, Roxburgh challenges the assumption that progress and revival are inevitable. Instead, he invites leaders to reconsider how God forms communities of hope in seasons of disruption, not stability.

The conversation explores how modern Western culture has shaped the church’s expectations around success, individualism, and technique—and why those frameworks may no longer be sustainable. Roxburgh emphasizes the need to recover practices of presence, listening, and local engagement as the foundation for faithful leadership.

They also discuss the role of place, the importance of reimagining church spaces, and how communities can resist isolation by forming deeper, more relational ways of life. Ultimately, this episode reframes the future of the church not as something to fix or control, but as something to discern through attentiveness to God’s ongoing work.

Together they explore:

• Why the church may be entering a “dark night” rather than a season of revival
• How modern culture has shaped the church’s assumptions about growth and success
• The practices of dwelling, discerning, and exploring in local communities
• Why relationships—not programs or expertise—are central to faithful leadership
• Rethinking church buildings, space, and imagination in a changing world
• Recovering attentiveness to God’s agency in a culture shaped by technique and control

Alan Roxburgh has served as a pastor, seminary professor, consultant and mentor in leadership and missional transformation. He lives with his wife and extended family in Vancouver, British Columbia. He has writing 15 books on mission, leadership and culture change. In his work he addresses questions of church and mission convinced the Spirit is fermenting a movement of God's people that can’t be contained in narratives of renewal, reform or fixing existing systems. His latest books are: Leadership, God’s Agency and Disruptions (with Mark au Branson) and Forming Communities of Hope in the Great Unraveling (with Roy Searle).

 

Mentioned Resources:

🌐 Alan's Website: https://alanroxburgh.com/

📖 Alan's Book: Forming Communities of Hope in the Great Unraveling

🎧 Episodes Referenced: Andrew Root

🎧 Episodes Referenced: J. Michael Jordan

 

 Connect with Future Christian:

📱 Future Christian Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/futurechristianpod/

📱 Martha's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martha_tatarnic/

📱 Loren's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/richmondljr/

🟧 Future Christian Substack: https://futurechristian.substack.com/

 

Supporting Sponsors:

Free Range Priest Helping clergy and congregations reimagine ministry in the digital age. 

Martha's New Book! Anne Boleyn: Reputation, Revolution, Religion, and the Queen Who Changed History Available for Pre-order now!

 

Future Christian Team:

Loren Richmond Jr. – Host & Executive Producer

Martha Tatarnic – Co-Host

Dennis Sanders – Producer

 

SEO / Keywords

Alan Roxburgh, missional church movement, communities of hope, great unraveling church, church leadership in uncertainty, post-Christendom church, missional leadership, Jeremiah and exile theology, dark night of the church, church decline and renewal, future of the church, local church practices, dwelling discerning exploring, neighborhood ministry, church and modernity critique, individualism and church culture, reimagining church spaces, ecclesiology and mission, spiritual practices and leadership, God’s agency in the church, Western church crisis, adaptive vs faithful leadership, Future Christian Podcast, Loren Richmond Jr.