Ryan Johnson on Healing from Brokenness, Leading through Pain, and Building a Community of Worship and Hope

In this conversation, Jason sits down with Ryan Johnson, pastor of Church Untitled in downtown Vancouver. Ryan shares openly about how the church began after the collapse of another, walking through seasons of anxiety and depression, and learning to cultivate a dependence on God while shepherding people who were hurting. What started with a small group meeting in the corner of a nightclub has grown into a worshipping community in the heart of the city marked by prayer, consecration, and God’s presence.

Jason and Ryan explore themes that matter deeply to pastors today, including:

- Consecration before vision: The formative role of Joshua 3:5, focusing on internal formation and God’s presence ahead of programs and plans.

- Dependence vs. strategy: Learning to follow the Spirit’s guiding, and how to keep choosing dependence even after growth and momentum arrive.

- Worship as shepherding: How worship shapes us beyond emotion, trading what we feel for what we know of God, and the importance of extended spaces of prayer and song.

- Ongoing healing for leaders and churches: Naming self-protection, practicing vulnerability, and letting love perfect what fear distorts in the life of a community.

- Citywide unity and hunger: Stories of collaborative worship nights, overflowing prayer ministry, and a growing hunger for God across ages and backgrounds.

If you’ve walked through church hurt, or are leading people who have, this episode offers an honest, hope-filled account of how God turns ruins into foundations and pain into worship.

Show Notes

- Church Untitled | https://www.churchuntitled.com/

- Fall City Meetups⁠⁠ | https://www.thepastorate.ca/gatherings

- Lead Pastors Fellowship⁠⁠ | https://www.thepastorate.ca/lpf

⁠⁠- Fall 2025 Pastors Retreat at Barnabas Landing⁠⁠ | https://www.thepastorate.ca/events/pastorsretreatfall2025

- The Pastorate Listener Survey⁠ | https://www.thepastorate.ca/survey

Thank You to Our Episode Sponsor

Special thanks to the Canadian Bible Society for making this episode possible. We invite you to explore their ⁠Bible Course⁠ to help your church grow in Scripture engagement. | https://biblesociety.ca/thebiblecourse/