The future isn't something we predict. It's something we faithfully participate in...
Everywhere you look, people are asking what the future of the Church will be. Season 6 of the Cyclical Podcast explores a different way of imagining tomorrow. Rather than predicting what’s ahead, we believe God is already at work creating the future, inviting the Church to join in.
Each episode features conversations with pastors, theologians, practitioners, entrepreneurs, artists, and faithful innovators who are discerning where the Spirit is moving and experimenting with new ways of participating in God’s mission.
These aren’t conversations about chasing trends or reinventing Christianity. They’re conversations about faithful innovation; about listening before leading; about courage before certainty.
Whether you’re leading a congregation, serving in a judicatory, planting something new, or simply wondering what faithfulness looks like in this cultural moment, we hope these conversations help you imagine what’s possible.
The future of the Church isn’t waiting to be discovered. It’s waiting to be joined.
Meet Our Future-Casters
Every guest brings a unique perspective on what it means to faithfully innovate in today’s world. From theologians and denominational leaders to practitioners and entrepreneurs, these conversations offer practical wisdom, honest reflection, and hopeful imagination.
Trey is a minister and public theologian who likes playing with words. So that’s what he does. Whether it be with tweets, videos, essays, sermonic presentations, Bible studies, podcasts, or speaking engagements of other sorts, he’s always trying to figure out how to provoke an image in a seeker with some combination of words.
When he’s not playing with words, he’s usually apologizing to his wife Jessica for playing too much, teaching his children to play too much, or letting some sports team disappoint him again.
Email: trey@pastortrey05.com
Social Media Handle: @pastortrey05
Email: trey@pastortrey05.com
Social Media Handle: @pastortrey05
Albert Hung is the District Superintendent of the Northern California District Church of the Nazarene. He is the first Asian American to hold the position of superintendent in the USA/Canada Region. Previously, Albert served as Lead Pastor of Trinity Church, a multi-site, multi-ethnic church in Monterey Park, CA, International Chaplain at Azusa Pacific University, and a missionary with Overseas Radio and Television in Taiwan. He holds a Master of Divinity degree from Azusa Pacific Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry from Nazarene Theological Seminary. Albert speaks frequently on ecclesial leadership, cross-cultural ministry, and the future of the church in a secular age.
Email: alberthung@norcal.org
Email: alberthung@norcal.org
I have been an ordained Lutheran pastor for 39 years, serving Spanish and English-speaking congregations, as a missionary in the Philippines, community organizing, founding and leading community ministries and national initiatives engaging faith communities in immigration and poverty, including the New Sanctuary Movement and the Evangelical Immigration Table. I have been teaching for 15 years and co-wrote Faith-Rooted Organizing, Buried Seeds and God's Resistance.
Email: alexia@alexiasalvatierra.com
Email: alexia@alexiasalvatierra.com
Rev. Darrell R. Hamilton II, MDiv, is an ordained Baptist pastor and Executive Pastor of First Baptist Church in Jamaica Plain. A graduate of Wake Forest School of Divinity and the University of Central Oklahoma, Darrell is passionate about helping people connect with God through a deeper, living faith while leading communities toward greater justice and love for all.
His ministry has been shaped by the work of theologians and leaders including James Cone, Kelly Brown Douglas, Martin Luther King Jr., William Barber II, and Jeremiah Wright Jr. Before his current role, he served as Executive Minister of Operations and Resource Development at Middle Collegiate Church in New York, led City Mission Boston's Urban Pastoral Ministry Program, and held leadership roles with the Massachusetts Poor People's Campaign.
Darrell is the proud father of Kaylani Rae Wilson-Hamilton and an avid reader, moviegoer, and comic book film enthusiast.
Email: revdarrell.hamilton2@gmail.com
His ministry has been shaped by the work of theologians and leaders including James Cone, Kelly Brown Douglas, Martin Luther King Jr., William Barber II, and Jeremiah Wright Jr. Before his current role, he served as Executive Minister of Operations and Resource Development at Middle Collegiate Church in New York, led City Mission Boston's Urban Pastoral Ministry Program, and held leadership roles with the Massachusetts Poor People's Campaign.
Darrell is the proud father of Kaylani Rae Wilson-Hamilton and an avid reader, moviegoer, and comic book film enthusiast.
Email: revdarrell.hamilton2@gmail.com
Nikki Collins serves as Storytelling Ministry Director with Future of Faith, where she leads a national initiative to gather and share stories of people reconnecting with faith and community through new expressions of church.
An ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), Nikki brings more than 25 years of experience across congregational, presbytery, and national leadership. Her work has included launching innovative ministries, coaching leaders across denominations, and helping to cultivate and support hundreds of new worshiping communities in diverse contexts.
Nikki is especially drawn to the practice of listening for signs of hope in unexpected places. She believes storytelling and deep attention to one another’s lives can rebuild trust, deepen connection, and reveal the presence of God already at work among us.
Email: Nikki@futureoffaith.org
An ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), Nikki brings more than 25 years of experience across congregational, presbytery, and national leadership. Her work has included launching innovative ministries, coaching leaders across denominations, and helping to cultivate and support hundreds of new worshiping communities in diverse contexts.
Nikki is especially drawn to the practice of listening for signs of hope in unexpected places. She believes storytelling and deep attention to one another’s lives can rebuild trust, deepen connection, and reveal the presence of God already at work among us.
Email: Nikki@futureoffaith.org
Dwight Zscheile is professor of congregational mission and leadership at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. His books include Embracing the Mixed Ecology: Inherited and New Forms of Christian Community Flourishing Together (with Blair Pogue, Seabury Books 2025), Leading Faithful Innovation: Following God into a Hopeful Future (with Michael Binder and Tessa Pinkstaff, Fortress, 2023), The Starter’s Way: Leading New Contextual Christian Communities (with Ed Olsworth-Peter, Church Publishing, 2025).
Website: dwightzscheile.com
Website: dwightzscheile.com
Scot is an Episcopal Priest and the Founder and Executive Director of The Center for Church Innovation, an ecumenical ministry formed to strengthen and revitalize existing churches, and reimagine and support emerging church plants. Scot was a church planter in NYC in the 1990s and has been in San Francisco since 2005. He's married and has 4 grown sons and passionately loves Opera and the San Francisco Giants.
Email: scot@churchinnovation.org
Email: scot@churchinnovation.org
Theoethicist, writer, and consultant, Lisa Sharon Harper is the founding president of Freedom Road Consulting, LLC. She is the author of acclaimed books, Fortune: How Race Broke My Family And The World--And How To Repair It All and The Very Good Gospel. Her Faith-Rooted Organizing Training has informed movement-building in Ferguson, Chicago, New York, South Africa, and Brazil. Host of Freedom Road Podcast and Kitchen Table Conversations on Substack, Lisa’s column, “The Truth Is…”, is a bestseller on Substack.
Instagram: @Lisasharper
Threads: @lisasharper
Substack: @lisasharonharper
Facebook: @lisasharonharper.page
Linked In: Lisa Sharon Harper
Instagram: @Lisasharper
Threads: @lisasharper
Substack: @lisasharonharper
Facebook: @lisasharonharper.page
Linked In: Lisa Sharon Harper
Continue the Conversation
The podcast asks big questions. This 14-day devotional helps you begin living them.
Through daily Scripture, reflection, and guided practices, you’ll explore what it means to notice where God is already at work, cultivate holy imagination, and discern your own invitation into faithful innovation.
Whether you’re reading alone or with your leadership team, this devotional is designed to help move these conversations from your headphones into your everyday ministry.
- Download your Free copy and begin the journey.
Looking for Your Next Step?
- Want to gather pastors, nonprofit leaders, entrepreneurs, and community changemakers to imagine the future together? Cyclical INC helps communities create ecosystems where faithful innovation can flourish through relationships, shared learning, and collaborative experimentation. Connect with the team at Cyclical Churches to learn more about starting a network in your community.
- If your congregation is asking difficult questions about ministry, mission, leadership, or the future, Cyclical Full Circle provides practical tools and guided discernment to help churches move forward with confidence and hope. Through assessments, facilitated conversations, and strategic coaching, Full Circle helps congregations uncover their strengths, identify opportunities, and faithfully navigate change. Connect with Rob Douglas to learn more about Cyclical Full Circle at the link below.
Stay Connected
The future of the Church is being shaped by faithful people in communities everywhere. If you’re reimagining ministry, building new partnerships, or discovering fresh ways to join God’s work, we’d love to hear your story.
What’s one glimpse of God’s future you’re seeing in your community? We’d love to hear your story.
Reach out to Shay at shayleene@cyclicalinc.com to share your story, ask a question, or start a conversation.
Additional Resources for Your Discernment Journey
