Podcast Summary: Leading After You Lose Everything — Redemption, Honesty & The Fight with Scott Landry

UnSeminary Podcast with Rich Birch
Episode Date: December 18, 2025

Overview

In this episode, host Rich Birch sits down with his friend Scott Landry, Lead Pastor at The Bridge Church near Ottawa, Ontario, to explore the themes of Scott's new book, The Fight. The conversation centers around leadership after personal loss, the necessity of vulnerability in ministry, and the life-changing impact of authenticity and redemption. Scott shares his deeply personal journey through failure, transparency, and ultimately, restoration—with actionable insights for church leaders navigating their own battles.

Main Discussion Highlights

The Book: The Fight and Its Purpose

• Autobiography & Therapy on Paper:
  • “Honestly, somewhat of an autobiography, but it's also a personal therapy session that's on paper… It’s not a self-help book, but a self-reflective book.”
    — Scott Landry (03:41)
• Intends to prompt readers to personal insight by seeing their own struggles within Scott’s story.
• Emphasis on biblical perspective underpinning personal narrative.

On Vulnerability and Leadership

• Why Write with Such Transparency?
  • “I think it was the fact that I hadn't been authentic and vulnerable for too long and then lost everything because of it… I never really bought what I'd been selling, like, in a personal, intimate way.”
    — Scott Landry (05:53)
• Past culture desired perfect leaders; current environment craves honesty.
• “I never want to go back to hiding... We almost force ourselves into a corner and convince ourselves we're going to fake it till we make it. And ultimately what ends up happening is we fake it till we're found out.”
  — Scott Landry (08:46)
• Transparency isn’t just about helping others—it’s about personal integrity and avoiding self-destruction.

Discernment on Vulnerability: How Much To Share

• Share your scars, not your open wounds.
  • “If I'm still bleeding, that's for therapy... But if it's a wound that has healed and somebody can see their story in it... then it's worth sharing… Vulnerability isn’t weakness. It's actually a gift.”
    — Scott Landry (10:32)
• Vulnerability frees others to do the same, creating a culture of honesty.

Fighting the Right Battles

• Personal and leadership “fights” are often misplaced.
• “We fight with the people we're supposed to fight for… How many of us as leaders spend so much time in the comment section? We're fighting critics, and we're missing out on the giants.... I've spent so much time trying to convince that one person because I'm like, 'Oh, Jesus would leave the 99 to go after the 1.' And I'm like, maybe not that one. (laughs)”
  — Scott Landry (12:44)
• Avoiding unnecessary battles within churches—focus energy on true mission and calling.

Hitting Rock Bottom & Encountering God

• Scott shares the lowest point of his life: career, marriage, and relationship with his daughter all collapsed.
• “I yelled, ‘God, I don't even believe in you anymore. I'm done…’ And it was almost as if I heard, ‘Well then, who are you yelling at?’" (laughs)
  — Scott Landry (17:19, 19:32)
• This moment of raw honesty became a turning point; God met him in his anger and pain, prompting restoration.
• “God was saying, 'I've been waiting for you at this place your whole life.'... I'm waiting at who you really are, not who you're pretending to be.”
  — Scott Landry (19:33)

Path to Redemption and Return to Ministry

• Initial survival steps: move closer to daughter, find new vocation.
• God orchestrated restoration—sometimes through necessity, sometimes through intentional steps.
• “God just...made beauty for ashes. He resurrected things I was certain were dead.”
  — Scott Landry (22:21)
• The importance of not glossing over pain with platitudes; real change involves patience and action.

The Enemy of Our Calling: Comfort

• “Pain is always preparation… there's always something in a situation of discomfort or pain that is always preparing you for something that's next.”
  — Scott Landry (25:12)
• Compares life to boxing: every “fight” (trial) is training for the next, often larger, challenge.
• Encourages leaders to embrace discomfort to grow into their calling.

Writing the Book: Obedience, Process, and Surprises

• Scott wrote the first draft in just three days after a year of resisting—prompted by a sense of divine obedience.
  • “Obedience was opening a blank document and just starting… it poured out of me.”
    — Scott Landry (33:48)
• Wrote primarily for his children, to give them an honest account and guide.
• Surprised by how his memory differed from the facts, leading to deeper understanding and admiration for his mother.
• “Adapting to loss is different than winning a fight… I had adapted to the pain but hadn’t won the fight against resentment.”
  — Scott Landry (36:01)

Impact on Church & Leadership Lessons

• Initial insecurity about how church would react to his story.
• Congregants responded with gratitude, opened up about their own struggles.
• Vulnerability from the pulpit gave others permission to share.
• “Me being honest about who I am is who they've wanted me to be the whole time.”
  — Scott Landry (39:01)
• Affirms the value of authentic storytelling as a community value.

Advice for Aspiring Writers

• Talk to others but find your own process.
• “Double the time you think it’ll take.”
• Invite honest feedback, not just encouragement.
• Write for a clear, specific audience—Scott kept his kids in mind.
• Writing the book was as much about processing his own journey as producing a resource for others.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On honesty and ministry failure:
  “As a professional Christian for 10 years… my own life being a complete mess… I was a dreamer...but I was living a nightmare, and I had actually become a villain in my own story.” (06:18)
• On rock-bottom and God’s response:
  “I don't even believe in you anymore… [God] said, ‘Well then, who are you yelling at?’” (19:32)
• On leadership and battles:
  “How many of us as leaders spend so much time in the comment section?... and we're missing out on the giants.” (12:44)
• On comfort and calling:
  “Pain is always preparation... Fighters fight a fight so they can fight another fight.” (25:12)
• On what the book meant for his congregation:
  “Being honest about who I am is who they've wanted me to be the whole time.” (39:01)
• Final word to listeners:
  “I hope you don't have to lose what I lost...God truly knows who you truly are… all he wants is for you to be honest about who he already knows you are.” (45:52)

Key Timestamps

• 03:41 – Scott describes the heart of his book, The Fight.
• 05:53 – Why and how vulnerability became crucial after personal failure.
• 10:32 – On sharing scars, not wounds.
• 12:44 – Fighting the right versus wrong battles in life and ministry.
• 16:00–19:33 – Scott’s rock-bottom moment screaming at God.
• 22:21 – How redemption and restoration began.
• 25:12 – The necessity of discomfort and ongoing “fights”.
• 33:48 – On the process and obedience behind writing the book.
• 36:01 – Surprising lessons during writing; difference between adapting and overcoming.
• 39:01 – Impact of vulnerability on the local church.
• 45:52 – Scott’s final words and encouragement.

Resources & Where to Find the Book

• The Fight, by Scott Landry – Available on Amazon
• Follow Scott on Instagram: @ScottMLandry

Conclusion

Scott Landry’s journey is a stark reminder that authentic leadership comes not from perfection, but from humility, honesty, and embracing the battles that shape us. His story offers hope for leaders who are struggling, encouragement for those weary in the fight, and a challenge for all to stop hiding—and experience the freedom of being known.