In this episode of The Church Planting Podcast, Greg Nettle sits down with Bryan Loritts, award-winning author, pastor, and nationally recognized voice on multi-ethnic church leadership. Bryan is the author of Right Color, Wrong Culture and has devoted his ministry to helping leaders communicate with clarity, humility, and credibility across cultural and racial differences.

Together, Greg and Bryan explore why communication—not just theology or vision—is the critical factor in building healthy multi-ethnic churches. Bryan shares how his upbringing in African-American church contexts, integrated schools, and white evangelical ministry environments uniquely shaped his ability to communicate across cultures.

They discuss the importance of understanding "trigger words," avoiding unnecessary barriers, and learning how language can either invite people into dialogue or shut conversations down entirely. Bryan explains why leaders must focus not just on what they say, but how and when they say it—especially in a polarized cultural moment where everything feels politicized.

The conversation also highlights Bryan's five-level communication framework, moving from surface-level talk to emotional honesty and transparency. He emphasizes that effective leadership in multi-ethnic settings requires leaders to lead with empathy, grieve with those who grieve, and resist the urge to respond with facts before acknowledging feelings.

Finally, Bryan challenges leaders to embrace incarnational leadership—following Jesus' example by stepping into unfamiliar spaces, building genuine relationships, asking better questions, and learning with humility. This episode offers deeply practical insight for church planters seeking unity, trust, and gospel faithfulness in diverse communities.

Podcast Contents:

00:00–02:00
Introduction to Bryan Loritts and the focus on multi-ethnic communication.

02:00–06:00
Bryan's background and how relationships shaped his ability to communicate across cultures.

06:00–10:00
Why communication—not content—is often the biggest challenge in multi-ethnic churches.

10:00–14:00
Trigger words, politicization, and how language shuts down dialogue.

14:00–18:00
Bryan's five-level communication framework and leading with empathy.

18:00–22:00
Incarnational leadership, proximity, and learning through relationships.

22:00–26:00
Practical steps leaders can take to build trust and credibility across cultures.

26:00–27:30
Final encouragement for church planters navigating diversity and unity.