Healed Of Schizophrenia (Josh Tamblyn interview)

When it comes to medical conditions and healing, Christians hold a range of views from the intervention of doctors and medicine, alternative practices and healing that comes from God. I am not a doctor, so I would never give medical advice but would always encourage people to take a threefold approach to getting help.

First, we ask God for help in all things. Secondly, we investigate and utilize good medicine and thirdly we look at alternative methods when the first two are not yielding a result. Some will try alternative before mainstream and that’s their choice.

I bring this up today as we consider that the spiritual life of a person may be affected by physical and mental conditions. I believe that God heals, and today’s guest passes the test in my mind for a verifiable miracle from God.

Josh Tamblyn was healed of schizophrenia. We’re going to hear his story and also learn about his present involvement in ministry.

Links:

Mission Canada Profile Page

https://paoc.org/donate/joshtamblyn

University Christian Ministries

https://www.joinucm.org/

Serve Campus Network

https://paoc.org/serve-campus

Ministry Spotlight

https://youtu.be/LtTXs724Fpw

A Panel Of Urban Pastors

What are the things that urban churches need to be thinking about? Pastor Duane Henry from Portico Church in Mississauga hosts a conversation at Our City Toronto 2023 with four urban pastors that are on the forefront of strategy and mission.

Olu Jegede is a return guest on Sidewalk Skyline Podcast and continues to pastor at Christian Centre Church.

Jessie Knight is an assistant pastor with Olu with a focus on student ministries.

Godfrey Adderley pastors at Stone Church in downtown Toronto.

Joel Spiridigliozzi is a regional director for Western Ontario District working with pastors and ministries in the Toronto region.

Links:

Duane Henry - Portico Church

https://www.porticocanada.ca/

Olu Jegede & Jessie Knight - Christian Centre Church

https://ccctoronto.com/

Olu Jegede

Jessie Knight

Godfrey Adderley - Stone Church

https://stonechurch.ca/

Godfrey Adderley

Joel Spiridigliozzi - Western Ontario District of PAOC

https://wodistrict.org/

Community Exegesis (Ejay Tupe)

Ejay Tupe has served as an urban worker in downtown Toronto for sixteen years. In this session he shares stories and ideas about listening to the city. What can we learn by listening to the people, the values and the culture?

Recorded at Our City Toronto 2023 conference.

Links:

Mission Canada

https://paoc.org/donate/EjayTupe

Jesus In The Diaspora - Charles Hermelink interview

Charles and I work together with Mission Canada, a Christian ‘mission agency to reach Canada with the gospel in unique ways. There are many contexts where there is a gap; campuses, people groups, regions, and communities where Jesus is inadequately represented. Mission Canada is committed to identify and equip those who will pursue their calling to fill these gaps.’[1]

I am the urban ministry consultant and Charles is the Cultural Ministries consultant. As part of that role, he gives leadership to Neighbours & Newcomers Network National.

Links:

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/priorityculturalministries

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/nnnetworknational

[1] https://paoc.org/canada/about

Out Of The Embassy - Denise Munroe

From her childhood in Guyana to a life of ministry in Canada, Denise Munroe has had a fascinating journey. Currently she serves as the Family Life Pastor at The Embassy Church in Oshawa, Ontario.

She is in regular contact with people in the community that seek assistance from the church.

We talk about being a newcomer, experiences of racism and the societal needs of Canadian born citizens.

Link:

https://theembassychurch.ca/

Rob Good And Promise Church

Rob Good is the founding pastor of Promise Church in Bradford, Ontario. They describe themselves as ‘A community united to show God with us, making all things right.’

Pastor Rob has found innovative ways to do community service, empowered the congregation to initiate good things in their city and interactive technology to assist in their discipleship journey.

Bradford is a bedroom community north of Toronto.

Link:

https://promisechurch.ca/

From Down Under To North Vancouver

Ben and Emma Narayanan moved their young family from Australia to plant churches in the Vancouver area. Avant Life Church lives by the mantra:

• Remain Helpful

• Remain Humble

• Remain Hopeful

• Remain His.

They are now located in North Vancouver, Squamish, and Surrey with a desire to see a movement of church planting in smaller BC communities.

Link:

https://www.avantlifechurch.com/

Wendy Burton - Mocha Latte Pastor

Wendy Burton has had a lifetime working in corporate settings and ministry experience in churches, but in recent years her focus has turned to her community. Prompted by the Spirit, she began to make herself available at a local coffee chain to meet people, build friendships and enter into a life of community pastoring.

Intensity: In Tent City

Bill Reilly and I shadow the team of Street Level Advocacy in Peterborough, Ontario. Scott Couper, Leigh-Ann Davidson, Chris and a growing number of people are spending their days on the streets, in the Overflow tent city, shelters and agencies that work with street affiliated people.

You will meet Joe, the Aboriginal man run over by a snow plow and Will the bicycle recycler. Join us as we find God at work in desperate places.

Links:

YouTube version:

https://youtu.be/BD7j0NqRwgo

Scott Couper Interview - Season 2, Episode 24

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/scott-couper-is-a-bridge

Scott Couper Profile

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/scottcouper

News:

https://www.ptbocanada.com/journal/street-level-advocacy-partners-with-starbucks-and-second-harvest-feed-vulnerable-population

Canada As A Mission Field (Graham Gibson)

Graham Gibson is the Director of Cultural Engagement Studies at Master’s College and Seminary in Peterborough, Ontario. He and his wife Linda have a life centred in students and mission.

In this interview we talked about seeing Canada as a mission field for the Gospel and the importance of cultural engagement.

Links:

Master’s College and Seminary

https://mcs.edu/

Better Together - Ejay Tupe and Cheryl Walsh

Ejay and Cheryl live above a coffee shop on Queen Street in Toronto. As parents of a toddler, they exemplify urban disciples of Jesus living on mission in their neighbourhood.

In this session from the Our City Toronto conference (2022) they share life lessons and guiding principles on the power of collaborative relationship. They depend on each other and rely on other community members in accomplishing good work for their city and neighbourhood.

Both have been guests on previous episodes of Sidewalk Skyline Podcast.

Links:

Mission Canada

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/ejaytupe

Urban Trends In Canada

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/urban-trends-in-canada-cheryl-walsh

Sidewalk Pastors

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/sidewalk-pastors-quest-conversation-part-1

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/sidewalk-pastors-quest-conversation-part-2

Gangland Preacher

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/gangland-preacher-ejay-tupe

The Accidental Foodbank

Pastor Vir Mateo and his daughter Rhema Annett started the Good Measure Foodbank out of their church. Listen to their story as to how they saw a need in their community, responded to serve and found critical partnerships to feed their hungry neighbours in Mississauga. This session was recorded at Our City Toronto Conference 2022.

Virginio Mateo

Vir is the lead Pastor of Christ for Life Ministries, a church he planted 28 years ago. He has a desire for the church to be the hands and feet of Christ and to spread His Gospel and make disciples. In collaboration with his daughter, Rhema, they started Good Measure Food Bank as the need in their community became apparent. 

Rhema Annett

Rhema felt called by the Lord to start Good Measure Food Bank in 2016. Her expectation? Small Closet Food Pantry. The reality? A full fledged operation that she had no idea how to operate. Through mistakes and continuous learning she realized that her community didn't need another food bank based on efficiency, but a place where people could go for not only their physical hunger, but spiritual. It would soon become not only a space for those in need to know their value and be loved, but for Christians to be equipped to share the gospel. Since the start of the food bank they have seen salvations from both people who receive food and volunteer. 

Links:

Good Measure Food Bank

http://goodmeasurefoodbank.com/

Christ For Life Ministries

http://christforlife.ca/

Jesus Loves Montreal

My guests today are ‘Patmos People’, a term I coined to describe people that remind me of John the Revelator. From their embedded history in a city, they are uniquely poised to hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church in their location.

Just as Jesus expressed his love through John to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor, these Patmos People are living messages of Jesus’ love for Montreal.

Patti Miller is the lead pastor of Evangel Church, a historic Pentecostal church in the heart of downtown Montreal. Their church is presently developing a multi-story building around the corner that will provide main floor retail, upper church and community spaces and housing units available across the socio-economic spectrum.

Cal and Chrissy Krahn are involved in French language training for ministry and are Mission Canada urban workers.

Jenna Smith is the Innovation Youth Director for Christian Direction, an agency that works at the intersection of faith, community and urban development.

Links:

Patti Miller

https://evangel.qc.ca/home

Cal & Chrissy Krahn

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/cckrahn

Jenna Smith

https://www.direction.ca/

Univer-City Life (part 2)

This is part 2 of my conversation with John Engels, Kelly Johnson, Jazelle Johnson and David Ritz. We talk about the effects of deconstructing faith and how university campus leaders are engaging in meaningful conversations. Many students are experiencing an awakening of conscience and sorting through what to believe about right and wrong.

If you haven’t yet listened to part 1 of the interview you can find it here:

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/univer-city-life-part-1

Univer-City Life (part 1)

It is no secret that public education finds its roots in the Christian faith. Study the roots of any historic university and you will find that clergy and prominent Christian community builders believed that education held the keys to greater wisdom and understanding. Christian faith is built on curiosity and wonder about all of Creation and unveiling its mysteries.

But today if you walk onto the campuses of Canadian universities, you may need to look harder to find a place for Christian faith.

Building on a history of campus chaplaincy, Christian outreach, and discipleship groups we are seeing a resurgence of gospel witness and Christian community emerging as Heaven’s counterculture in the midst of an often-hostile environment.

In this episode I have a conversation with John Engels, Milly Li, Kelly Johnson, Jazelle Johnson and David Ritz.

Links:

Serve Campus Network

https://paoc.org/serve-campus

Serve Campus YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN7cP5T3DKgpd2zRWg5lR9Q?app=desktop

Serve Campus Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/servecampusnetwork/

Milly Li @University Campus Ministries

https://ucmsfu.ca/about/#leaders

Kelly Johnson

https://paoc.org/donate/kellyjohnson

Jazelle Johnson @Lifeline Ministries

https://www.lifelineministries.ca/

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/jazellejohnson

David Ritz - Montreal

https://www.paoc.org/donate/davidritz

David Burke - Lifeline @Ryerson University interview

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/post-secondary-lifeline

Indigenous In The City - part two

My continuing conversation with Levi Samson Beardy and Dan Collado as we talk about the gospel at work in First Nations, Metis and Inuit. With 50% of the Canadian indigenous population living in urban centres, there is a greater opportunity to build bridges and engage in reconciliation.

The billboard in this picture was posted in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 2014 as part of an art exhibit.

Indigenous In The City - Part One

It is my honour today to invite a team of indigenous Christians from various parts of Canada onto the podcast to talk about what it means to be an indigenous or aboriginal person living in Canadian cities. Stats Canada uses the terms ‘aboriginal’ and ‘indigenous’ to refer to people that are First Nations, Metis and Inuit. It is estimated that about one-half live in urban areas as compared to those living on reservation land and non-urban areas.

Dan Collado, has been serving the Lord in full-time ministry since 1993. He initially took a step of faith and went to live and pastor in small isolated fly-in Indigenous communities in northern Ontario, and later in Nunavut. After some 15 years of pastoral ministry, while continuing to feel the burden for Indigenous initiatives, Dan accepted the role as Academic Director of Aboriginal Bible Academy (ABA) in 2009. Dan is part of the Mohawk nation and resides in Napanee, ON.

Jim Thunder is Director of Economic Development at Norway House Cree Nation and lives in Winnipeg, MB. He is an adjunct professor of Indigenous Economic Leadership at University of Manitoba.

Levi Samson Beardy is the Oji-Cree pastor of Aboriginal Believers’ Church in Toronto.

Links:

Dan Collado - Mission Canada Indigenous Priority

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/priorityindigenouscanadians

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/dancollado

Aboriginal Bible Academy

https://www.aboriginalbibleacademy.ca/about

Jim Thunder MBA

https://ca.linkedin.com/in/jimthunder

Levi Samson Beardy

https://ca.linkedin.com/in/levi-samson-beardy-9639537

Aboriginal Believers’ Church

https://www.facebook.com/AbOriginalBelieversChurch/

Graham Singh And St Jax Church (part 1)

In today’s episode we discuss Graham’s journey to Montreal and St. Jax’s as a unique model of urban ministry.

Graham Singh is Founder and Executive Director of the Trinity Centres Foundation, a new Canadian charity established to transform 100 historic city centre church buildings into community hubs.  TCF’s team of 50+ advisors from the social innovation, property finance, urbanism and faith sectors are currently developing what may become one of Canada’s most significant social purpose real estate investment offerings.

 Over the past 12 years, Graham has led four historic building and community renewal projects in the United Kingdom and Canada, including in his current role as Rector of the Anglican Diocese of Montreal’ recent church plant, St Jax Montreal.

 Graham also acts as a consultant in the area of social impact investing, in the private wealth management sector. He is a graduate of the London School of Economics, Cambridge University (Ridley Hall / St Mellitus College), the University of Western Ontario and Asbury Theological Seminary.  He is currently enrolled in Oxford University’s Saïd Business School Impact Innovations Programme.

Brian Egert is the director of Mission Canada, and co-hosts the interview.

Links:

St Jax Church

https://www.stjaxchurch.org/en/home

 ~

Trinity Centres Foundation

https://trinitycentres.org/

 ~

Canadian Urban Institute

https://canurb.org/

 ~

Le Monastère Cabaret de Cirque

https://le-monastere.ca/en/home-en/ 

 ~

Church Planting Canada

https://www.churchplantingcanada.ca/welcome

Creating Space To Belong - Susan McQuinn Wells

My guest today is Susan Wells, author of ‘A Place at My Table: Creating Space to Belong.’ Over the years, we have crossed paths and even shared some group meals at restaurants across the country. She and her husband David Wells currently reside in the Greater Toronto Area city Burlington. David is the General Superintendent of the Pentecostal Assemblies Of Canada.

 In her book Susan says, ‘In some circles a philosophy evolved that the only reason for making a friend outside the church was to convert them. When I was a teen, we were encouraged to share our faith with our friends but not truly be friends with them… This dichotomy can result in Christians never developing a genuine camaraderie with people who don’t hold the same beliefs. They end up praying for souls without befriending the people that embody the souls.’

Susan is a woman of depth and insight. We cover a lot of ground here on the path to the table.

Links:

A Place At My Table (Book)

https://wordcom.paoc.org/products/a-place-at-my-table-paoc-gift-book-susan-wells

 Website:

www.aplaceatmytable.ca

The View From Mount Royal - Gary Connors interview

Montreal is the gateway to Quebec for much of English speaking Canada. One of its citizens Gary Connors talks with Kevin Rogers about ways that God is at work in Montreal, the cities of Quebec and Francophone Canada.

Gary Connors is the coordinator for Quebec and Francophone Canada, a missional priority of Mission Canada and FIT4M (French Intensive Training for Ministry), a national initiative.

Gary has pastored in Quebec for numerous years and has served as Assistant to the Superintendent of the Eastern Ontario and Quebec District and the District Superintendent for the District of Quebec.

Gary and his wife Gwen live in Hudson Quebec.

Links:

Mission Canada - Quebec and Francophone Canada

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/priorityquebecandfrancophonecanada

Fit4M - French Intensive Training For Ministry

https://fit4m.ca/

Institut Biblique du Quebec

https://ibq.ca/