Sidewalk Skyline Podcast

Maury Blair’s historical account as given by himself at Our City Windsor 2025. The retelling of the childhood trauma and the intervention of God’s grace.

On today’s episode, I have four guests that were contributors to a book entitled, “Dysfunction In The Name Of Jesus – Confronting The Idol Of Pastoral Workaholism”. As one who has pastored for all of my adult life and grew up in a pastor’s home, I can speak to the value of such a book and the need to guard the pastoral heart from the world that glorifies busyness. Featuring Kevin Rogers interviewi...

After 33 years of pastoral ministry, Ted Leck has begun a new venture leading a new  organization known as The Chaplains Platoon. This follows years of serving part-time as a police chaplain and fire chaplain in Toronto and later Huntsville. Ted’s organization offers chaplaincy support to every first responder in Ontario. This includes on-call 24/7 support, station visits, leading psychologic...

It’s usually me interviewing someone else or bringing the content of others here to inspire and inform. On this episode, it’s my turn to speak. This was my session recorded at Our City Windsor 2025. Empire is the human tradition of conquerors and ideologues wanting to build a world in their image. It’s the ninety-foot selfie of Nebuchadnezzar and the pinch of incense in worship of Caesar. The nati...

The team at Leamington Community Help Centre run an active mission for street-affiliated people. Part of this work includes addiction recovery services. At the Our City Windsor 2025 conference a group of recovered addicts shared their insights of ministry to this vulnerable population. Robert Sandwith is the Manager of Recovery Care. Greg Poloz is the men’s recovery care coordinator. Mary Fehr is...

Keith Dow, PhD, is a Canadian theologian, researcher, and writer exploring the beauty and complexity of human limits, care, and community. He works with Karis Disability Services (formerly Christian Horizons) and serves as a fellow with the Psychology Cross-Training for Theologians program through the University of Birmingham and Martin Luther University College. His research explores theology, di...

Charles Hermelink brought this message at the Our City Windsor 2025 conference. In it he looks at how God is at work with the movement of people around the world and especially the relevance for us in Canada. Charles serves as the New Worker On-boarding and Development Specialist, and Coordinator for Mission Canada’s Cultural Language Groups. His focus is to mobilize new workers and strategically...

At 87 years of age, Maury continues to be filled with light and hope. From recounting the horrible child abuse he suffered to the overflowing joy of his journey with Jesus, we leaned forward to soak up the wisdom. Maury continues to have daily conversations with people in his community to tell them about his hope.

Today I am having a conversation with Richard Magnussen who last year released his memoir ‘Going Big: Lessons On Success In Business, Life And Faith.’ From the early years growing up in an immigrant family and building a productive life in Kitchener to becoming one of Canada’s big business success stories, Richard was able to remain focused on what was most important. His stories are worth hearing...

Kevin Mast has served as pastor of Hope City Church in Barrie, Ontario for all of its 12 years. It has grown to a family of ministries making a difference for the street-affiliated and marginalized of their city. Kevin and I reminisce about my visit a few years ago and how urban ministry always involves shifts and upheavals.

As we approach Canada’s federal election with political fever running high, I interviewed Tim Schindel to talk about the spiritual realities we hold onto, regardless of how the country votes. Tim Schindel is a visionary leader and strategic influencer dedicated to equipping and supporting leaders in Canada’s political and business communities. As the Founder and National Director of Leading Influe...

Diversity, equity and inclusion are all Christian virtues, but they can be disguised as PCIE - Pressured Conformity, Inequity and Exclusion. That can happen easily inside or outside of the Church, but the Church cannot afford to conflate virtue with political pragmatism. The prophetic Church does the quiet work of diversity, equity and inclusion without press releases. On today’s episode I have a...

Today I am having a conversation with Peter Ochs and Steve Fox. We are going to have a conversation about Peter’s creative response to helping prisoners get established in a new life. Peter Ochs is a lifelong faith-driven entrepreneur. His 30-year journey has been dedicated to building prosperous businesses God’s way. Pete’s life mission is to inspire and equip business leaders worldwide to live w...

In Elizabeth Oldfield’s book ‘Fully Alive’, she wrote, “ For most of the week, my value is in what I produce and what I consume. If I’m not careful my main goal in a day becomes impressive and competent, subtly signalling my status with the things I buy, say and post. Sabbath is the opposite. It is a line in the sand. Today I am just a person, and a person is beyond price. Sabbath is about valuing...

Michael Difazio and Lisa Shurrock were two young, successful entrepreneurs in Windsor Ontario. As they fell in love, they did not realize how God would appear in their lives to disrupt business as usual and surprise them with miracles. Here’s my interview as they share the lessons they’re learning about trusting God with everything.

After a couple years working in Mission Canada with Street Level Advocacy (Peterborough), Leigh-Ann Davidson felt the call to launch new initiatives in Cobourg, Ontario. Along the way, her biggest supporter (who happened to be her husband Thomas) joined in her efforts in reaching out to the street-affiliated and homeless population in the small city of Cobourg. Together they are ‘Hope And Light Ur...

Joe Ritchie grew up with a history of trauma and abuse that nearly killed him. At age fifteen he was in a car accident that left him quadriplegic and without hope. After three times of dying and being resuscitated, it would be a vision of Jesus that would change his life trajectory. Today Joe serves as part of the pastoral team at Windsor’s New Song Church. Listen as he shares transparently about...

Alan Roxburgh is a pastor, teacher, writer and podcaster with more than thirty years’ experience in church leadership, consulting and seminary education. I first heard of him through my friend Karen Reed who will be co-hosting our conversation today. Karen has been a past guest on the podcast and is very much entrenched in a life of loving her neighbours, a true example of intentional community bu...

Today, I’m talking with Doctor Meera Grover who works in Calgary, Alberta extensively in the field of addiction medicine. Working in Vancouver’s notorious downtown eastside to pay for her theological education at Regent College, Meera Grover was faced with questions about whether or not providing people who use drugs with sterile supplies and a place to inject contravened her faith. She knew she w...

Bob Gal has been an iconic figure in my life for 40 years. From my first recollections of his speaking at youth retreats and leading street ministry outreaches, he has been a man that has followed the cloud by day and fire by night. He and his lifelong sweetheart Karen live in Edmonton, Alberta where he serves as our oldest Mission Canada urban worker at the age of 74. Today I want to hear Bob’s r...

Tim Fletcher is the Founder and President of RE/ACT (Recovery Education for Addictions and Complex Trauma). He used his skills as a pastor and counsellor to develop a program to help the people he cared for overcome addiction. He realized the need for individuals to first become equipped with tools, and then put those tools into practice in a healthy, safe and loving environment - and herein lies...

Timothy Meisenheimer has spent decades on the streets with beatitude vision, first in Ottawa and now in Windsor, Ontario. This was his session at the Our City Windsor 2024 conference. Tim takes seriously the path of Jesus in his sidewalk vision of the Kingdom of God.

12 The word of God is alive and active. It is sharper than any sword that has two edges. It cuts deep enough to separate soul from spirit. It can separate bones from joints. It judges the thoughts and purposes of the heart. 13 Nothing God created is hidden from him. His eyes see everything. He will hold us responsible for everything we do.

How receptive are Canadians to the Christian message? Brian Egert is the director of Mission Canada, an agency that has over 50 workers across Canada to reach beyond the church walls. This episode features a plenary session at the Our City Windsor conference in March 2024.

This is part two of my interview with Maury Blair as we revisit his traumatized childhood in Paris Ontario and the journey to wholeness through coming to faith in Christ.