Well Dwellers Podcast

[Recording/Video Disclosure: There are moments of echoing in the audio which also disrupt the subtitles in the video from necessarily always being correct. I’m still learning how to be a better Podcaster! Thank you for your grace! And my apologies!!] There are moments in life when the stories we’ve inherited no longer seem to fit the lives we are living. Sometimes it is an unexpected diagnosis. So...

There is a kind of justice that can be discussed endlessly in committee meetings, debated in political arenas, and analyzed in theological classrooms. It can be measured, quantified, legislated, and systematized. Yet there is another kind of justice—one that cannot be understood from a distance because it must first be encountered in a person. In this episode of The Well Dwellers Podcast , I sit d...

There are some conversations that feel less like interviews and more like sitting beside someone at the edge of a deep well, lowering buckets into places you do not usually allow yourself to look. My conversation with Dr. Richard Beck was one of those encounters. I first met Richard years ago while completing my Master’s degree under the guidance of my professor and friend Dr. Mark Love. Even then...

On this episode of the Well Dwellers Podcast, I sit down with my former professor, longtime friend, and missional theologian Dr. Mark Love for a conversation that moves through disability, discernment, grief, belonging, and the future of the church. What unfolds is not simply a discussion about accessibility or inclusion, but a deeper interrogation of the church’s imagination. Together, we explore...

There’s something about stories—especially the ones that stay with us long after the credits roll. In this episode of the Well Dwellers Podcast , Erik Freiburger sits down once again with Dr. Ty Ragan for a conversation that moves through galaxies far, far away… and lands squarely in the heart of our own spiritual lives. Together, they explore Star Wars not just as entertainment, but as theology i...

There are conversations that feel like moving onto steady ground—comforting, relaxed, and affirming. Then there are conversations that feel more like moving onto sacred ground —holy, creative, and life altering. This is one of those. In this episode of the Well Dwellers Podcast , I sit down with Keith Dow for a dialogue that moves us beyond tidy theology and into the messy, beautiful, and often di...

At The Bottom Of The Well is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Chapters: 00:47 Opening 03:30 A Fun Start 08:10 Worship Formation 15:39 An Ever Evolving Embodiment of Worship 20:29 Looking For Justice 28:21 When Breakthrough Doesn’t Happen 38:25 Restorative Justice At Work 48:01 Put Your Hands In My Scars 53:03 Ban...

Every now and then a conversation reminds you that theology is not merely something we study—it is something we live. It unfolds in hospital rooms and friendships, around dinner tables and church communities, in the places where our vulnerabilities meet the grace of God. In this episode of the Well Dwellers Podcast , Erik Freiburger welcomes back his friend, theologian, and fellow traveler Dr. Mic...

The Banquet of Belonging isn’t just a fabled dream — it is something that happens when people gather around a table of hospitality, share stories, and discover they are not alone. Join us Wednesday evening for a relaxed dessert night as Ron & Teresa Buschman share conversation with Erik & Bonnie Freiburger about marriage, relationships, and building a life together while navigating spinal cord inj...

A conference exploring discipleship, disability, and belonging. Learning together across difference at one shared table. Find out more here: https://www.atthebottomofthewell.com/p/banquet-of-belonging Deeper Communion National Site: https://adeepercommunion.org/banquet-of-belonging/ I hope to see you at the Banquet of Belonging in May! Get full access to At The Bottom Of The Well at www.atthebotto...

What if the future of the church isn’t stronger, faster, or more efficient—but more fragile, more attentive, and more deeply human? Find Resources & More On Substack: atthebottomofthewell.com Chapters: 00:00 Opening 05:02 On The Precipice Of Fragility & Hope 16:46 Blind Spots To Inclusion In The Church 25:12 Who Is Invited To The Banquet? 40:41 AI & The Pursuit Of The Perfect 55:00 Social Justice...

“To be truly visionary we have to root our embodied actions into our concrete reality while simultaneously imagining possibilities beyond that reality.” One of my favorite moments in the holidays is being able to cozy up with my wife Bonnie in our home theatre and watch a fantastic movie. Just a few nights ago, we dimmed the lights and together watched Brad Pitt’s newest film ‘ F1 ’ — an incredibl...

“We can’t receive the story God has for us—the story He has written, a love letter chicken-scratched on the fence, meeting us where we are—if we don’t first notice how we relate to that fence.” — Hagerty, Sara. The Gift of Limitations: Finding Beauty in Your Boundaries (p. 122). (Function). Kindle Edition. Growing up I would see my mom daily facing the ups & downs of her disability. Some days were...

In this episode of The Well Dwellers Podcast , Erik Freiburger sits down with Bruce Callow for a rich and wide-ranging conversation at the intersection of music, memory, disability, and emerging technology. Recorded in the wake of a small but powerful gathering called ‘ Remixing Reality ’ at the Calgary Central Library, this dialogue explores how AI-assisted music creation can open new pathways of...

In today’s episode, we journey “The Road Less Traveled”—the winding, complicated, grace-filled journey of disability, belonging, and the church. Drawing from my recent Learning Lunch presentation at First Alliance Church, we explore what it means to seek belonging in a world that often wasn’t built with disabled bodies and souls in mind. Through story, theology, models of disability, and the haunt...

Since the dawn of creation music has reached from the core of the human experience. We are melodic story tellers from birth! Whether it is a message of hope, love, character statements, social and/or political commentary, life changes, or even the expressing of emphatic grief and protest; music is the transcendent language of the human soul. So what about the music of dis/ability?! For many disabl...

In this rich and reflective episode of The Well Dwellers Podcast , Erik Freiburger sits down with his friend and fellow advocate, Ty Regan, to explore the deep intersections between disability, belonging, and the life of the church. Their conversation revisits a recent retreat at the FCJ Centre, where a small group of friends gathered to wrestle with grief, accessibility, and what it truly means t...

In this deeply reflective episode of The Well Dwellers Podcast , Erik Freiburger revisits an early piece of writing from his undergraduate days— The Words of Paul —a meditation on how the Apostle Paul’s letters might speak to people living with disabilities in our time today. Through this re-reading, Erik explores how faith, perseverance, and communal belonging intersect with the lived realities o...

Welcome back, to The Well Dwellers Podcast . I’m your host, Erik Freiburger, and I’m so glad you’ve returned to the well as we begin season 2. In season one, we opened the space to wonder about the disabled life – its meanings, identity, what good news looks like, faith, and community. This season, it is my hope we can lean closer into the voices of disabled people and everyday life—their stories,...

Welcome to the Well Dwellers Podcast, where we journey deep beneath the surfaces of disability, dignity, and the hope in a shared community that explores the places where transformation begins and life endures. In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Michael Morelli—Assistant Professor of Theology, Culture & Ethics at Northwest Seminary & College in British Columbia, Canada. Michael brings a great dept...

Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction 07:18 - John & Eddie Van Sloten ‘A Fayher & Son’s Story’ 28:42 - Lisa Waites ‘Reimagining The Body Of Christ’ 1:07:44 - Panel Discussion ‘A Q&A With Our Presenters’ 1:27:06 - End Credits 1:27:42 - Bloopers & Stills The Good News Event was a small gathering on Saturday April 12th, 2025, at Ambrose University to talk about Reigniting A Prophetic Imagination In Being Go...

It took me a bit by surprise! Sitting down with David Ross in the Riverside online studio, I gazed at my laptop screen with nostalgic amazement as he greeted me from his office in Alberta Bible College . Within a few seconds I recognized his setting as the office of my old professor, John Wilson, from 20 years ago! It brought a flood of memories as we warmed up to one another for what would be a t...

“The main stimulus for the renewal of Christianity will come from the bottom and from the edge, from sectors of the Christian world that are on the margins.” ― Alan Hirsch, The Permanent Revolution: Apostolic Imagination and Practice for the 21st Century Church I. Introduction Let me start by saying that I really suck at evangelism! No matter what “ gift ” profiling test I take, it is always at th...

Welcome my fellow Well Dwellers to another episode of the Well Dwellers Podcast where we step into a sacred conversation—a space where the Spirit moves in the lowest of wells, where disability takes on new dimensions, and where dignity is not seen as a lacking but as a profoundly enduring reality of God’s presence in and amongst all of us. Too often, the world teaches us to view disability through...

It was several years ago when I sat in a cozy living room along with several other students as we listened to Dr. Richard Beck explore our ideas and thoughts behind hospitality and the Church. At some point, Beck turned to me as the sole leader in the room who led a House Church movement and asked, “How do you discern and respond to heresy in your church?” At the time, I wasn’t quite prepared for...