Open Doors: Conversations with Heart of the Father

On this Holy Thursday, we begin studying Matt Lozano’s book Free to Be Holy.   What is Holiness? The Hebrew word kadosh translates as “set apart, sacred, holy.”  This applied to items used in the temple vessels and nothing made holy could be returned to ordinary service. Proper ritual allowed outward participation, but not interior restoration. Through Jesus, God removes our hearts of stone and gi...

As we approach Palm Sunday, Matt and Lisa discuss the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem from Mark 11: 1-10. See parallels to the crowning of King Solomon, who was placed on David’s mule and cloaks laid down. What was symbolized by laying down cloaks before Jesus? Zechariah 9 prophecies about the king entering on a colt. What might have been the hidden meaning behind the unridden colt? Matt c...

Grab a cuppa and enjoy some time with Jacqueline and Jenn as they continue our Lenten series, reflecting upon Jeremiah 31:31-34 where the word ‘covenant’ is mentioned four times. Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, felt so sad about the condition of his people. Amidst Israel’s failure, he offered hope – a promise that God would forgive all our sins and remember them no more. In the Old Covenant, people...

What a treat to hear Matt and Jenn Lozano together for Week Four of our Lenten series as they cover the story in John 9 about Jesus’ healing a man born blind! Jesus makes room in His day to heal this man and he does the same for us! During Lent, we consider the darkness and undergo self-reflection. Why is there so much brokenness in the world? We join the disciples in asking Jesus why bad things h...

Amidst the cold of winter, enjoy warm conversation and memories shared by Janet and Lisa as they discuss Romans 5:1-2, 5-8. God poured out His Word into our hearts. Pouring relates to our baptism and God himself infuses the virtues of faith, hope, and love into us when we are open to receive them. Through our faith, we rejoice in hope. Janet explains the difference between hope and optimism. We he...

Are you going deeper this Lent? Join Neal and Jacqueline as they reflect on the liturgical readings for this coming Sunday. You'll be blessed as they discuss many beautiful themes, beginning with a word on testing. The first reading is from Genesis chapter 22.  Sometimes we complain about the testing we are going through.  Yet, here Abraham is asked to do what God the Father would do. Such an...

Jenn and Lisa kick off our Lenten series! Join us as Lent begins, talking about God’s covenant in Genesis 9: 8-15. We start with the theme of light in the Scriptures. Light bursts from darkness in creation, the post-flood prism of light is the rainbow, and Jesus comes as the Light of the World. A covenant offers three aspects: a promise, a family, and a sign and each relates to these “light” momen...

Join Matt Lozano and Gilbert Rodriguez as they share details from the Freedom In Christ conference held in San Juan, Mexico, last summer. Gilbert is Associate Director of Adult Faith Formation in the New York Archdiocese and has extensive ministry experience. He helps run Freedom in Christ conferences in Spanish. Gilbert tells of first benefitting from Unbound ministry in 2012 and how he was set f...

“We want to be saints, not celebrities!” In this meaty episode, we hear from popular author and theologian Dr. Scott Hahn, founder and president of the Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology. Dr. Hahn chronicles his personal understanding of holiness beginning with his earliest experiences as a juvenile delinquent and how he discovered scripture and encountered Christ on a Young Life retreat. Hea...

Do you ever think about angels or just wonder about divine mysteries? In this fascinating episode, we hear from Msgr. Brian Bransfield who served as the General Secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2015 to 2020.  He's a priest in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, has his doctorate in moral theology,  and is the author of many books including his recent Angels: Our...

“And then the beginnings of Unbound began!!” Get ready for this exciting second part of Neal and Janet’s story about the beginnings of Unbound. Hear how God used a prophetic word spoken over Neal to help him find someone’s name in his Rolodex! Neal shares of the exciting 30-Day Renewal and Reconciliation event that brought people from various ethnicities, cultures, and denominations together. Jane...

In this sweet episode, Neal and Janet describe their individual spiritual journeys in the early years leading up to Unbound. They tell of specific people and places where they experienced God’s call on each of their lives. Neal reveals what event caused him to begin searching for spiritual answers and how the prayer of his cousin Fr. Mike Scanlan was later followed by his own sincere prayer and ho...

To kick off the New Year, we thought it would be a great time to discuss hope. Since the beginning of a New Year often is a time filled with hope,  joining Jenn today is a friend who is infectious in her hope and her fervor for the Lord.  With the grace of God and inspired by the love of Christ, Terry Riggins has been on evangelistic trips all around the world, most notably to the underground chur...

Amid your Advent busyness, take some time for joy and reflection with Heart of the Father Ministries! Jenn hosts Matt and Jacqueline in this final podcast of our Advent series.  Scripture Luke 1:26-38 In this episode, Matt reflects on how God shows up and delivers Israel at a very low point. We learn how Miriam and Leah in the Old Testament relate to Mary and Elisabeth in the New Testament. In bar...

Looking for a way to find joy amid the hustle and bustle of the Advent season? Meet Heart of the Father’s newest servant team member, Lisa Livezey as Jacqueline hosts this second episode in our Advent series. Jacqueline references Gaudete Sunday, from the liturgical calendar, meaning joy and signified by the Advent wreath’s pink candle. We read I Thessalonians 5:16-24, which begins with “Rejoice a...

Jenn hosts Neal and Jacqueline as the Open Doors Advent series begins.  The text is Isaiah 40:3-5 with Neal reflecting on the richness and beauty of Advent and the meaning of the Latin word Adventus. Hear Neal’s favorite definition of faith and a lively discussion surrounding the Advent themes of Preparation and Promise with Jenn relating these to having company over and Jacqueline likening them t...

In this episode Matt and Jenn speak with Sister Miriam Heidland, former Division One college athlete whose life was revolutionized by encountering the love of Christ, resulting in her entering the Society of the Most Holy Trinity in 1998. Sister Miriam shares her story of growing up Catholic, falling away in college, her history of trauma, brokenness, addiction and how God sent a Catholic priest w...

 With the American Thanksgiving holiday coming up next week, we thought this would be a great time to talk about gratitude. We love our Thanksgiving tradition , but the heart behind it is really taking time to be grateful and to express our thanksgiving to the Lord. Have you ever considered that gratitude is a profound response to God's love and goodness? Join us as  Neal and Jacqueline refle...

In this episode, Matt interviews Father Dave Pivonka, TOR, President of Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, who speaks forthrightly about seeing God’s freedom at work in the students and really all of God's people. In the context of discussing freedom in Christ , Fr. Dave tells the story that led Franciscan University to offer new students free tuition for a semester. He and Matt dis...

In this episode, Jenn Lozano and board member Ann Stevens explore the art of listening in an Unbound session or simply to a friend or someone in need. Ann describes three overall ways one can respond when listening to hard things shared. Responses of fear or pride may be human responses, but God will give us grace to respond in humility, extending compassion to the individual receiving prayer.  Jo...

In this  episode, Janet, Jenn, and Jacqueline offer a beautiful exploration of grief,  examining some of its deepest challenges.  As they share personal stories, you'll hear about the growth, grace, and gratitude that can emerge from loss. Join them as they look at Jesus and Mary for inspiration.  In this conversation they also touch on the  importance of companionship and support in the grie...

Join Rachel, Jenn, and Jacqueline as they dig deeper into the impacts of trauma and loss. Together, they explore how to identify specific instances of pain, opportunities for forgiveness, and the processing of grief. In this episode, we "piggyback" on last week's conversartion with traumatologist Margaret Vasquez. We hope our reflections, insights, and anecdotes will allow you to go...

Have you ever wondered why some of us get stuck, as in really stuck? Did you know that sometimes we are held back from living our best selves, the person we were made to be, by our past hurts and traumatic experiences? Back in the spring, our Heart of the Father team had the opportunity to attend a workshop on trauma informed care in ministry, hosted by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's Offic...

Join Matt as he and our dear friend Miriam Wright recount their recent mission to Cameroon in this episode packed with tales of faith, forgiveness, and freedom during their 9-day adventure. Miriam has been an active part of our ministry here at Heart of the Father as she travels around the globe with us, teaches several of our ecourses, leads an Unbound Ministry team, and serves on our board. Now...

Have you ever felt like you're carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders? Ever want to fix a problem for someone else and struggle to know what is yours and not yours to carry? Sometimes, life can seem like a never-ending battle, and it's tough to remember to give God our burdens, even the struggles of our friends and family members, instead of trying to deal with them on our ow...