About the Author
Cathy Boyd Byrd invites others to join her in considering topics of interest to those on the Christian spiritual journey…..discipleship, spirituality, mental health, Christian growth, and Bible study. Cathy enjoys working with others as they transition from emotional emergency and brokenness to spiritual emergence and abundant living! Many of the topics about which Cathy writes are interrelated as experienced in her own life and in the lives of those with whom she works in counseling, teaching, and case management, and in friendships. She believes that sharing our journey of Christian growth and spirituality helps us know God and ourselves better and connects us with others!
Cathy is a Christian Educator and Life Recovery Counselor, and an ordained deacon through Christian Leaders Institute. She serves as Community Outreach MInister at Lynn Haven United Methodist Church. She is a student (disciple) of the Holy Spirit and shares with her students (disciples) the things the Lord teaches her through Bible study and contemplation, incorporating experiences interpreted through the Word, cherished traditions of her faith, and reasoning that comes from seeking the mind of Christ in accountable community. She was widowed in August 2020 after 48 years of marriage to Bill Byrd, is mother of 2 and grandmother of 5. Her journey of faith has been lifelong and continues to be an adventure with the trailblazer and guide, Jesus Christ!
Cathy is the founder and program manager for a Christian women’s residential life recovery program, Titus 2 Partnership, Inc.(www.titus2.life) in Panama City, Florida.
Thoughts On Love….
Following is part of a sermon on Advent themes-hope, peace, joy, and love- that I wrote 12/6/19... as I have been pondering on how diversely, narrowly and even incomprehensibly some define "love." "Consider Love. What do we know about the love of God? 1 John 4, verses 8 and 16 tell us that “God IS love”. Ephesians 3:18 tells us that we must have the power that comes FROM God to even begin to understand “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.” 1 John 4:10 reminds us that love originated with God and because He loved us, we desire to and are able to love Him in return. In 2...
Biblical Counseling View on Necessity of Suffering
Excellent reading on suffering from the Biblical Counseling Coalition...... In our ministry at Titus 2, the transition from avoidance of suffering to the willingness to engage with it and reframe it as purposeful is an opportunity to learn and grow...... This is the context that allows emotional emergency to give birth to spiritual emergence. It gives understanding and meaning to the experience of redemption. My introduction to this view of suffering came about early in my Christian renewal 30 years ago after reading Necessary Losses by Judith Viorst. The Necessity of Suffering By: Andrew...
A Disciple’s Spirit-Defined GPS
Seeking direction by using 4 tools for theological reflection in pursuit of wisdom , truth, and unity: Scripture- the "North Star" or polar north, a means of beginning to orient oneself to pursuit of truth for a Christ follower. Reason- a God-given spirit and soul endowment God invites us to use in engaging with Him, this can be viewed as an illuminating Source when engaging with Scripture and provides balance. The "South Pole" of the four points...firmly a straight line under Scripture when God is present in it and worth little when God is not... Tradition- the accumulated, value-proven...
Consecration Slipping Into Consternation
Time is short.... I feel it. My days ahead are far fewer than the ones behind me. It is probably just the fact of another birthday around the corner and the settled-in feeling that I and others can slip into when our heart carries us, like a mechanical moving sidewalk or an automated assembly line, to a place where, having lost someone we loved and counted on to share in this life, we are now waiting for our own chariot, (or UPS truck)to swing low and pick us up... But then, if I'm truly already living into eternity by virtue of having received the kingdom of God in Christ, what difference...
Let There Be Peace On Earth
Love in Action- Romans 12: 9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people...
Jesus’ Tough Love
Shared from my journal from 3 years ago....... Jesus' tough love..... Jesus called Simon Peter "satan" for being used by the devil to try to dissuade Jesus from following through on his mission that included his own death. He told Simon Peter also that he knew he would betray him. He rebuked Peter for defending him with violence at his arrest. He confronted religious leaders for their hypocrisy and called them vipers and worse. He physically attacked the position of those opportunists who were taking advantage of God's people, charging exorbitant prices for sacrificial animals in the Temple....
Admonishing With Love in Mind
Shard from my journal from 3 years ago....... Jesus' tough love..... Jesus called Simon Peter "satan" for being used by the devil to try to dissuade Jesus from following through on his mission that included his own death. He told Simon Peter also that he knew he would betray him. He rebuked Peter for defending him with violence at his arrest. He confronted religious leaders for their hypocrisy and called them vipers and worse. He physically attacked the position of those opportunists who were taking advantage of God's people, charging exorbitant prices for sacrificial animals in the Temple....
Ancient Paths of Spiritual Life
1/19/2021; The ancient Fathers and Mothers of our faith taught 3 stages of growing in Christ: Purgative- the first stage of recognizing, repenting, and separating from the world and the things that tempt and keep us in bondage to sin. Illuminative- the second stage of studying the Word, being in the midst of believers, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, and cultivating the fruit of the Spirit. Unitive- the third stage of living consistently in Christ, experiencing close communion with the Lord, and serving out of a heart of gratitude and obedience. “...the bulk of our hearers must be...
Transcendent or Transactional
Journaled 1/18/2020 from Seedbed Daily Text: Transactional prayer= "help me" faith Transcendent prayer= "have me" faith "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. It is tempting to read this text at a transactional level. If I do this then God must do that. If I stay close to God and God’s Word then he will have to do whatever I ask of him. I do my part and God does God’s part. Something within our fallen and broken humanity wants to hold a claim on God. We must learn to read this text, and indeed the whole of the Word of God, at a...
Using Rokeach Value Survey
I use a tool called Rokeach Values Survey as part of our intake assessment at Titus 2.... it is sometimes very revealing and holds a mirror in front of women that they have difficulty looking at... If one says she believes "A" about herself, values things that are consistent with "A", but acts in a way that is consistent with "Z", then a condition of cognitive dissonance is established in her soul..... she is inauthentic, not true to herself and certainly not honest with others.. She says she believes one thing, but her conduct contradicts it. One cannot hold two opposing positions...