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.
Moving To Pilgrimage In The Word
Lesson in immersion.... Some are armchair viewers... they watch iMax images and, for a moment, see and experience through others' eyes the beauty of new adventures captured by people they haven't known. They seek information out of curiosity. Others are tourists.... they go in groups with itineraries, led by guides who show them popular sites that most people want to see or what the guide likes most. They seek a safe and informative experience they can share with others. Still others are adventurers...... striking out into the unknown, confident they have the right tools, skills, and...
Fullness of Grace and Truth Trampled
God has been dealing with me about the FULLNESS of Christ being able to dwell in us for some time.... "that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God." Colossians 1:10 Read these first three verses top to bottom..... then read them in reverse order...... 1.) Ephesians 4:11-13- "And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; UNTIL WE...
Zen Spin
Zen spin...... ( From 12/6/20) “The term is shortened from mushin no shin (無心の心), (arising from the Chinese Chan School of Buddhism) of a Zen expression meaning the mind without mind and is also referred to as the state of "no-mindness". That is, a mind not fixed or occupied by thought or emotion and thus open to EVERYTHING. It is translated by D.T. Suzuki as "being free from mind-attachment"...... The essence of Zen is attempting to understand the meaning of life directly, without being misled by logical thought or language.” As a Christian cautioned to live with guarded heart and renewed...
Freedom In Christ
Freedom....... Yesterday I spent time reviewing a Rokeach Value Survey with a young lady. She arranged its 18 terminal values and 18 instrumental values in prioritized order and we set about exploring what her choices revealed about her understanding of herself, her desires, and her choices. It revealed some woundedness in a couple of areas in which she had allowed the opinions of others to squelch aspects of herself as a child. We discussed ways to restore those aspects in her current adult life in a way that could bring a sense of restored wholeness and joy. It was an instructional and...
The Goodness of the Lord in the Land of the Living
Psalm 27:13 New American Standard Bible "I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." Hope that life here on earth will be better as God's will is worked toward completion provides hope to continue....... Galatians 6:9 "Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary."
Deep Or Wide
Deep or wide...... I have transported glass enough over the years to know first hand that it should be borne in a vertical position, resting upright on its thin edge and braced against shifting rather than spread out lying down flat. As safe as that horizontal position may appear, the forces it is subjected to while in motion are more that can be trusted for safe transport. Glass transported lying down flat has its large surface area subjected to a lot of force that it cannot bear. When the broad, thin, flat surface is spread out horizontally, its thin surface gives way under uneven bumps...
Prodigal Wisdom FromCharles Stanley
satan always blinds your mind to the facts and consequences of your circumstances AT THE MOMENT..... Rev. Charles Stanley (From a January 13, 2019 sermon on the prodigal son) living in the moment..... the next step after such a life will always be downward. Wherever you are living today without God, it's a hog pen. The Prodigal Son: willed his own way wandered wasted wanted woke up walked back was welcomed home
Vulnerability
From Diane Langberg, PhD "Our response to another’s vulnerability tells about us and only us. What comes “out of us” in the face of vulnerability was there all the time. The vulnerability of the other has merely exposed the truth about ourselves." If someone else's authenticity and vulnerability makes you uncomfortable, look inside yourself for why you wear a mask and lack honesty, empathy, compassion, understanding, etc.
Life Lived Well
From my reflections on 1/15/2017: "Few things are as satisfying as coming to the end of a day and having the sense that it has been a rare day in which life has been lived well. One of the joys of growing older is that, if one is living with intentionality to live each day well, then there are generally more of those kinds of days than not. I am blessed to come to the end of most days with that satisfied sense of having known God's presence, having seen opportunities that have come from God's hand, and having said "yes". January 15, 2022: It's been that same kind of day today. Ms. Bernie's...
Trashy, But Fun
From January 15, 2019: Seen, post- Hurricane Michael: Hanging on the back of a debris hauler.......ha ha. The energizer bunny? Or signaling that we’ll still be dealing with the trash til Easter? (Maybe he's holding the Easter Bunny hostage and we won't have Easter til it looks all green and blooming and Easter-y around here!)