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.
Third Heaven?
Morning pondering in the Word…. Since the Apostle Paul references a “third heaven” experience in 2 Corinthians 12:2-5 of such impact he seems to find it difficult to bring himself to speak of it, one would ask, how is it that one can speak of a “third heaven” unless there can also be an understanding of a “first heaven” and “second heaven.” Here’s how God has led me to relate to these concepts as I have pondered this and other Scriptures. . “First heaven”- a state of increasingly transcendent living while still in the physical realm of the earth (i.e., living “in the world but...
“Wisdom Begins In Wonder.”
"Wisdom begins in wonder." -Socrates A few years ago a friend gave me a book entitled "Recapture the Wonder". In it the author invites readers to "break free from the weariness and cynicism of life to enjoy God's amazing promise of childlike joy." I was reading, too, an editor's note in a popular magazine about the same topic in which she invited readers to make a list of things that had filled them with wonder. For me (in no particular order): - the smiling face of a friend's baby granddaughter on social media - the smiling faces of my own granddaughters in the company of young...
Who Is Part Of A Holistic Community-Based Approach to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Treatment?
"......more than 84% of scientific studies show that faith is a positive factor in addiction prevention or recovery and a risk in less than 2% of the studies reviewed, we conclude that the value of faith-oriented approaches to substance abuse prevention and recovery is indisputable. And, by extension, we also conclude that the decline in religious affiliation in the USA is not only a concern for religious organizations but constitutes a national health concern." National Institutes of Health, "Belief, Behavior, and Belonging: How Faith is Indispensable in Preveenting and recovering...
Prostrating or Posturing?
"Falling and getting back up because The Lord chastens after one of his is one thing but spiritual posing is another." This is an interesting comment by a person who is doing some deep work in spiritual journeying. It points to a true understanding of Jesus' story of the Pharisee and the publican and their respective prayers that Jesus told in Luke 18:9-14 (NASB) 9 And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the...
Crashing Gongs and Clanging Cymbals
“Did I Really Hear What I Thought I Heard?” I have lunch many Sundays with a group of women at a local restaurant. Today one woman told a story about a former neighbor who talked all the time about going to “KFC”, so much so that this woman began to think, “ My, goodness she eats a lot of fried chicken!” Then she discovered the neighbor was Catholic and she was talking about going to “K of C”, Knights of Columbus! Such language shortcuts can be very confusing. Social media has been hard for me, at times, because of so many alphabet soup messages. Recently in an online post on a group the...
Sippy Cups …. and “As A Child”
I had a mother and her preschooler as houseguests a while back. She was preparing for departure for a long ride home and gathering some snacks. I offered her a couple of Rubbermaid flip-up straw sippy cups for him to make travel easier. Today as I filled my Tervis cup with ice water I thought how like that preschooler I am….. He thought the sippy cups were cool to drink out of in the car. But really they were for mom’s peace of mind in keeping him hydrated and pacifying him in route without having his drink spilled all over him and the car. It’s as much for her and his need for safety while...
2X2X2
Word. Spirit. Church. Kingdom. Grace. Truth Word of God leads us into life in the Spirit. Spirit takes us deeper into the illuminated Word of God. Church is intended to manifest the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God becomes a reality as the Church walks in faithfulness to Word and Spirit. This will happen as we receive the fullness of Grace and Truth of the Word, in Christ. “Grace without truth is license. Truth without grace is judgment.” Dr Henry Cloud
What Doth The Lord Require of Thee?
Micah 6:8 proclaims to us: “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” How does one “DO JUSTLY” except by making a distinction between good and evil in keeping with the standard that God himself has revealed to us by His Word, by the life and ministry of Jesus, by the Spirit of Christ at work in us and by the exhortation and admonishment of God’s people in loving community with one another? God defines what is "good" and makes it known to us. Good and upright is the Lord. Psalm...
Pearls of Great Price
Psalm 34:18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of God….. we enter through the gate of brokenness, needing comfort and in meekness…. Not by our accomplishments and praise of people. Revelation 21:21 reminds us: "The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass." One of the issues we revisit regularly in recovery and discipling is the matter of suffering- why it is present, how we...
Lying: Spiritual Smoke Detector
What's on my mind, asks Facebook? Honestly? Honesty. This morning I heard the radio devotional by Ron Hutchcraft, A Word With You. I had listened to his daily radio devotionals for years when we lived in Alabama from 1992 on, when I became born anew. Here's what he said...... "Years ago, I asked God to install a spiritual smoke detector in my heart - one that would actually go off inside me whenever I was saying something that was less than the truth. I think we all need an inner alarm like that, because lies do so much damage if you don't put them out right away. We tend to...