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.
Grace Across A Lifetime
Francis Chan and David Platt in talking about disciple making made the point that individuals have to stay focused on Christ….Keep pushing them toward relationship with him….Otherwise they will be tempted to become dependent on us as disciplers. Make Christ central!!! I see that again and again in recovery ministry. If an individual will not understand the gospel and move toward attachment to God, but rather wants to attach to me or others, the focus, motive, and attitude is not compatible with what we are doing here. As ministers of the gospel we are not about making individuals dependent...
Point Them To Christ
Francis Chan and David Platt in talking about disciple making made the point that individuals have to stay focused on Christ….Keep pushing them toward relationship with him….Otherwise they will be tempted to become dependent on us as disciplers. Make Christ central!!! I see that again and again in recovery ministry. If an individual will not understand the gospel and move toward attachment to God, but rather wants to attach to me or others, the focus, motive, and attitude is not compatible with what we are doing here. As ministers of the gospel we are not about making individuals dependent...
Tough Love, Like Jesus’
From my journal 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. He let a stupid,...
Love, Not Love
Love is not a commodity that can be bought, possessed, or stolen….It is only given, and to be real, must be freely given, not coerced or demanded. If it is abusive, perverse, or manipulative it is something else…..not love. CBN. 1/21/22
What One Believes
Some will achieve sobriety because of what someone believes about them. Others will achieve sobriety in spite of what someone believes about them. But the point is not what anyone believes about a person. It is what a person believes about herself and how hard she is willing to work to make it visible in her life, not to show others but to be true to herself. CBB. 1/21/22
The Message On Perfect Love
Thinking about God's standard for Perfect Love and the desire to be perfected in such love as we grow: 1 Corinthians 13: 3-13 (From The Message) 3 If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love. 4-7 Love never gives up.Love cares more for others than for self.Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.Love doesn’t strut,Doesn’t have a swelled head,Doesn’t force itself on others,Isn’t always “me first,”Doesn’t fly off the...
Sufficient Grace
From my journal on this day, 1/21/2014… Most of the time the things one fears the most fail to materialize. And the ways in which one anticipates obstacles simply fail to appear. Thank God that He runs before us more than we can ever realize and clears the path for us so that we are able to continue on the path……..And even when obstacles come, His grace is sufficient to see us over, through, or around them! CBB
Heart Friends
There are some few rare friends who, even though you may go months without seeing one another, when you make the time to be truly present to one another it's instantly the same closeness. You can be one another's encourager, admonisher, confidante, confessor/priest, and funny-bone tickler! Thank God for such friends! CBB 1/21/22
A Lesson From Jesus on MLK Day
Yesterday I went to downtown Montgomery headed to a coffee shop I frequent without thinking about the time and route of the MLK parade. It was underway, coming up Dexter Av. as I attempted to turn toward the coffee shop at 22 Dexter Av. I found a parking place within eyeshot of the coffee shop on the adjacent block and waited about 20 minutes for the foot traffic and traffic barriers to be cleared. The turnout was apparently good and, while I waited, I was thinking about the history of MLK in Montgomery and this city’s role in the Civil Rights movement of the 50s and 60s. I have returned to...
It’s A Small Thing
I had first shared the photo meme below on 1/19/21. Today I saw it and was led to reshare it. CBB. 1/19/26I learned as a sales rep with Procter and Gamble 40+ years ago to grab a buggy and take it in with you as you enter the store you’re calling on. You may need it to pick up damaged product or to put backstock out to face your product’s shelf space. At the least you will have left a favorable impression for your courtesy in bringing in a buggy. I still return my buggies, if I’m close enough to, I take it to the store entrance, but certainly to the cart corral, if I’m farther out. If I can...