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.
Insight into my Daddy’s Prayer Life…..
Prayer is a valuable practice of personal spiritual discipline and developing one's relationship with God. We teach about prayer quite a bit at Titus 2. Here is a lesson on prayer that I learned this morning:This morning I was reading the day's Proverb and reviewing some notes from the book of James (did you know that James repeats the themes of the Beatitudes?). I reached for a Halley's Bible Handbook that had been my Daddy's. In it was one of his homemade "bookmarks", cut from cereal box cardboard. It was tucked into the chapter on Luke and noted the Lord's prayer in Luke 11:2-4. Below...
Journaling as Means of Grace and a Way to Listen to Your Life
I think, as in this post that my friend, Deborah Ann Holstine shared. a case can be made for journaling......as a means to "listen to one's life" and in doing so, hearing what God has to say.Quote of the Day: If God Speaks IF GOD SPEAKS anywhere, it is into our personal lives that he speaks. Someone we love dies, say. Some unforeseen act of kindness or cruelty touches the heart or makes the blood run cold. We fail a friend, or a friend fails us, and we are appalled at the... capacity we all of us have for estranging the very people in our lives we need the most. Or maybe nothing...
Barbara Brown Taylor on “Learning to Walk in the Dark”
Barbara Brown Taylor, in an interview about "Learning to Walk in the Dark" says: "The darkest places in the world are the places where we can see the most stars. - There are about 100 references to darkness in the Bible and if you focus just on the word searches, the verdict is unanimous: Darkness is bad news........ At the linguistic level, darkness is almost uniformly negative from the beginning to the end of the Bible. But when I dug deeper and began to pay attention to narratives that took place at night or under cover of darkness, the whole focus changed from negative to positive....
When “affirmation” becomes a dirty word….
The word "affirmation" has been presented in some contexts in a way that makes it appear downright negative, implying unhealthy neediness and codependency and a lack of personal self-worth......The need for affirmation is a legitimate human psychological need. If one's need is a compelling urgency to have the approval of or identification with others, at the risk of compromising one's own values, integrity, and personal agency, that is not affirmation. It is idolatry.Proverb...s 25:11 The Message (MSG) The right word at the right time is like a custom-made piece of jewelry, And a wise...
Unwanted Gifts
Today, the day after Christmas, is the second biggest shopping day of the year....and the one in which many gifts are being returned to stores. This blog post reflects thoughts that came after reading Jennifer Rothschild's devotional today, "How to Accept A Gift You Never Wanted". One TV network has had a special segment this morning on how to effectively return gifts to stores, sell them on eBay, or "re-gift" with grace. So soon after the euphoric delight of Christmas and reality hits! You don't always get what you want. Jennifer Rothschild, who was the Hope for the Heart speaker at Lynn...
Christmas Gift
So many things remind me of my Daddy. Last night, Christmas Eve, I watched some of the music program from West Point. It was beautiful. Couldn't help but think about how proud Daddy was of his time spent there as an instructor to cadets. He had a cousin who worked there for years, too. The general in charge asked him to stay on there as an instructor, but his Dad had died and he wanted to be home with his family. He was always about family......Fond memories of being in his Mother's home as a child at Christmas time....all the cousins, aunts/uncles, presents, cakes and other food, laughter,...
Happy Thanksgiving Day…..make some memories!
I saw a comic strip the other day that showed a Thanksgiving Day family dining table scene from an earlier era, circa 1950 ....15-20 people gathered happily around a large table laden with various dishes and everyone smiling and talking. The next scene was a current day Thanksgiving Day scene. Dad, Mom, son and daughter were all seated on a sofa, each looking at their electronic devices...no conversation.....no dining table. No fellowship or fun. Hmmmmm.....What will the conversations be about at your table tomorrow? Bill and I had an interesting drive to Birmingham today. I drove. We left...
Many Are Called……
I have been thinking about the number of youth in our church who have expressed a desire to explore vocations in ministry. I have also reflected on how many are already in seminary or serving as licensed local pastors who have been "raised up" in our church. This linked article and my thoughts about the ways in which our church leaders are called and formed may be of interest if you have an interest in these matters. Cathy There’s More Than One Way…..CBByrd 11-25-14 http://www.episcopalcafe.com/daily/seminaries/called_to_ordination_in_the_hi.php This link to an article, reprinted recently in...
Convictions, College Campuses, and Grandchildren
Mike Adams is an educator, columnist, and activist for free speech on university campuses. I have read his columns from time to time on Townhall and was mostly interested in them because of his transformation from atheist to Christian. Reading his current column about Cru (formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ) is informative. Adams notes that Cru failed to stand up for free speech when its campus ministry was adversely affected by university decisions. He further states that Cru's leadership failed to stand in unity with him and other Christians in seeking freedom of speech when...
Monday Morning Musing …….on Grandmother
Monday Morning Musing I left home at 5:15am to pick up a young lady for work. On Monday morning she cleans the kitchen and bathrooms in a facility that gets a lot of weekend use. She cleans them again on Wednesday. It is an easy and appreciated transition back into employment for someone who hasn’t been employed in years due to despair and addiction. And she is quite dedicated to cleaning well, “as unto the Lord”. As I drove through the darkness and rain to pick her up, my thoughts were about my grandmother. As children we laughed at her going to bed shortly after dark, “with the...