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.
Values Education
One of the goals with students at Titus 2 is to have them examine and evaluate their values, what they believe is important in life, and especially whether or not they are living out their values, whether their conduct is congruent with what they say they value. Examining one's belief system and integrating it into the decision making process for one's conduct can go a long way toward motivating internal transformation when external pressure has been unsuccessful. Fundamentally, I believe that one's inner spirit desires that integrity between belief and conduct.... and, I believe that God...
Care in Attribution
I often hear Christian friends refer to certain difficult circumstances in their lives as "spiritual battle" or a "spiritual attack". They seem sure that satan is the hand behind their difficulties. Yet, we also know that nothing can come against us that has not first been sifted through God's loving hands. And, too, God will always be present to give us strength to persevere through trials. Although it may be difficult, it will lead to something out of which God will bring good. (Romans 8:28) In recent months some things had come against the Titus 2 ministry.....hard things, things that...
It Is What It Is….On Butterflies and Moths
"It is what it is" is a phrase I have been known to use from time to time. It reflects an acceptance of reality and recognition that some things cannot be changed. Recently, I observed a new student in our program saying this, too, on several occasions. At some point I will want to talk to her about her use of the phrase and what it means to her. If one uses it as an excuse for avoiding contemplation of the need or possibility of change, then it may not be so useful. In one of the discipleship classes this week we were watching a teaching video in which the speaker, Lisa...
Some Things Are Worth Remembering
For real- This is not a very pretty story, but it is true. Several years ago I was a regular pedicure client of an unnamed salon. I realized, though, I had nail fungus and quit going. I didn't want to take oral antifungal medication because of the liver damage warnings. I tried several topical OTC anti-fungal solutions. I also tried an old home remedy- mentholatum. None of them worked. Then I started using Young Living Essential Oils on my toenails, Purification and White Fir... in particular. Twice a day. Now 5 of the 10 nails are clear with healthy pink nail beds. The others are showing...
The Heart, Above All Things, Is Deceitful
“I know those scriptures, so what is wrong with me? Why do I still struggle with that same sin?” The answer lies within the heart, which often can only be discerned by the Holy Spirit's work deep within us. If we are not wholly committed to allowing God to shine the light on our deepest sinful selves, we will continue in self deception and be subject to repeatedly lapsing back into the sins that reside there. Pastors and counselors can help, but it is a deep work of humility in brokenness before the Lord and earnestly desiring his will. "Of all the psychological terms used for the person in...
Caribbean Pines
In one lesson with students we talk about "oaks" and "cedars"....in this arboreal lesson, Joni Eareckson Tada talks about a persevering evergreen - the Caribbean pines...... "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4 ... The Tamiami Trail is a long, straight highway across Florida's south Everglades. When I drove it with a friend, I was struck by the wild, rugged, oddly...
From Success to Significance
One of the classes that our Titus 2 students take is Robert McGee's "Search for Significance". Sometimes one only sees the purpose, impact, and value of an experience, a season of life, or of life itself from the perspective of the finish line. Yesterday I sat at a table with a clergywoman at St. Simon's Island. She said she was working on a sermon for Sunday . The title of her sermon, she said, was "Live Like You're Dying." I have read several accounts recently of people who are, in fact, dying. They have been given that definitive prognosis, "there is nothing else medical science can...
Deep Diving: Encounters of the God Kind
Where have you experienced a disconnection of soul in your life? How have you been brought back to center by an unexpected encounter with the sacred Other? How did your soul learn to breathe again?" I am not a diver, but living at the beautiful Gulf Coast, I have a number of friends and acquaintances that do. There is a joke I heard someone tell about himself having difficulty relating to his wife's spiritual conversations. He called her a "deep diver" and himself a "top floater". Kirk Squires writes this week about diving deep and the impact it had on his soul. I found myself...
Memoir
My daughter's journey into writing as part of her master's in fine arts degree program led to her asking me to share with her a bit about what it was like having three siblings. I could tell her about a family of six sharing one bathroom. I could tell her about eating lots and lots of chicken and rice or rice and tomato soup or egg gravy and biscuits. I could tell her about wearing cousins' hand-me-downs or dresses sewn by my grandmother or mother. I could tell her about battling with brothers in the back seat of a Chevrolet Impala for room on hour-long trips to grandparents'. I could...
Christian Gurus or the Real Deal?
I was reading the latest invitation to a women's conference with a stellar billing of well known speakers/writers and it got me to thinking about how many of us are "groupies" of this or that Christian "guru". Some people I know have done every study that has been published by this or that Christian teacher, but have never read the Bible in its entirety. Some choose to experience the Word only through the lenses of someone else's testimony and teaching. Ron Hutchcraft explores this phenomenon among Christians in today's devotional. He reminds us that our dependence on a person other than God...