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.
Communitas
Loneliness is not a function of being alone, but rather, a function of how socially connected you are to those around you. Grace Kim, Architect Kim designs "co-housing", where families live in close community and share a common area for evening meals and activities. Communitas is a fancy social science way of saying "spirit of community." For Kim, the measure of communitas is: How frequently do people eat together? She said that she knows some people in co-housing who have eaten together every single night for the past 40 years. Others have an occasional potluck once or twice a month. From...
We Are All Missionaries
I have often told my students that God will use all of us.... some will be good examples. Others will be horrible warnings.... Eric Liddell's experience as an Olympic runner was told in the movie Chariots of Fire. “We are all missionaries. Wherever we go, we either bring people nearer to Christ or we repel them from Christ.” —Eric Liddell, 1924 gold and bronze medal Olympian from Scotland. "Circumstances may appear to wreck our lives and God's plans, but God is not helpless among the ruins. God's love is still working. He comes in and takes the calamity and uses it victoriously, working out...
Wisdom from Dr. Henry Cloud: Enablers
Dr. Henry Cloud writes about addiction, enabling , and conflict. He cites several biblical principles. There’s one glaring one related to not enabling I want to add. Luke 15-19- “….the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, BUT NO...
“And”, Not “But”
Loving conversations leave out the “BUT”…. “ I love you AND……. (not BUT)…… I want God’s best for you. “ I will be available to listen whenever you are ready." I will help you anyway I can. “ We can work through this with God’s help.” There is always a way through whatever is in the way of you being happy and at peace.”
Examen: 50 Years
2 Corinthians 13:5 (NIV) Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? I am struggling tonight.... not in the same way as some have acknowledged suffering tonight with temptation to relapse in addiction. I struggle with how to face this day with joy. I have, since the first week of July, been in anticipation of today.... the 50th anniversary of marriage to my husband who died 2 years ago on Aug 6, 2020. I thought I was pacing my grief leading to this day, keeping...
Far More Valuable Than Rubies, Gold and Diamonds
On our 30th anniversary in 2002 Bill gave me a lovely delicately-styled gold bracelet with rubies and diamonds. It was a beautiful and sweet surprise. We renewed our vows that year. Unfortunately, in November of 2013, while our home was being remodeled a tile contractor broke into a locked chest and stole it and other jewelry. Though some of the jewelry was recovered, that bracelet never was... Later, Bill gave me a ruby necklace gracefully styled in a manner similar to the bracelet... On 7/22/2012, our 40th anniversary I had written this: "Proverbs 31: 10- "A wife of noble character who can...
Merry Makers Ministry
For a year and a half I led a group of women who went twice a month on Tuesday afternoons to spend an hour telling humorous stories, singing songs and visiting with residents at Mathison Retirement Center.. This is a report from our visit on 7/22/2014: We (4 Merry Makers and a couple of Titus 2 ladies) had a delightful afternoon in ministry at Mathison Retirement Center. Our program featured "river" songs...including Moon River! One gentleman sang it all the way through with his eyes closed, smiling....wonder who he was imagining as he sang....Audrey Hepburn or his beloved? We sang a rocking...
Religious Faith and Practice Impact On Health
Titus 2 Partnership's ministry focuses on three areas of developmental goals with individuals we serve: 1.) Personal identity in Christ 2.) Experiential perception of reality 3.) Development of healthy support system in faith community The following report demonstrates some of the physical and mental health benefits of the third goal. Reporting on a study of 59 countries, researcher Olga Stavrova reports, "the higher the regional level of religiosity was, the stronger the positive association between religion and self-reported health." Death records confirmed this trend. "Religious...
Adler and Family Systems
Family system therapy from an Adlerian perspective asserts that "human beings are essentially social, purposeful, subjective and interpretive in their approach to life (Sweeney, 1998). These attributes are no accident. They are required at least in part from the moment of birth. Without the social, physical, and emotional nurturing provided in the family, no infant would survive. Within the family, children quickly become active agents, defining and redefining the family constellation or system; striving for growth, significance, and meaning; and acting in line with their subjective, and too...
Fear God…..
“FEAR GOD AND YOU WILL FEAR NOTHING ELSE,” GOV. RON DESANTIS 7:22/2021 I’m always surprised when I discover that many Christians don’t understand the biblical call to fear God. It doesn’t mean quake and quiver with trembling anticipation of being struck by a lightning bolt or being sent straight to hell if you mess up…… it means revere, honor, trust, listen with respect, and obey God. He created us… He loves us. He will discipline us at times, but He does not punish His children.