The Ministry that Prayer Built

The ministry journey at Bethesda was birthed in prayer. When the Bethesda ministry was first started, one thing was clear:  Cathy and her family were destined to help women in Waycross, Ga., and the surrounding areas, find victory over the issues and struggles that disrupted their lives and the lives of their families.

   As they began to earnestly serve poor and homeless women, it became increasingly clear that the majority of women shared a very significant common denominator—drug and/or alcohol addiction. Understanding this through prayer, the Lord began to unfold His plan for Cathy to focus intensively on addiction recovery and to establish a residential program for women. In fact, the very address for the ministry came through prayer. Cathy and a few others drove to the address (1010 Mary Street, Waycross) after the prayer meeting and saw the large residence that would indeed become Bethesda House. The house, originally built in 1904 for a railroad family, was purchased about one year later with funds also raised through prayer. 

   While Cathy and her family and friends worked on repairing and restoring the residence, Cathy also started working closely with the esteemed psychologist Dr. Eileen Essberg, who  mentored Cathy professionally from 1994-98. In 1997, Cathy began pursuing a degree through Light University, and took advantage of numerous addiction training opportunities. In 2005 she entered Logos Seminary, which she completed a few years later.