This past Sunday, our lesson during Life Group at Dawson included a section entitled “The Burden of Hopelessness.” While Ginny Bourland bore many burdens most of us never will, hopelessness was not one of them. Her battle with ovarian cancer ended yesterday as she passed from this life to the next for eternal healing in the arms of Jesus.
I didn’t know Ginny as well as some, but, like many I’ve prayed for her and her family since her diagnosis five years ago, and I’ve followed her journey through blog posts and updates at church. Like many others, I’ve also been inspired by her and the hopeful way she lived her life. Her ultimate hope never seemed to be that God would somehow miraculously cure her of cancer–although He certainly could have chosen to do so and we all would have preferred that ending. Her Hope was clearly in Jesus Christ and the abundant life he offers all who put their faith in him both now and forevermore. It was this Hope that led her to invest so fully in the lives of her husband and children, in spite of the physical and emotional burdens that could easily have weighed her down. It was this Hope that inspired her to share the ups and downs of her journey through blog posts, social media, and other outlets, allowing other people to see Christ clearly at work in her life. Ginny didn’t deny the reality of death that looms in the future for us all. Instead, she prepared for death by living life to the fullest. She prepared well, setting an example for us all.
Ginny, thank you for living your faith so well. You have inspired us all to abandon the burden of hopelessness regardless of our circumstances and live instead in the fullness of abundant life of Jesus Christ. We grieve, but we do so with great Hope.
The Journey 