Oliver Watson Price's Obituary
Oliver W. Price, servant of God, departed his Dallas, Texas home to meet Jesus face-to-face on March 21, 2016. Born December 21, 1921 on his family’s Somerville, Tenn. farm to Martha (Ritchie) and Oliver Burnett Price, Oliver Watson Price was the youngest of three children. He was raised on Lookout Mountain and in Chattanooga, Tenn. where his great musical talents on the sousaphone, bass horn and other instruments brought him much acclaim in the Chattanooga school system and the offer of a music scholarship to college. Following the loss of the family farm to boll weevils and the onset of the Great Depression, his parents divorced and as a result he lost contact with his father whom he loved and after whom he was named. He experienced not only poverty but a deep wounding of his soul. At age 17, after many lies to his teachers and mother about his school work, including lying about assignments in his Bible course, the Holy Spirit convicted Oliver that he was a wicked sinner who desperately needed God’s grace. He knelt down and called God his father. He prayed the words from two old hymns, “Just As I Am” and “Nothing But the Blood.” “I had come in out of the cold like a beggar, desperately needing a favor, and I had experienced my heavenly Father embracing me in warm tender love,” Oliver later wrote. “He gave me more than a favor. He gave me Himself.” Now committed to serving his heavenly Father at any cost, Oliver offered his life and his musical gifts to God. Oliver later joked that God said, “I’ll take you, but not your music.” Oliver gave up his music scholarship and attended at Columbia Bible College in South Carolina from 1938-1941 where he worked his way through college. In 1941 he transferred to Texas Christian University and began attending Ft. Worth Bible Church, where he met his spiritual father, Pastor W.E. Hawkins, and the love of his life, Betty Ruth Maxson. Brother Hawkins put Oliver to work in the church and Betty announced in prayer meeting that he was, “The answer to a maiden’s prayer.” At TCU, he met Dr. John Walvoord in a graduate course who became his life-long friend, mentor and ministry partner. After graduating from TCU, through the encouragement of Dr. Walvoord, Oliver enrolled in Dallas Theological Seminary where, in 1945, he earned his Th.M. That June, he married his Betty Ruth. They then journeyed to Brazil to serve as missionaries. Upon their return to Texas, Oliver began working again for Bro. W.E. Hawkins at the Ft. Worth Bible Church. That working relationship continued until Bro. Hawkins’ death in 1962 and included work for Radio Revival, Bible Prayer Fellowship, rural circuit riding preaching in tiny churches all over Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma, teaching Bible classes in rural public schools, sharing the Gospel at fairs and rodeos around the southwest, and running summer Bible camps in Arkansas. Brother Hawkins and Oliver Price were among the early organizers of the Bible church movement. Oliver served varyingly as founder, pastor and interim pastor of multiple Bible churches in Oklahoma and Texas from 1955 to 2012, including Farmers Branch Bible Church (later Metrocrest Bible Church) in Texas and Grace Bible Church of Del City, Oklahoma. Oliver’s life was characterized by humility and growing in grace. He overcame deep insecurities from childhood by memorizing the entire book of Ephesians while pastoring Grace Bible Church. The change in his life from appropriating his identity in Christ based on grace, rather than performance, was noticeable to his family and friends, especially his peace in the midst of adversity. While serving as the General Director and Minister at Large of Bible Prayer Fellowship, Oliver appeared on a weekly television and radio show teaching the Bible, he edited Revival Insights, a monthly Bible Prayer Fellowship publication with information and inspiration for praying for spiritual awakening, and wrote scripts for 60-second spot announcements for God Save America calls to prayer for spiritual awakening heard on Christian radio stations all over America. Although the author of numerous books, magazine articles, tracts and pamphlets, Oliver believed the most important one was his 1997 book The Power of Praying Together: Experiencing Christ Actively In Charge. The book explains how prayer is the key to developing true harmony in the home and in the church. Oliver said, “When we learn to listen to one another’s hearts in the presence of God we discover how often our differences can enrich our homes and churches instead of endangering them.” Oliver saw Christians in a divided church who could not speak to one another, hugging after four days of experiencing the power of praying together, allowing Christ to actively take charge and bring each one into unity in Christ. Although highly regarded within the evangelical community, Oliver’s greatest joy came from his relationships with his Savior and his family. In spite of his theological brilliance, his family knew him best as a loving, playful husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, uncle, cousin and friend. He was closely involved in the lives of his loved ones, visiting family from Costa Rica to California, playing with dolls and on playgrounds with his children and grandchildren, and spending hours on his knees in prayer each day for those dear to him. He truly practiced what he preached. Oliver W. Price was married to his beloved Betty Ruth, his best friend and prayer partner, for over 70-years and is survived by her. He was preceded to heaven by son, William E. “Bill” Price; grandson, Luke William Price; parents, Oliver Burnett Price and Martha Belle Ritchie; and siblings, Mary Belle Ramirez and Sylvester Price. He is survived by his children and their spouses: Patty & Wes Smith, Janet Price, Paul & Becky Price, and Ruth & Randall Smith; 13 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces, nephews and friends. Many of Oliver’s books and writings are available at www.praywithchrist.org. The family will receive friends Thursday, March 24, 2016 from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at Lewisville Bible Church, 609 S. Charles Street, Lewisville, TX. The service for Oliver Price will be held at 4:00 PM Friday, March 25, 2016 in The Memorial Chapel at Restland Funeral Home. Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Memorial Park, 13005 Greenville Avenue, at Restland Road, Dallas, TX 75243.
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