Rev. Mike O'Dell Courtney, age 85 years, slipped from this life into the presence of his Lord on April 16, 2015. One of his life verses from the Bible has been fulfilled: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that dayand not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8) Mike was born on April 4, 1930, in Muskogee, Oklahoma. He was the first of three sons born to Herman Roscoe Courtney and Clara Forbis Courtney. The Courtney family followed Herman's work as a Master Carpenter to the towns of Pawhuska, Bartlesville, Nowata, Tulsa, Sapulpa, and Miami, Oklahoma. As did many young boys of his day, Mike began throwing a newspaper route at the age of 12. In high school, he worked at a Bartlesville grocery store and learned the trade of a meat butcher. The day after his graduation from Bartlesville High School in 1948, his family moved to Miami, Oklahoma, where he worked for a year before enrolling in Bethany-Peniel College (now Southern Nazarene University). In the fall of 1949, a group of freshmen were sitting in the men's barracks, daring each other to get a date for church that evening. No one believed Mike when he said he could get a date, but he walked down the hallway to the barrack's only telephone and called Ruth Brandon. She agreed to attend the evening service with him and a romance was born that would blossom for 65 years. Mike and Ruth were married on July 20, 1950, in Bartlesville. Mike was called to preach when he was 16 years old. When he told his pastor this news, he was immediately asked to preach the following Sunday. He graduated from Bethany-Peniel College in 1954 and was ordained as an elder in the Church of the Nazarene in 1955. He continued to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ even after his retirement. Mike was an avid reader throughout his lifetime. He was a student of world history, geography, and the English language. Instead of telling his children how to spell words when they asked, he instructed them to get the dictionary and, with his supervision, they would find the word and read the definitions. This happened so much that eventually, each of the children would know it was better to bypass Dad and go directly to the dictionary. His dry sense of humor was always near the surface. He enjoyed sharing funny stories with anyone who would listen. Even during his final hospital stay, many nurses, doctors, and visitors left his room with a smile from one of his stories. He lived Proverbs 17:22, "A cheerful heart is good medicine" Mike was preceded in death by his wife, Ruth Brandon Courtney; his parents, Herman and Clara Courtney; one half-brother, George; one brother, Philip Patrick; a daughter, Helen Frances; one grandson, Andrew David Ferrell. He is survived by his children - Margaret Rose and husband, Johnny, of Plainview, Texas; Annette Ferrell and husband, James, of Oklahoma City; George "Jack" Courtney, of Oklahoma City; daughter-in-law, Carol Courtney, of Bethany, Oklahoma; one brother, Jack and his wife, Joyce; one sister-in-law, Della Jo Courtney; his grandchildren - Bryan and Kathy Rose, Garron and Christine Rose, Travis Courtney, Brandon and Lauren Rose, Teresa Courtney, and Michael Courtney; nine great-grandchildren; six nieces and nephews; and by friends at Bethany First Church of the Nazarene and Bethany Place Apartments. Viewing will be Monday, 8am-9pm, with family present from 6-8pm at Mercer-Adams. Services will be Tuesday, April 21, 10:30am at Mercer-Adams Chapel. Funeral Service Tuesday, April 21, 2015 10:30 AM Mercer-Adams Chapel 3925 N. Asbury Bethany, OK 73008