Jimmy Jividen

Delta James (Jimmy) Jividen died on October 2, 2014. A funeral service will be held at 2:00 on Saturday, October 4, 2014, at Oldham Lane church of Christ. The burial will follow in Elmwood Memorial Park under the direction of The Hamil Family Funeral Home, 6449 Buffalo Gap Road in Abilene. A visitation will be held at the funeral home from 5:00-7:00 on Friday evening. Jimmy was born November 26, 1929, to Harvey and Ruby Jividen in Woodward County, Oklahoma. He grew up learning to love the land and knowing hard times and hard work, which taught him lessons he used throughout his life. He put on his Savior in baptism while attending County Line church of Christ in Woodward and often spoke of the influence this congregation had on him. Jimmy attended Abilene Christian College, graduating in 1951. While at ACC, he was involved in student life and served as the Student Body President his senior year. At the beginning of his senior year he met the young lady that would complete him, Shirley Jones. They married on June 30, 1951, in Oklahoma City, and began a lifetime of service to the Lord. He was a gospel preacher and author for over 60 years. Jimmy preached in local congregations and/or established congregations in Texas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Colorado, Nebraska, and California. In 1958 he received his MA in New Testament from ACC before York College recruited him to teach Bible and Greek. While at York he enjoyed mentoring many students. He did his doctoral work in Religion at the University of Southern California from 1960-1964. He was preaching minister at three congregations in Abilene: Hillcrest, Baker Heights, and Oldham Lane. While at Hillcrest he initiated “The Discipleship Program”, mentoring students from Abilene Christian University who had a desire to serve in the Lord’s church. Many of those students still serve, using lessons they learned and practiced in that program. Seeing the need for written material on biblical teaching, Jimmy wrote ten books to spread God’s message throughout the world. Some of his books have been translated into several languages. Articles that he has written have been published in numerous periodicals. He has held seminars and gospel meetings in most states and many countries. He continued preaching, teaching, and writing even while struggling with the effects of Parkinson’s. The messages he brought were always an encouragement to the people who heard him. Christian colleges and universities throughout the country have invited Jimmy to speak at lectureships and have recognized his role in training men to lead congregations in staying true to God‘s will. He has received awards from Harding University, Abilene Christian College, and Faulkner University. He has served on the board of the Restoration Quarterly and the ACU Alumni Association, serving for a time as president of both groups. Jimmy’s love of land and ranching continued through his life. He was always a good steward of his land, making improvements in many of the ranches that he and Shirley owned. His leadership in land management was recognized by Taylor County when he was named Rancher of the Year in 1988. Family time and family relationships were always important to Jimmy. Ties were strengthened with time spent together in worship, singing, service, fishing, camping, story-telling, talent shows, laughter, and tears. Everyone knew that Jimmy would provide love, guidance, and wisdom in times of trial and cheers and laughter in times of joy. He was preceded in death by his parents, his three brothers (Hubert, Gary, and Marlin), and his mother-in-law and father-in-law (Herman and Eva Jones). He is survived by Shirley (his wife of 63 years), three children and their spouses: Steve and Marta Jividen and their children (Paul and his wife Mené, Sarah and her husband Matt); Diane and Dale Huff and their children (Robert and his wife Kamila, Charissa and her husband Jared, Philip and his wife Joy, Jimmy and his wife Susan); Debbie and James McCoy and their children (Jama and her husband Mike, Mackenzie and her husband Nathan, Jividen and his wife InaBeth, Molly and her husband Timothy). Additionally, he is survived by 19 great-grandchildren.