A Message Seven Years In The Making!

Dear RiverTown Family, 

I’ve heard it said many times: The Man IS The Message!  

The messenger so important because of the meaning, credibilty, and personal journey he represents!  This Sunday is one of those days that the messenger makes all the difference.  

Slowly, “under the radar” for seven years God has been preparing a soldier in our midst as a soldier for Christ! Matthew Cotner came to Columbus seven years ago as a U.S. Army Ranger and has served as a volunteer in every area of ministry inside and outside of the church that RiverTown has to offer.  He has now taken the position as a learning and growing ministry intern on our ministry staff in addition to still serving our nation as a contractor for The Rangers on Ft. Benning full time.  Matt teaches middle school and high school students on Wednesday nights for our family ministry and will lead our Sunday morning welcome teams!  All the volunteers in these ministries have been so excited about Matt and his wife Michelle’s Gung-Ho style and attention to the details going on in people’s everyday lives.  His humility and tremendous desire to learn has been so encouraging to all of us who have had the privilege to walk along side him in his journey!

Yesterday Matt gave me and the other men at our “Kingdom Man” HomeTeam a full preview of his message for Sunday Morning.   I was personally blown away by God’s power in Matt’s testimony and teaching.  The content of the message God has given him, Rich In Character, fits in perfectly with our series this month called BE RICH!  I have been saying to people all week, “Matt’s message is going to be soooooo good…..!”

We have found that a church does its best work in developing people when it is done slowly over time.  That’s what God has done in Matt’s life and ministry over the last seven years.  That’s also the only way a minister and a Man of God is made.  We will all find out Sunday how to apply the principles of this kind of tenacious journey to our own lives.  I am believing that God will use this message to show us how he wants to use RiverTown to be a church where thousands of people RICH IN CHARACTER are born.  

Two great milestones in my family’s life will also happen this weekend.  Melanie and I will celebrate our sixteenth wedding anniversary. God brought us together and he has been faithful to provide the love and life to sustain us every step of the way.  We have needed Christ in our marriage as much or more than anyone!  I am so grateful for her and the way she has been a faithful woman of God and pastor’s wife through every mountain and valley we have faced.  Please thank her when you see her for the gift she is to our Church family!  Thanks to the generosity of time off from preaching and our wonderful family taking care of our children, we will be spending a much needed weekend away together.  I will be excited to be back in preaching mode next Sunday for week three of BE RICH!  

Another milestone this Sunday will be the experience you will have being led in worship by our amazing praise team featuring our daughter Hannah as our primary worship leader.  This will be the first time she has ever put together all the songs and rehearsed with the band in preparation to lead you to God’s throne.  One day you will be able to say, “I was there on the first day when Hannah…”  

Needless to say, Melanie and I are super proud parents and are so thankful for the important role all of you play as spiritual examples and disciplers in the lives of our children.  You have supported us and loved us as a family and as your friends for almost fourteen years now and I wouldn’t take anything for the journey!

To God Be The Glory!  

All For Jesus,

Pastor David Rathel

If you missed last Sunday at RiverTown, you can check out my friend and mentor in ministry Pastor Buddy Lamb in his message “I AM RICH.”