April 7, 2013, Orange County Register, Rick Warren thankful for support after son's death, by Erika I. Ritchie,

April 7, 2013, Orange County Register, Rick Warren thankful for support after son's death, by Erika I. Ritchie,

Area clergy hold Saddleback Church pastor and his family in their prayers Sunday.

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Associate pastor Tom Holladay delivers his sermon at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest after telling the congregation that pastor Rick Warren's son Matthew had died. Warren had sent an email to the congregation that Matthew had died in an apparent suicide.
EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

LAKE FOREST – Pastor Rick Warren had prepared a message series for Saddleback Church's 30,000-plus members that he planned to deliver Sunday. Its title: "Surviving Tough Times"; part one: "What Do You Do on the Worst Day of Your Life?"

When Warren wrote the series, he had no idea he and his family would be the focus of the message or that his youngest son, Matthew, 27, would have taken his life two days earlier.

What he did know was he could count on support from his congregation. Early Sunday, Rick Warren tweeted: "Kay and I are overwhelmed by your love, prayers, and kind words. You are all encouraging our #brokenhearts."

Matthew Warren of Mission Viejo died about 10 a.m. Friday in an apparent suicide, Supervising Deputy Coroner Daniel Aikin said.

Services at the church's seven Orange County campuses were filled to capacity Saturday night and Sunday morning, church officials said.

"Everyone feels the Warren family is part of their family," Steve Rutenbar, Saddleback's pastor of relief and longtime Warren family friend, said Sunday. "Now it's time to hold their hands. Rick has always had the right encouragement from his heart. Now it's time to return that love to the Warren family."

Pastor Tom Holladay, Warren's brother-in-law, led services Sunday, asking the congregation to pray for Warren and his wife. He said the Warrens are facing the death of their son "by praying together, weeping together and being together, and seeking the hope that is available through faith in Jesus."

"I've done a lot of weeping for Rick and Kay and for my nephew Matthew," Holladay told the congregation. "I've done a lot of weeping this week. Talk to God with the emotion of your heart."

"Their (Rick and Kay's) heart is here with you, and for you to find hope in God and that you can find safety in him," he added.

Holladay went on to answer the rhetorical question of the sermon with five points: Weep; don't get bitter – forgive; encourage yourself in lord; hope in the future; and attack evil.

Across the county, pastors held the Warren family in their prayers. At RockHarbor in Costa Mesa, congregants were asked to pray for Saddleback Church and the Warren family.

In Irvine, Life Church pastor Phil Munsey dedicated his service to Warren. Rabbi Elie Spitz of congregation B'nai Israel in Tustin said such a tragedy prompts silence and sadness.

"Suicide is an act of compulsion to turn off pain," Spitz said. "It requires a response of compassion for the young man and his family and an embrace of both."

Warren on Saturday spoke openly of his son's death in an email to church members and local clergy. He said his son had been fighting mental illness. Church officials declined to elaborate. Reports on the cause of death are expected from the coroner's office Monday.

Rutenbar, who with his wife, Connie, and their three children vacationed often with the Warrens, recalled trips to June Lake in the eastern Sierras and Matthew Warren's sense of humor and intellect.

"Matthew was as bright as anyone could be," he said.

Rutenbar remembered Matthew Warren's joy at being called onto the ballfield at Angel Stadium of Anaheim during the church's 25th anniversary celebration.

"He treated that moment like he was a rock star," Rutenbar recalled. "Anyone looking at him knew he was having a good time."

Contact the writer: 949-492-5152,eritchie@ocregister.com or twitter.com/lagunaini

 

Associate pastor Tom Holladay delivers his sermon at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest after telling the congregation that pastor Rick Warren's son Matthew had died. Warren had sent an email to the congregation that Matthew had died in an apparent suicide.EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER


Congregants at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest leave services after hearing news that pastor Rick Warren's son Matthew had died.EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER




Congregants at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest raise their hands and embrace in worship after hearing news that pastor Rick Warren's son Matthew had died.
EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER



Matthew Warren